Scheffler sidelined as PGA Tour fires back up for season opener at The Sentry

The PGA Tour's 2025 season gets underway at The Sentry.

The World No.1’s absence leaves the PGA Tour’s opening event wide open. Here’s everything you need to know ahead of The Sentry.

After undergoing hand surgery following a freak Christmas dinner injury, Scottie Scheffler misses the chance to start the new year where he left off in 2024 by adding another title to his rapidly lengthening resume.

The Sentry is the first of two Hawaii-based events that kick-start the 2025 PGA Tour season and comes with Signature Event status, meaning a limited field of just 60 players will compete for a share of the elevated $20 million prize fund.

Formerly known as ‘The Sentry Tournament of Champions’, The Sentry welcomes all tournament winners from 2024 as well as the top 50 in last season’s FedExCup standings. Last year saw American Chris Kirk pick up a sixth PGA Tour victory, holding off Sahith Theegala by a stroke to claim the biggest win of his career to date.

Where is The Sentry played?

The Sentry is hosted at the Plantation Course at Kapalua, Maui. The bucket-list track was designed by Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore and offers dramatic ocean views from virtually every hole. The lengthy 7,596-yard par 73 layout boasts dramatic elevation changes and plenty of downhill tee shots keeping with its location on the slopes of the West Maui Mountains.

• Golf World Top 100 Best Golf Resorts in the World

Who’s in the field at The Sentry?

Six of the top 10 in the Official World Golf Rankings line up among The Sentry’s stacked field. Two-time major winner from 2024 Xander Schauffele headlines in the absence of Scheffler. Also missing will be Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood who open their 2025 campaigns on the DP World Tour in the coming weeks.

The finalized field can be found here.

Who will win The Sentry?

Selected odds (pre-tournament):

Xander Schauffele 5/1

Justin Thomas 12/1

Collin Morikawa 12/1

Patrick Cantlay 16/1

Ludvig Aberg 16/1

Hideki Matsuyama 20/1

Sahith Theegala 25/1

Wyndham Clark 35/1

Max Homa 50/1

How much prize money will the winner receive at The Sentry?

The season’s first champion of the year will receive $3.6 million from the $20 million prize fund and 700 FedExCup points.

Who has won the Sentry?

How to watch The Sentry

Viewers in the US can watch all four days via the Golf Channel.

All times EST

Thursday, 02 January: Golf Channel, 18.00

Friday, 03 January: Golf Channel, 18.00

Saturday, 04 January: Golf Channel, 16.00

Sunday, 05 January: Golf Channel, 16.00

Viewers in the UK can watch the event on Sky Sports Golf.

All times BST

Thursday, 02 January: Sky Sports Golf, 18.00

Friday, 03 January: Sky Sports Golf, 18.00

Saturday, 04 January: Sky Sports Golf, 18.00

Sunday, 05 January: Sky Sports Golf, 18.00

The Sentry 2025: Tee Times

Tee times and groups can be found here once released.

About the author

Ross Tugwood – Senior Digital Writer

Ross Tugwood is a Senior Digital Writer for todays-golfer.com, specializing in data, analytics, science, and innovation.

Ross is passionate about optimizing sports performance and has a decade of experience working with professional athletes and coaches for British Athletics, the UK Sports Institute, and Team GB.

He is an NCTJ-accredited journalist with post-graduate degrees in Performance Analysis and Sports Journalism, enabling him to critically analyze and review the latest golf equipment and technology to help you make better-informed buying decisions.