Following the highly entertaining 2023 PGA Tour season, we've finally reached the first of three FedExCup playoff events this week. The top 70 ranked golfers in the FedExCup rankings were decided at the final regular season event during the Wyndham Championship, where veteran Lucas Glover secured his fifth career win over Russell Henley. Justin Thomas, who was the biggest name on the FedEx bubble, came up one stroke short, nearly holing out from a chip shot around the green on the 72nd hole. Adam Scott is another big name that missed the FedExCup playoffs, snapping his 16-year streak despite a strong finish at Wyndham.
It's been a few weeks since we've seen all of the PGA Tour's top golfers competing in the same field, but the FedEx St. Jude Championship is loaded with talent, led by Scottie Scheffler at +650. Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm are behind Scheffler at +800, followed by a drop off to Patrick Cantlay at 16/1, Xander Schauffele at 18/1, and Viktor Hovland at 20/1.
Before we get into our picks for the FedEx St. Jude Championship, make sure to check out the offers from OddsChecker below, which will see you claim $1000s in first bet bonuses ahead of the 2023 FedEx St. Jude Championship.
The pressure intensifies entering the first of three FedExCup playoff events. Unlike previous years, where 125 golfers qualified, it's been whittled down to the top 70 for the St. Jude Championship at TPC Southwind. The top 50 advance to the second playoff event at the BMW Championship, culminating with the third and final FedExCup playoff event at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Georgia for the 2023 Tour Championship.
Let's look at the opening FedEx St. Jude Championship betting odds. Then, we'll review previous outright winners, key betting stats, and an in-depth course review of TPC Southwind. Finally, we’ll end with my top-five players to bet on in the PGA Tour futures markets for outright winners based on FanDuel Sportsbook’s current odds.
FedEx St. Jude Championship Betting Odds
FedEx St. Jude Championship Betting Preview
Previous Winners
- 2022 - Will Zalatoris (-15)
- 2021 - Tony Finau (-20)
- 2020 - Dustin Johnson (-30)
- 2019 - Patrick Reed (-16)
- 2018 - Bryson DeChambeau (-18)
Relevant Betting Stats
- Strokes Gained Tee-to-Green
- Strokes Gained Off-the-Tee
- Total Driving
- Greens in Regulation percentage
- Sand Save percentage
Course Layout
TPC Southwind is a par 71 that runs short of 7,300 yards. It's been the host site for the St. Jude Championship, formerly known as the St. Jude Invitational, with a wide range of winning scorecards in recent years. It blends sand bunkers, doglegged fairways, and water hazards in a nice balance, without any overwhelming tendencies. Players will face three par 5s and four par 3s, with two of these par 5s situated on the third and fifth holes. The final par 3 on the 14th hole is over 230 yards, while all of the par 5s are under 570 yards, creating a recipe for a fluctuating leaderboard.
Water hazards are more frequent than at Wyndham, with over a dozen doglegged fairways, and sand bunkers to navigate. The greens are smaller than average, featuring undulations, just like in the fairways, which will create unique lies even with accuracy. Tony Finau and Dustin Johnson have been the only outright winners in the past five years to score -20 under-par or lower, showcasing the difficulty of this course. Ball striking, total driving, and putting are relevant betting stats to focus on when wagering outright winners at the 2023 FedEx St. Jude Championship.
Predict the top three finishers at this week's FedEx St Jude Championship for a chance to win this Golf Monthly x OddsChecker free-to-play golf contest.
How to Enter the $10,000 FedEx St. Jude Championship Free-to-Play Game
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Top Players To Bet In The Outright Market: FedEx St. Jude Championship Winner
Jon Rahm (+800) (Bet $100 to collect $900) FanDuel has the best Jon Rahm odds
There’s not much left to say about Jon Rahm’s talent on the golf course. He ranks at the top of my outright players to bet due to his consistency at TPC Southwind, producing finishes of T6, 3, and T5 in each of his previous three appearances at this event. Rahm has four outright wins this season, briefly made a run at Brian Harman’s lead at The Open Championship, and excels in virtually every statistical metric available. At 8/1, we’re getting more value than Scheffler, who has not cracked the top 40 in his last two outings here. Rahm is a lock to be at least a one-unit wager at TPC Southwind this week.
Viktor Hovland (+2000) (Bet $100 to collect $2,100) For the best Viktor Hovland odds go to FanDuel
Viktor Hovland managed a T20 finish here in 2022, and he’s recorded at least one outright win on the PGA Tour for four consecutive years. Hovland ranks seventh in strokes gained off-the-tee, 21st in strokes gained approaching the green, and sixth in total driving. The Norwegian tends to be inconsistent, but when he’s hot, you want a piece of the action. This feels like a week where Hovland climbs the leaderboard, so at 20/1, we should place a unit on the rising star’s outright odds.
Brian Harman (+4000) (Bet $100 to collect $4,100) Head to FanDuel for the best Brian Harman odds
Brian Harman has been another golfer who has multiple quality finishes at TPC Southwind. The Open Championship winner pulled off the 120/1 outright at Royal Liverpool and hasn’t competed since. Harman’s ball striking is solid, and he’s ranked eighth in driving accuracy percentage, which allows him to avoid bad lies to find greens in regulation. Plus, Harman ranks first in scrambling, fourth in going for the green with a birdie or better percentage, and 14th in total putting. Seventh in sand save percentage checks virtually every relevant betting stat at this course, so let’s wager a confident unit on Harman to produce back-to-back outright wins for the first time in his PGA Tour career.
Tom Kim (+4000) (Bet $100 to collect $4,100) Go to FanDuel for the best Tom Kim odds
After sitting out of the Wyndham Championship last week due to rehabbing an ankle injury, Tom Kim should be primed for a quality performance at TPC Southwind. The 21-year-old South Korean managed a solid T13 finish at TPC Southwind last year, going -4-under-par in the first and third rounds. Kim ranks ninth in strokes gained approaching the green, showcasing his irons, while also ranking 18th tee-to-green and 20th in total driving. This feels like a good spot to hit a 40/1 outright winner, especially off a week of rest, so let’s wager a unit on Kim to earn his third PGA Tour win and second of this season at TPC Southwind this week.
Lee Hodges (+8000) (Bet $100 to collect $8,100) For the best Lee Hodges odds head over to FanDuel
I’ll be honest; I didn’t see Lee Hodges dominating the 3M Open with a -24-under-par scorecard. However, upon closer inspection, the 28-year-old Alabama native has rounded into form, producing four T25 finishes, including three T12s and an outright win, since the Memorial Tournament in early June. Hodges stats aren’t impressive, but he fared well at TPC Southwind in 2022, going T13, so I am more than willing to recommend sprinkling a quarter unit on his 80/1 outright odds.
