The 2024 PGA Tour season begins this week with The Sentry at Kapalua in Lahaina, located on the island of Maui.
All of the winners from the 2023 PGA Tour season that are in good standing with the Tour are on hand. In addition to this, some of the game’s best stars that finished inside the top 50 of last season’s FedEx Cup standings, including World No. 4 Viktor Hovland.
New this season on the PGA Tour is a return to the calendar-year schedule format. That means that this week will be the season opener and the 2024 campaign will last until the Tour Championship in August.
Eight months of competition and as a result of their not being any fall events, some of those sponsors have come into the spring schedule throughout this season, such as the Byron Nelson in May also adding The CJ Cup.
Throughout the season, there are eight Signature events, which take the place of last year’s designated events, including this week’s The Sentry. That means higher purses and an opportunity for fans to see the PGA Tour’s top players at an event.
The Plantation Course at Kapalua is a par-73, measuring 7,596 yards. Players are going to be challenged in this no-cut event with elevation changes, possible windy conditions and slow greens. In order to win this week, players need to refrain from three putting and take advantage of the irons into greens.
Last year, this course was the easiest on Tour as the entire field took off nearly four strokes on the scorecard. There are no water holes compared to 93 bunkers, the fourth-most for a course this season.
Related: World Golf Rankings: A look at the top 10 at the conclusion of 2023
What channel is The Sentry on?
The Sentry will be televised between NBC and the Golf Channel.
Television schedule for The Sentry
| Round | Date | Time (ET) | TV |
| 1 | Thursday, January 4 | 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. | Golf Channel |
| 2 | Friday, January 5 | 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. | Golf Channel |
| 3 | Saturday, January 6 | 4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. | NBC Golf Channel |
| 4 | Sunday, January 7 | 4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. | NBC Golf Channel |
Also read: Top takeaways from the 2023 Tour Championship
Other coverage for The Sentry
In addition to NBC and the Golf Channel, The Sentry will also be broadcasted on ESPN+ and Peacock. PGA Tour Live for the marquee and feature groups can be exclusively found on ESPN+ for all four days of the tournament, in addition to the featured holes around the course.
The Sentry will also be on the airwaves of Sirius XM through PGA Tour Radio.
Thursday, January 4 (Round 1)
ESPN+: 12:30 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 4:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. ET
Friday, January 5 (Round 2)
ESPN+: 12:45 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 4:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. ET
Saturday, January 6 (Round 3)
ESPN+: 1:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 4:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 3:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET
Sunday, January 7 (Round 4)
ESPN+: 1:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 4:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 3:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET
How much are tickets for The Sentry?
Tickets for The Sentry begin at $150 to be part of the gallery and prices are increased for hospitality venues. Gallery tickets for Sunday are no longer available.
Kama’aina tickets to local Hawaii residents as well those who currently serve or have served are available for Thursday and Friday.
Also, two youths, ages 15 and under receive admission with a ticketed adult.
Payout for The Sentry 2023
The total purse is $20 million, and the winner will receive $3.6 million. In addition, because this is one of the eight Signature events, the winner will receive 700 points towards the FedEx Cup standings, giving the champion an early advantage after the first tournament.
Who are some of the top golfers in The Sentry 2024 field?
There are 59 players competing this week, making it the largest field in tournament history that includes 21 of the top 25 and 38 of the top 50 ranked players in the world, including Hovland, who currently enters the week at No. 4.
Eight of the top 10 and 10 of the top 12 players in the world rankings are in the field, including World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who looks to continue his strong 2023 campaign into 2024. He had three wins last year at the WM Phoenix Open and The Players Championship before returning to the winner’s circle at the Hero World Challenge last month.
World No. 6 Xander Schauffele returns to Kapalua after having to withdraw last year, his first withdrawal of his PGA Tour career.
There are a dozen first-timers in the field this week, including 20-year-olds Ludvig Aberg and Aksha Bhatia, as well as a couple of winners from the Fall Swing in Erik van Rooyen and Camilo Villegas.
The 41-year-old Villegas won the Butterfield Bermuda Championship a couple months ago for his first PGA Tour win in nearly a decade. In addition, Chris Kirk, who won the Honda Classic last year (now named the Cognizant Classic this season) for his first win since 2015, is on hand for his first appearance at Kapalua.
Related: Top 10 PGA Tour players of 2023
The Sentry picks: 5 players with the best chance to win
Collin Morikawa
Despite two different stints of back injuries last year, including withdrawing from the Netflix Cup in November, Collin Morikawa arrives in Hawaii with the motivation to win, not only for himself, but for the state of Hawaii. Five months ago, fire ravaged homes and businesses in Lahaina, including Morikawa’s grandfather’s restaurant on Front Street. During the FedEx Cup Playoffs, he donated money to those affected by the devastation for every birdie he made.
Last year, Morikawa had a 54-hole lead before giving it up by shooting just 1-under 72, finishing as the runner-up. In four appearances at Kapalua, Morikawa finished no worse than seventh.
Scottie Scheffler
The top player in the world arrives to Paradise looking to win for the second straight month after posting 20-under in the Bahamas to win the Hero World Challenge. The key to victory in the win was his putting. If Scheffler can get the putter going, especially after what we saw last month, this could be the beginning not just for this week but for this season after having one of the best seasons in PGA Tour history.
Ludvig Aberg
Ludvig Aberg comes to Kapalua with the least amount of experience after earning his PGA Tour status nine months ago. Since then, Aberg has matured into a competitor who can compete with the best of them, whether it was at the Ryder Cup for Team Europe or winning The RSM Classic a couple months ago.
Last season, Aberg ranked third in greens in regulation percentage, second in strokes gained off the tee and sixth in driving distance. Aberg, who only missed one cut in 11 events last year, has the opportunity to continue his success in this no-cut event in the start of what could be a breakout season.
Viktor Hovland
The reigning FedEx Cup winner is looking to keep the good times rolling following his FedEx Cup victory last August. Hovland, who recorded three PGA Tour wins last year, has become one of the best all-around players in the game right now with his driving, approach and putting and if he can continue that, he is a dangerous player.
Xander Schauffele
For the first time in his PGA Tour career, Xander Schauffele withdrew from an event at Kapalua last year. Schauffele, who is making his seventh appearance at Kapalua, has finished inside the top 12 in each of his last four completed events, including winning this event five years ago.
Schauffele has found a way to compete with the best, recording the most top-10s without a win last season. His 11 top-10s came with two runners-up, including at the TOUR Championship last year.
The Sentry pairings
All times ET; FG: Featured Group
| Round 1: 1 tee | Round 2: 1 tee | Players |
| 12:45 p.m. (FG) | 2:51 p.m. | Collin Morikawa, Xander Schauffele, Tom Kim |
| 12:57 p.m. | 3:03 p.m. | Brian Harman, Eric Cole, Camilo Villegas |
| 1:09 p.m. | 3:15 p.m. | Seamus Power, Adam Schenk, Lee Hodges |
| 1:21 p.m. | 3:27 p.m. | Luke List, Daivs Riley, Hideki Matsuyama |
| 1:33 p.m. | 3:39 p.m. | Nick Hardy, Russell Henley, Sepp Straka |
| 1:45 p.m. | 3:51 p.m. | Patrick Rodgers, Tom Hoge, Byeong Hun An |
| 1:57 p.m. | 4:03 p.m. | Denny McCarthy, J.T. Poston, Mackenzie Hughes |
| 2:09 p.m. | 4:15 p.m. | Si Woo Kim, Cameron Young, Harris English |
| 2:21 p.m. | 4:27 p.m. | Tommy Fleetwood, Tony Finau, Patrick Cantlay |
| 2:33 p.m. | 4:39 p.m. (FG) | Max Homa, Ludvig Aberg, Rickie Fowler |
| 2:51 p.m. | 12:45 p.m. (FG) | Nico Echavarria, Matt Wallace |
| 3:03 p.m. | 12:57 p.m. | Keegan Bradley, Tyrrell Hatton, Matt Fitzpatrick |
| 3:15 p.m. | 1:09 p.m. | Akshay Bhatia, Nick Taylor, Cam Davis |
| 3:27 p.m. | 1:21 p.m. | Vincent Norrman, Chris Kirk, Brendon Todd |
| 3:39 p.m. | 1:33 p.m. | Lucas Glover, Sungjae Im, Adam Hadwin |
| 3:51 p.m. | 1:45 p.m. | Adam Svensson, Kurt Kitayama, Emiliano Grillo |
| 4:03 p.m. | 1:57 p.m. | Erik van Rooyen, Jason Day, Corey Conners |
| 4:15 p.m. | 2:09 p.m. | Taylor Moore, Andrew Putnam, Justin Rose |
| 4:27 p.m. | 2:21 p.m. | Sam Burns, Sahith Theegala, Wyndham Clark |
| 4:39 p.m. (FG) | 2:33 p.m. (FG) | Jordan Spieth, Scottie Scheffler, Viktor Hovland |