Hyundai Tournament of Champions (January 7 – 10); Kapalua Resort
Jordan Spieth put to rest any concern that he’d be flat coming out of the blocks after his historic 2015 campaign by winning the Hyundai Tournament of Champions at Kapalua.
Spieth fired 66, 64, 65 and 67 on the par 73 course and pocketed $1.18 million for his effort. Spieth beat runner-up by 8 shots, basically turning the final round into a victory lap on Maui.
The full Spieth arsenal was on display – hitting fairways, consistent iron play and a rock-solid short game. Patrick Reed (-22) was runner-up with Brandt Snedeker, Brooks Koepka and Rickie Fowler rounding out the top 5.
Sony Open (January 14 -17); Waialae Country Club – Honolulu, HI
Fabian Gomez defeated Brandt Snedeker on the second hole of sudden death to capture the Sony Open. Gomez was able to make his way into the play-off after a sizzling final round of 8 under par 62.
It was Gomez’ second career PGA Tour victory to go along with his win at last year’s FedEx St. Jude Classic. Zac Blair, Si Woo Kim placed 3rd and 4th respectively with Greg Owen and Kevin Kisner tying for 5th place.
The win was worth $1,044,000 and 500 FedEx Cup points for Gomez. It also qualified the Argentinian for the 2016 Masters.
CareerBuilder Challenge (January 21 – 24); PGA West – La Quinta, CA
Jason Dufner returned to the winner’s circle by capturing the CareerBuilder Challenge in a playoff over David Lingmerth at PGA West. Both players ended 72 holes of play at 25 under par and Dufner defeated Lingmerth on the second hole of sudden death. Dufner holed a 10-foot par putt on the first extra hole to extend the playoff. Dufner stumbled into the clubhouse with a round of 70 after torching the course (64,65 and 64) during the first three rounds. Lingmerth dominated the weekend with a third round 62 and final round 65, but couldn’t close the deal in the playoff. Lingmerth was looking for just his 2nd PGA tour win. He won Jack Nicklaus’ Memorial Tournament in 2015.
Andrew Loupe, Phil Mickelson and Kevin Na rounded out the top 5 but tying for 3rd place at 21 under par.
It was Dufner’s first win since capturing the PGA Championship in August of 2013 and the first victory since his divorce in early 2015.
Farmers Insurance Open (January 21 – Feb 1); Torrey Pines – San Diego, CA
Capping off a tremendous month, Brandt Snedeker fired the best single round of 2016 so far in the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines. It wasn’t the lowest round of the year, not even close, but his 3 under par 69 in the rain and wind was more than 8 shots better than the average score.
Snedeker summed it up best himself, “It’s like playing a British Open on a U.S. Open set-up.” Eventually, the 30 mile per hour winds and rain forced suspension of play. Snedeker finished his round early Sunday, after starting several shots off the lead. A large group of players were forced to finish their rounds on Monday, including third round leader Scott Brown and playing partners Jimmy Walker and K.J. Choi.
