Slate Breakdown | The FedEx St. Jude Championship

Playoff time! It's always an exciting time for golf enthusiasts when the world's top players gather to compete. The first round of the playoffs is just around the corner, with the top 70 golfers in the FedEx Cup Standings preparing to tee off. This tournament guarantees all participants four rounds of play, as it's structured as a no-cut event. In this article, we will analyze the tournament from a perspective focused on standout performers. We'll also identify three players to watch for this week's event and the remainder of the FedEx Cup.

The Tournament

The Course

For the second consecutive week, the PGA TOUR finds itself at a Par 70 course spanning approximately 7200 yards. However, notable disparities exist between TPC Southwind and the previous week's host, Sedgefield Country Club, primarily concerning the percentages of fairways and greens hit. Notably, the greens at last week's course were among the most accessible on the tour, with a commendable 73% hit rate. In contrast, the greens at TPC Southwind are registering around 60%. 

This discrepancy of 10% necessitates golfers to handle more challenging situations, needing to successfully navigate up and down from off the green on approximately two additional holes each round. This particular scenario could favor players who excel in the "strokes gained around the green" category, as their proficiency in short-game situations becomes pivotal in maintaining strong performance amidst the increased demand for recovery skills. Still, the course does yield lower scores across the board, with the average winning score of -15 over the last 5 years.

The Slate

In this slate, a total of $600,000 in prizes is available on DraftKings Reignmaker PGA TOUR. An additional $250,000 comes from the FedEx Cup side set and a Franchise Score payout. This side set will offer a $50,000 top prize at the TOUR Championship in three weeks, along with $200,000 in Franchise Score. For this week's contests, the top prize stands at $10,000 for the ELITE, LEGENDARY, and REIGNMAKER tiers, while it's $5,000 for both the regular RARE contest and the side set RARE+ contest.

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The Golfers

As mentioned earlier, this week sees the presence of all the top PGA TOUR golfers in the field. Notable contenders such as Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm, and Rory McIlroy are gearing up for the competition. Other prominent names include Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, and Justin Rose. It's important to note that the latter three players do not possess Reignmakers cards yet, which narrows the selection pool to 67 golfers to choose from instead of the full 70.

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Three-Ball: 3 DraftKings Reignmakers PGA TOUR Targets

Here are three potential options for DraftKings Reignmakers PGA TOUR this week:

Max Homa

Although Max's track record at this course hasn't been outstanding, it has steadily improved over the last four years. Moreover, he's entering the event on a positive streak, and barring any unforeseen injuries, he has secured a place in the TOUR Championship. Currently, his floor price for the playoff set is approximately $37.00. If his form continues to trend upward, there's a good chance he could find his way into the optimal lineup when the stakes are highest in a few weeks.

Lee Hodges

It's a "perfect storm" scenario for Hodges, who recently secured his first PGA TOUR victory at the 3M Open a few weeks ago. Now, he arrives at a course where he has shown considerable comfort, evidenced by his 13th-place finish last year. We've witnessed at least one, if not two, golfers making late-season surges and progressing all the way to the Tour Championship – last year, notably Erik Van Rooyen and Adam Scott did just that. Hodges is now in an excellent position to follow suit with another impressive performance in Memphis this week.

Sam Burns

Throughout his relatively short career on the PGA TOUR, Burns has consistently proven himself as a formidable competitor and one of the premier golfers globally. While he's still seeking a breakthrough in a Major Championship, he's exhibited his prowess at playoff events, WGCs, and even the Presidents Cup. Notably, he secured a second-place finish here at the FedEx St. Jude a few years ago. Coupled with his current rising form, which was evident in moments of focused play last week at Sedgefield, Burns appears poised for several strong finishes in the upcoming weeks. His floor price for the Playoff set is currently around $35, making him an excellent pairing alongside Homa as two additional players to complement the trio of Rory, Rahm, and Scottie.