The PGA Tour's FedEx Cup Playoffs begin this week with the 2024 FedEx St. Jude Championship in Memphis, Tennessee. TPC Southwind, designed by Ron Prichard with help from player consultants Fuzzy Zoeller and Hubert Green, has hosted the tournament since the course was established in 1988.
After being a standard PGA Tour event until 2018, the 'St. Jude Classic' received a World Golf Championship title from 2019-2021, which led to stacked player fields and more recognition surrounding the tournament. Then, the PGA Tour made further changes to the event by naming it the first leg of the FedEx Cup Playoffs in 2022, replacing The Northern Trust in Boston.
For the second consecutive year, only the top 70 players in the FedExCup Standings are making the trip to TPC Southwind, down from 125 players in years past. The top 50 following this week will advance to the BWM Championship in Colorado, while the top 30 will then head to Atlanta for the Tour Championship. FedEx Cup standings points are quadrupled during the first two legs of the playoffs, allowing players to cash in on a solid late-season run.
Here's the top 70 in the FedExCup Standings leading into this week.
THE ODDS
Scottie Scheffler (+335), Xander Schauffele (+700), and Rory McIlroy (+900) enter this week as the betting favorites, according to BetRivers Sportsbook.
Collin Morikawa (+1200), Ludvig Abeg (+2000), Tommy Fleetwood (+2200), Hideki Matsuyama (+2200), Patrick Cantlay (+2500), Corey Conners (+3300), Tony Finau (+3300), Russell Henley (+3300), Viktor Hovland (+3300), and Tom Kim (+3300) round out the group of players listed below 40/1 odds.
Shane Lowry (+4000), Sungjae Im (+4000), Billy Horschel (+4500), Sam Burns (+5000), Wyndham Clark (+5000), Aaron Rai (+5000), Sahith Theegala (+5000), Justin Thomas (+5000), Cameron Young (+5000), Byeong Hun An (+6600), Christiaan Bezuidenhout (+6600), Jason Day (+6600), Matthew Fitzpatrick (+6600), Brian Harman (+6600), Adam Scott (+6600), and Jordan Spieth (+6600) fill up the middle tier of the betting board.
Akshay Bhatia (+7000), Sepp Straka (+7000), Keegan Bradley (+8000), Max Homa (+8000), Min Woo Lee (+8000), Alex Noren (+8000), Davis Thompson (+8000), Robert MacIntyre (+9000), Denny McCarthy (+9000), and Si Woo Kim (+9000) are the rest of the players under 100/1.
For the complete tournament odds board, click here .
*Odds subject to change*
PAST WINNERS
2023: Lucas Glover (-15)
2022: Will Zalatoris (-15)
2021: Abraham Ancer (-16)*
2020: Justin Thomas (-13)*
2019: Brooks Koepka (-16)*
* - St. Jude Classic
KEY STATS
SG: Approach
Fairways Gained
SG: Tee To Green
Par-4s: 450-500 Yards
Proximity 150-175 Yards/175-200 Yards
Bogey Avoidance
Scrambling
Greens In Regulation Gained
SG: Putting (Bermuda)/Firm & Fast
Course History/Courses w/ Zoysia Fairways
THE COURSE
TPC Southwind is a 7,243-yard par 70 featuring narrow Zoysiagrass fairways (29 yards wide on average), Champion Bermuda green complexes, 3-inch fairway rough, 75 sand bunkers, 11 water hazards, and the second-narrowest fairways on the PGA Tour. While the course's distance isn't daunting, there are plenty of ways to get in trouble here.
Prichard's parkland-style design rewards accuracy over distance from tee to green, as there are numerous creeks, ponds, and well-positioned sand bunkers to punish wayward shots, in addition to the three-inch Bermudagrass fairway rough. Not only does TPC Southwind consist of remarkably narrow fairways, but the green complexes at TPC Southwind also rank as the third-smallest among all courses on Tour, suggesting that superb approach play is required to contend for the title. It's worth noting that Will Zalatoris, Justin Thomas, and Lucas Glover each gained over seven strokes on their approach shots during their wins on this course.
With a par-70 layout for the second consecutive week, players face 12 par-4s, four par-3s, and only two par-5s, which keeps the scoring in check. The tournament's winning score has surpassed 15-under only three times since 2010.
Among the 12 par-4s this week, eight stretch longer than 445 yards. Five of the six most difficult holes on the course (Nos. 5, 7, 12, 17, and 18) are par-4s, with four being played over 450 yards. Hole Nos. 1 (434 yards) and 2 (401 yards) are two scorable par-4s to kick off the round.
Only one of the four par-3s reaches 200 yards, and two are shorter than 175 yards. Hole No. 14 (205 yards) is the longest of the bunch. The average distance of the par-3s is only 184 yards, which is a rarity on the PGA Tour.
There are only two par-5s at TPC Southwind, and they both historically play as the easiest holes on the course. The 530-yard 16th hole will be a crucial birdie opportunity for players late in the round and could produce a swing in the leaderboard on Sunday. The 579-yard 3rd hole is much longer than No. 16 but still should be reachable in two shots for most of the field.
Looking at the past winners at TPC Southwind over the last five years, it's easy to notice that elite ball strikers have separated themselves from the rest of the pack here. However, all five winners also ranked inside the top seven in scrambling that week, with Brooks Koepka, Abraham Ancer, and Lucas Glover leading the field. Danger looms seemingly everywhere on this course, and having the ability to get out of peculiar spots and avoid double bogeys goes a long way.
The Champion Bermuda putting greens at TPC Southwind aren't featured often on Tour these days, with the Country Club of Jackson, Sedgefield, Quail Hollow, and the Dunes Golf and Beach Club being the only other host courses with these unique surfaces. It's probably worth looking into which players have previously performed well on those greens. However, proven inconsistent putters like Zalatoris and Thomas each relied on their tee-to-green games to secure their wins, proving that a spike performance with the flat stick isn't required to get the job done here. Although, Koepka relied heavily on his putter during his victory in 2019, as he led the field in SG: Putting that week. Ancer (10th), Johnson (12th), and Glover (12th) also ranked inside the top 15 on the greens.
All in all, I'll target elite ball strikers who consistently find fairways and generally don't make many mistakes from tee to green. Unique intricacies like who typically putts well on Champion Bermuda green complexes and have a strong track record with Zoysiagrass fairways are certainly things I'll be looking into. I also believe it's paramount to enter this week in proper form, as most winners here have been playing outstanding throughout the season.
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