The Memorial Tournament 2024: Course & Field Preview, Key Stats, + Odds

The PGA Tour is back with another Signature Event this week, as the 2024 Memorial Tournament presented by Workday begins on Thursday, June 6, at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio. Also known as Jack's Place, Muirfield Village was designed by 18-time major winner Jack Nicklaus and has hosted the event every year since its inception in 1976.

The Memorial forever holds a special place in golf history, as the tournament has a prestigious group of past champions and is arguably the most renowned non-major tournament on the PGA Tour. Tiger Woods has infamously won at Jack's Place five times in his illustrious career, and fellow golf legends Ernie Els, Fred Couples, Jim Furyk, Steve Stricker, Vijay Singh, and Hale Irwin have also won here.

A star-studded 71-player field will unsurprisingly attend Muirfield Village this week, including 28 of the top 30 players in the Official World Golf Ranking . World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler , Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, Wyndham Clark, Collin Morikawa, and defending champion Viktor Hovland all made the trek to Dublin, Ohio. Patrick Cantlay, Max Homa, Hideki Matsuyama, Ludvig Aberg, Sahith Theegala, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Tommy Fleetwood, Sam Burns, and Tony Finau are also in the field.

BETTING ODDS

Scottie Scheffler (+350), Rory McIlroy (+750), Xander Schauffele (+800), and Collin Morikawa (+1400) enter the week as the betting favorites, according to BetRivers Sportsbook.

Viktor Hovland (+1800), Ludvig Aberg (+1800), Justin Thomas (+2200), Patrick Cantlay (+2500), Corey Conners (+3300), Tommy Fleetwood (+3300), and Hideki Matsuyama (+3300) are the rest of the players listed under 40/1 odds.

Jordan Spieth (+4000), Sam Burns (+4000), Russell Henley (+4000), Alex Noren (+4000), Max Homa (+4000), Wyndham Clark (+4000), Sahith Theegala (+4000), Sungjae Im (+5000), Matthew Fitzpatrick (+5000), Tony Finau (+5000), Byeong Hun An (+5000), Keegan Bradley (+5000) Si Woo Kim (+5000), Shane Lowry (+5000), Cameron Young (+5500), Tom Kim (+6000), Denny McCarthy (+6600), Jason Day (+6600), Sepp Straka (+6600), Billy Horschel (+6600), Christiaan Bezuidenhout (+6600), and Will Zalatoris (+6600) fill up the jam-packed middle tier of the betting board.

Lucas Glover (+8000), Tom Hoge (+8000), Harris English (+8000), Brian Harman (+8000), Stephan Jaeger (+9000), J.T. Poston (+9000), Chris Kirk (+10000), Thomas Detry (+10000), Mackenzie Hughes (+10000), Taylor Pendrith (+10000), Ben Griffin (+10000), Justin Rose (+10000), and Kurt Kitayama (+10000) are the rest of the players under 120/1.

For the complete tournament odds board, click here .

*Odds subject to change*

PAST WINNERS

2023: Viktor Hovland (-7)

2022: Billy Horschel (-13)

2021: Patrick Cantlay (-13)

2020: Jon Rahm (-9)

2019: Patrick Cantlay (-19)

KEY STATS

SG: Approach

Fairways Gained

Total Driving

Par-4s: 450-500 Yards

Par-3s: 200+ Yards

Proximity 175-200 Yards/200-225 Yards

SG: Around-The-Green

Bogey Avoidance

Sand Saves

Par-5 Scoring

THE COURSE

Muirfield Village GC (par 72) has been a staple on Tour for nearly 50 years, but Nicklaus completely remodeled the course in 2020 after Cantlay was able to shoot 19-under in the previous year. Birdie fests aren't allowed at Jack's Place!

Nicklaus decided to remodel all 18 green complexes, reposition multiple fairway and greenside bunkers, and add over 150 yards of distance, among other changes. Muirfield Village now stretches 7,569 yards and features tighter fairways, 68 well-placed sand bunkers, the sixth-smallest greens on Tour, and penal four-inch Kentucky Bluegrass rough. There are also 13 holes where water hazards come into play.

The Memorial has been one of the most demanding non-major events on the schedule in recent years, with danger lurking all over the course. Playing from the fairway will be essential to stay in contention, as the fairway rough will be nearly impossible to maneuver out of. Staying in the fairway, hitting greens in regulation, and having a tidy short game are three keys to victory this week.

Among the 10 par-4s, six are longer than 450 yards. Three of the four hardest holes on the course are par-4s on the back nine, with Nos. 17 (503 yards) and 18 (480) being a brutal closing stretch. However, Nos. 3 (392 yards) and 9 (417 yards) are two birdie chances before the turn.

Three of the four par-3s play over 200 yards, with the average distance being 198 yards. Funny enough, the 180-yard 12th hole carried the highest bogey rate of the bunch last year. Coming away with a par will suffice just fine on the par-3s.

Each of the four par-5s played as the easiest holes on the course last year and will be pivotal scoring chances for the field. However, Nicklaus made sure to beef up the par-5s during his recent remodel, which has forced more layups during the past two years. The par-5s at Muirfield Village were the fifth-toughest par-5s on the PGA Tour in 2023.

With the course playing so difficult from tee to green, every player will find themselves in trouble at some point throughout the tournament. While accuracy off the tee and precision with the irons will go a long way, there will be times when a lofty short game is required. Like most major championships, having all parts of the game going feels like a requirement to win this tournament.

This week, I'll target superb total drivers in elite form with their long irons and have past success on Nicklaus-designed courses. Like most major-championship-level setups, it's also crucial to have a sturdy enough short game to get out of dodge occasionally. You'll need the full package to win at Jack's Place.

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