HONOLULU – Jim Herman made it to Hawaii a week later than he had hoped and was happier than ever. He recovered from the coronavirus and had his lowest score in his 10th appearance at the Sony Open to get his year off to a good start.Peter Malnati had the early lead on a windy Thursday morning at Waialae with nine birdies for an 8-under 62, two shots better than anyone in his half of the field.Herman and Vaughn were each at 64.Herman was looking forward to starting his year on another island.
He qualified for the Sentry Tournament of Champions by winning the Wyndham Championship, his third career victory. But his COVID-19 test came back positive as he prepared to go to Maui, and self-isolation for 10 days left him no time to get to.