KAPALUA, Maui » Zach Johnson and Jimmy Walker offer contrasting styles of play, but both have been successful on Hawaii’s two prominent golf courses.

Since the Hyundai Tournament of Champions moved to Maui in 1999, Johnson is one of only four golfers to win here and at Waialae Country Club. The other three are Jim Furyk, Ernie Els and Vijay Singh.

Johnson is the defending champion here and Walker is the defending champion at the Sony Open in Hawaii that will be played next weekend on Oahu. While Walker hasn’t mastered the Plantation Course well enough to hoist a trophy, he put himself in position to do so on Saturday with a second-round 68 that left him in a tie for first with Johnson, Russell Henley — also a winner at Waialae — and Sang-Moon Bae.

The tale of the tape between Johnson and Walker is like a heavyweight boxer against a middleweight. Johnson is small in stature, relatively short off the tee and a master from 100 yards and in. Walker, on the flip side, is a tall glass of water, long off the tee and capable of reaching most par-5s in only two shots.

At 38, Johnson is three years older than Walker, has won 11 times and stared down Tiger Woods to take the 2007 Masters. Walker went 187 tournaments before finally landing in victory lane at the Frys.com in 2013. He won three of the first eight events of the 2013-14 tour season and managed top-10s in three majors last year.

When asked to compare himself with Johnson, Walker provided a thoughtful response.

"Zach is a great player and he’s proven he can win anywhere on any golf course," Walker said. "He’s got a great wedge game. He’s a good putter and he’s very consistent off the tee. So, that’s a recipe for when he’s on, he’s going to be tough.

"As far as myself, drive it far, good iron player, good putter. When they are all playing well, I think it doesn’t matter where you’re playing golf, honestly."

Johnson is all about ball flight. He concedes winning here on the mountain range of West Maui and then again on the flat track of Waialae, at first glance, would seem contradictory. But it’s more similar than you think.

"I like what both golf courses present," Johnson said. "And they are vastly different, yet almost kind of the same. Hard to explain. Obviously, one is hilly, one is very flat. But when it comes to execution with the wind and trajectory control, they are both very similar and I like that kind of golf. That’s kind of what I grew up playing.

"Controlling the trajectory and paying attention to the wind, sometimes you’ve got to be conservative and other times you can be aggressive. Just knowing when and where to play."

Walker knows all about the wind. Originally from Oklahoma, Walker moved to the Lone Star State when he was 10 and considers himself a Texan. If you live in south Texas, you have to learn to play in the wind. And if you can swing in the wind there, chances are, you can do it here as well.

"Yeah, I’m used to playing in it," Walker said. "It blows in south Texas, it definitely does. And then went to school at Baylor, in Waco. So, if you’ve ever been to Waco, it blows hard, especially in the winter. Those fronts come down and we get a lot of wind."

If Walker manages a victory on Monday, he will become the fifth player to win here and on Oahu. As for Johnson, he feels honored to be mentioned in the same breath as Furyk, Singh and Els.

"It means a lot," Johnson said. "I guess it means I like Hawaii, first and foremost."