The PGA Tour begins its 2024 homestretch this week with the first of three big-money FedEx Cup Playoffs events, which is limited to the top 70 players in series points. The $20 million purse ensures all the big names will be at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tenn.—foremost among them odds favorite Scottie Scheffler, fresh off winning a gold medal at the Paris Olympics.
There are no cuts in any of the playoff events, although the championship field is gradually reduced—from 70 at Memphis to 50 at next week’s event outside Denver, to 30 for the Tour Championship beginning Aug. 29 in Atlanta. TPC Southwind has kicked off the playoff in each of the past two years, though neither of those winners were in the world top 20 at the time: Will Zalatoris was ranked 14th in 2022, and Lucas Glover (who won the previous week just to get in) was a distant 53rd last season.
But the Memphis layout has hosted the PGA Tour in some form or fashion since 1989, so most players have tons of experience there. World No. 1 Scheffler is coming in hot, with his Olympic triumph one of seven tournament victories he’s compiled over his past 12 starts. He’s finished worse than eighth just once over that span, which dates all the way back to early March. But note that only one player, Dustin Johnson in 2020, has won the playoff opener and then gone on to claim the FedEx Cup itself.
PGA Tour St. Jude Championship Odds
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Scottie Scheffler | +350 |
| Xavier Schauffele | +750 |
| Rory McIlroy | +850 |
| Collin Morikawa | +1200 |
| Ludvig Aberg | +1800 |
| Hideki Matsuyama | +2200 |
| Patrick Cantlay | +2200 |
| Tommy Fleetwood | +2200 |
| Tom Kim | +2800 |
| Corey Conners | +3300 |
Odds as of August 13
PGA Tour FedEx St. Jude Championship Best Bets
Patrick Cantlay to Win (+2200)
The no-frills American has had a decidedly under-the-radar season, with tons of very strong finishes without a victory to show for them. But he’s been regularly in the mix, including at the Travelers (T5), the U.S. Open (T3), the RBC Heritage (T3) and the Genesis Invitational (T5). He was the runner-up to Glover in the playoff opener in Memphis last season and also owns a T12 and T6 from previous PGA Tour stops at Southwind. And historically, Cantlay is very good at this time of year—he owns three FedEx Cup tournament victories in the past four years, including the title in 2021.
Scottie Scheffler Each-Way (+350)
Scheffler this week presents sports bettors with a paradox: go with his recent form, or his track record at TPC Southwind? The former has been unquestionably awesome, the latter… well, let’s just say Memphis hasn’t been one of his better courses. In six previous appearances there across three different tournaments, he’s never finished in the top 10, he’s twice missed the cut, and his average finish when he’s made it to the weekend has been 25th. Now, can he win the thing this week? Absolutely. But Scheffler’s history at Southwind gives us just enough pause to hedge with an each-way wager, which pays to win but also offers a quarter of the odds on a top-five finish.
Sungjae Im Top 10, +280
Conversely, the workhouse Korean loves Memphis—Im has finished T6 and solo 12th in the playoff opener the past two years, with seven of those eight rounds in the 60s, including a nifty 63 on Saturday in 2022. He’s also had a fantastic summer, with top-10 finishes in six of his last 12 starts, capped by a T3 at the Travelers and a T4 at the Scottish Open. Im is a consummate grinder whose game translates almost everywhere, but with his last victory coming in 2021, he simply doesn’t win enough to merit more than a top-10 wager.
PGA Tour FedEx St. Jude Championship Betting Tips
Scheffler’s primary competition for Player of the Year honors has been Xander Schauffele, who can’t match his rival in terms of gaudy win totals, but has been about as consistent as they come. The X-Man hasn’t finished worse than 18th since March, a span of 12 tournaments that’s netted two major titles (the PGA and Open championships) and two runner-up finishes. But Schauffele hasn’t been great at TPC Southwind, finishing T24 and T57 in the playoff opener the past two seasons.
Viktor Hovland took the latter two legs of the playoff to win the FedEx Cup last year, but the reigning champion has struggled with swing changes in 2024 and enters the Memphis event with just one top-10 and a ranking of No. 57 on the season. Rory McIlroy, the 2022 series champion, finished third in last year’s playoff opener at Southwind and has been top-five in two of the last three starts this season—with an ugly missed cut at the Open Championship in between.
Is there another player deep in the rankings capable of pulling the type of surprise that Glover did last season? Victor Perez finished T33 at the Wyndham this past week to claim the 70th and final playoff spot, after finishing fourth in his home Olympics, T10 at the Scottish Open and solo third at the Canadian Open. No. 47 Max Greyserman has finished solo second in each of his past two starts, including the Wyndham this past week. And No. 43 Tom Kim has played far better than his ranking of late, finishing second to Scheffler at the Travelers and eighth in Paris.
