Fashion report card: Hawaiian-shirt Viktor Hovland returns, Jason Day debuts funky pants and more at The Sentry
3 Min Read
Written by Stephanie Royer
New PGA TOUR season, old styles.
The 2024 season kicked off from The Sentry as part of Opening Drive, the PGA TOUR's two-week celebration in the Aloha State. And the opening outfits might bring back some memories.
Traditionally, players gravitate toward tropical print at The Sentry. Sometimes they've taken it a step further. Who can forget how J.J. Spaun, 2022 Valero Texas Open champion, divided the golf world wearing an untucked, floral button-down Aloha shirt at the 2023 edition of the tournament?
Or let's go even further back memory lane to the original Kapalua un-tucker, a 29-year-old Rickie Fowler — a tropical print aficionado in his own right — who had critics rearing in the 2018 edition of the tournament. "It's very Maui," Fowler said at the time.
On the left, Rickie Fowler at the 2018 Sentry. In the middle, J.J. Spaun swings at the 2023 Sentry. On the right, Rickie Fowler at the 2023 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play. (Getty Images)
This year, the Sentry Insurance Foundation is donating $1,000 per Aloha-themed clothing item (hat, shirt, pants, shoes) in Round 2 to fundraising efforts towards relief for the Aug. 8 Maui fires. Within the print lies a purpose.
So grab a red marker and take a seat at your desk. It's time to hand out some style grades.
Grade: Pass
Jordan Spieth donned his signature Under Armour blue, peppered with red hibiscus flowers. Sepp Straka, wearing Mizzen+Main, and Justin Rose, clad in Peter Millar, assisted in covering the spectrum of blues.
Hawaiian shirt-clad Viktor Hovland is back and better than ever. He added to the legend of his first-round Masters look with an eye-catching tropical coral J. Lindeberg polo. Akshay Bhatia joined him in tackling the flamboyant colors in a Greyson Clothiers tropical print complemented by navy pants and a snakeskin belt
Adam Schenk blinded the gallery in bright pink, channeling the Lokelani rose state color of Maui, Hawaii.
Grade: A+
Eric van Rooyen just set the curve. Wearing Greyson Clothiers, the South African native showed out in an indigo-to-red gradient polo adorned with tropical palm trees.
Eric van Rooyen during the second round of The Sentry. (Getty Images)
Extra credit
Correlation does not equal causation — but there's no denying that Tyrrell Hatton (whose Friday 62 was the low round of the day) and Sahith Theegala (who led after Round 1) are both playing some serious golf wearing some serious floral atop their heads. Never mind that Hatton paired his hat with a purple-and-neon-green striped polo. Golfers, perhaps it's time to invest in a funky hat.
2023 Rookie of the Year Eric Cole took the floral motif a step further with a custom blue-and-red Hawaiian printed golf bag.
Honorable mentions
Jason Day and the Nike swoosh are no longer, as Day announced his new partnership with Malbon Golf earlier this week. Right off the bat, Day is making quite the statement with loose-fit pants featuring a bold, non-tropical print.
Sure, Nico Echavarria's Original Penguin shirt may be decorated with a tropical fruit — but in a different context. A run at the leaderboard over the weekend and he may very well earn those martinis.
Wyndham Clark in ... camo? Perhaps he's remembering his 2023 U.S. Open victory, where he laid low before systematically hunting down the win.
Nico Echavarria (left), Jason Day (middle) and Wyndham Clark (right) during the second round of The Sentry. (Getty Images)
Stephanie Royer is on staff at the PGA TOUR. She played on her college golf team and is currently on a meaningful journey to travel to every destination in the "National Treasure" movies.