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Bob Weeks Picks Six – The Sentry
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The PGA Tour starts its 2025 season after its annual break, which must be the shortest off-season in professional sports.
However, if you’re going to start a season, Hawaii isn’t a bad place to do it. Once again, Kapalua welcomes those who won a tournament last year as well as those finished inside the top 50 on the FedEx Cup standings for The Sentry.
As such, the field is deep with talent, although there are some heavyweights missing in action. Scottie Scheffler is recovering from an injury to his palm (he’s expected back at the American Express) while Rory McIlroy is resting up in Florida ahead of the launch of TGL, the indoor simulator golf league.
This season, Pick Six is not only going to give you six selections – as the name suggests – but also a few other picks each week. Hopefully they’ll add to your thinking before you head over to FanDuel.
To Win
Xander Schauffele +550
Schauffele is coming off one of the great seasons by any player, with wins in two majors and 15 top-10 finishes. However, the year was overshadowed by the performance of Scheffler. Schauffele won this tournament in 2019. Last year, he finished in 10th spot. He’s coming into this event hoping to close the gap on Scheffler for world No. 1, even though that’s a wide margin. No better place to start than this week.
Justin Thomas +900
What a difference a year makes. Last year at this time, Thomas was struggling to find his game after a mediocre season in 2023. While he didn’t win in ’24, he did manage six top 10s and a runner-up finish at the Zozo Championship to end the year. Thomas has had success at the Sentry before, winning the title in 2020 and ‘17. The return to form would be complete with a win this week.
Top 10
Patrick Cantlay +160
Cantlay hasn’t won since the 2022 BMW, but he has managed 14 top-10 finishes in the past two seasons. He remains one of the best putters on the PGA Tour and that won’t hurt this week in Hawaii where there’s a need to make a lot of birdies.
Sungjae Im +170
Im has finished inside the top eight in three of his four starts at Kapalua, including a tie for fifth last year. He has an all-around solid game finishing last season 22nd in Strokes Gained: Total. His scoring average was 69.51, showing just how consistent he is week to week, course to course.
Top 20
Akshay Bhatia +100
Bhatia won his second PGA Tour event last season, taking the Valero Texas Open in a playoff. He added two more top-five finishes for his year and ended the campaign in 26th spot in the FedEx Cup standings. His game is solid (although he could improve his wedge play) but he certainly seems to be getting better each season.
Taylor Pendrith +140
Canadian golf fans know that Pendrith is on the rise. After notching his first win on the PGA Tour last season, the Richmond Hill, Ont., product continued his hot hand, logging six top-22 finishes to conclude his year. He finished 10th in driving distance and fifth in Strokes Gained: Putting – a tremendous combination that should see his fine play continue into 2025.
Bonus Picks
Top UK&I Player
Robert MacIntyre +170 – Is up against Matt Fitzpatrick, Aaron Rai and Harry Hall.
Top Canadian
Taylor Pendrith +210 – Nice odds for all the reasons mentioned above.
First Round Leader
Collin Morikawa +2200 – Led the PGA Tour in first-round scoring last year