Under normal circumstances, this would have been the week of the Olympic golf tournament. That was scrapped thanks to COVID. Instead, the world’s finest golfers were invited to TPC Southwind in Memphis for the World Golf Championship FedEx St. Jude Invitational. The field increased to 78 and includes 45 of the top 50 in the OWGR. New No. 1 Jon Rahm plays his first tournament since claiming the Memorial and supplanting Rory McIlroy at the top of the rankings. Rahm hit the board as the favorite in a strong field. The odds tumbled for Brooks Koepka, who has struggled with injuries and inconsistent play since winning this event last season. A stellar field makes for tantalizing matchups. Go to BookMaker.eu for a complete list of tournament matchup odds when you’re ready to place a wager.
WGC FedEx St. Jude Invitational Matchup Odds at BookMaker.eu
Bernd Wiesberger +125 vs. Max Homa -145
Erik Van Rooyen -105 vs. Louis Oosthuizen -115
Marc Leishman -130 vs. Ian Poulter +110
Patrick Reed -160 vs. Jason Day +140
Matt Wallace +105 vs. Brendon Todd -125
Danny Willett +120 vs. Sungjae Im -140
Michael Thompson +125 vs. Ryan Palmer -145
Rory McIlroy -115 vs. Justin Thomas -105
Abraham Ancer -125 vs. Sergio Garcia +105
Matthew Fitzpatrick -115 vs. Tony Finau -105
Justin Thomas -140 vs. Bryson DeChambeau +120
Viktor Hovland -140 vs. Daniel Berger +120
Matt Kuchar -145 vs. Henrik Stenson +125
Adam Hadwin +100 vs. Corey Conners -120
Kevin Streelman +135 vs. Scottie Scheffler -155
Billy Horschel -145 vs. Jordan Spieth +125
Kevin Kisner -120 vs. Rafa Cabrera-Bello +100
Phil Mickelson +120 vs. Bubba Watson -140
Matthew Wolff +115 vs. Joaquin Niemann -135
Jon Rahm -115 vs. Rory McIlroy -105
Jon Rahm -110 vs. Justin Thomas -110
Paul Casey -125 vs. Kevin Na +105
Xander Schauffele -130 vs. Webb Simpson +110
Brooks Koepka +130 vs. Hideki Matsuyama -150
Patrick Cantlay -110 vs. Xander Schauffele -110
Patrick Cantlay -120 vs. Webb Simpson +100
Rory McIlroy -135 vs. Bryson DeChambeau +115
Tyrrell Hatton -130 vs. Dustin Johnson +110
Tyrrell Hatton -130 vs. Tommy Fleetwood +110
Viktor Hovland +100 vs. Collin Morikawa -120
Jon Rahm -140 vs. Bryson DeChambeau +120
Collin Morikawa -150 vs. Daniel Berger +130
Tommy Fleetwood -130 vs. Dustin Johnson +110
Rickie Fowler -110 vs. Gary Woodland -110
Need to Know
With a limited field this is a no-cut tournament, so don’t get discouraged if the player you’re backing has a rough outing to start. While there are a few changes to the TPC Southwind layout it’s still a fairly easy course that yielded a 69.5 scoring average a year ago. Koepka played it to 16-under for the win going 68 or lower on all four days. The old dairy farm takes players through a natural stretch of lakes, ponds and creeks over 7,277 yards. Avoiding water is crucial. The added length is noticeable on two holes. With narrow fairways, long and straight off the tee is a bonus, but this is more of a second-shot course and hitting greens in regulation is huge. Bunkers were remodeled to present more of a defense.
WGC FedEx St. Jude Invitational Matchup Picks
Bernd Wiesberger +125 vs. Max Homa
We don’t see much of Wiesberger on the PGA Tour and what we have seen wasn’t pretty. But on the Euro Tour the Austrian is a standout. He won three times last season finishing third in the Race to Dubai, so we know he can wield the sticks. He also treated me well on matchups last year and I’m going back to the well. He got his feet wet in the States with a MC at the Memorial, but he bounced back shooting 13-under over the final 54 holes for T26 last week.
Brooks Koepka +130 vs. Hideki Matsuyama
Things haven’t gone smoothly for the defending champ, who missed the cut last week. The knee injury that required surgery is still bothering him, but the swing is the biggest problem. I don’t think Koepka would play if he wasn’t 100 percent, so I’m taking a leap that his stroke returns. His brilliant all-around game last year was a thing of beauty and that has to raise his spirits. This is a tough matchup against a solid player, but I think Koepka is due for a breakthrough. In fact, I’m betting on it.
Tony Finau -105 vs. Matthew Fitzpatrick
I might regret going against Fitz after his successful run in the Dublin-header. I do like how Finau responded after his weekend meltdown at the Memorial. Going 73-78 over the last 36 holes and falling from the top spot on the leaderboard to T8 could have been devastating. He got right back on the horse with a solid showing at the 3M Open to grab T3 with four sub-70 rounds while flashing the game of a winner.
Bryson DeChambeau +120 vs. Justin Thomas
We won’t often see DeChambeau at this price but there’s a reason for that. His matchup partner has a win and a playoff runner-up among his seven top-15s in his last 10 WGC starts. DeChambeau was so good around the shutdown that a hiccup was expected. That came with a MC at the Memorial. It’s hard to imagine his game heading south for too long and he will be energized around the best players in the world looking to rebound.
Tyrrell Hatton -130 vs. Tommy Fleetwood
It’s never a good strategy to bet against a guy who can putt. Drive for show, putt for dough, as the saying goes. So I’m backing the Tour’s best putter to date in this one. Hatton tops all players in strokes gained: putting and his approach game has been solid leading to a T3 at the RBC Heritage and T4 at the RMC.
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