With U.S. Open sectional qualifying taking place from coast to coast, it’s impossible to ignore the fact that we are just a couple of weeks away from the second major tournament of the season. However, there is another stop for the PGA Tour before that with the FedEx St. Jude Classic set to take place at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee this week. 158 golfers will compete in the 59th edition of this event that has become known as one of the most challenging par 70’s on the annual schedule and for the ninth year in a row it immediately precedes the U.S. Open.
Event Details
Event: FedEx St. Jude Classic
Category: PGA
Date: June 9-12
Location: TPC Southwind, Memphis, Tennessee
Fabian Gomez won this tournament a year ago with the best score since Harrison Frazer posted at 13-under with a playoff win back here in 2011. This will be the final tune up for the field competing in the U.S. Open next week but with $6.2 million in prize money up for grab this tournament will be about a lot more than just preparation for the second major of the season.
Past Five Winners
2015: Fabian Gomez -13
2014: Ben Crane -10
2013: Harris English -12
2012: Dustin Johnson -9
2011: Harrison Frazer -13 (Playoff)
What To Know About The Course
The small high greens at TPC Southwind will offer up plenty of scrambling practice for the field this week. Five of the last six winners have ranked inside the top-10 for Greens in Regulation so that will be the most important stat to keep an eye on this week. Harrison Fraser ranked second for Driving Distance when he won here in 2011 and Dustin Johnson showed off his power when he won this tournament the following year in 2012 so distance off the tee will be important. Driving Accuracy hasn’t meant nearly as much over the past three years as the tournament winners have ranked tied for 40th, 30th and 43rd in that category.
The Field
Johnson will lead this year’s field as the betting favorite to win outright at +600 odds and rightfully so given his skill set and track record at this tournament including a victory here in 2012. The sportsbooks will tell you there is a substantial drop off following Johnson with Brooks Koepka and Phil Mickelson listed at +1200 odds followed by Ryan Palmer at +1600. The defending tournament champion Gomez isn’t getting much love as a significant underdog at +10000 odds while the 2014 winner Ben Crane is listed at +12500 odds to win.
A Good Matchup To Bet: Dustin Johnson over Phil Mickelson
D.J. is coming off a third-place finish at the Memorial after a 12th-place finish at the AT&T Byron Nelson so he is in fine form heading in to a tournament that he has had some success at in the past. Johnson has already recorded six top-five finishes in 2016 and he is fifth in strokes gained on the PGA Tour this season. Mickelson is coming off a rough finish at Muirfield in which he fired a 72 in the final round en route to finishing 20th but this pick is more about taking Johnson at a decent price. Johnson will be in top form in his final tune up before the U.S. Open and he is a good pick to place ahead of Mickelson at the FedEx St. Jude Classic this week.
Top-Five Pick: Ben Crane
Outsiders have been getting the job done with regularity on the PGA Tour all season so it won’t be a major shock if the 2014 winner Crane contends for the victory again this week at long odds. Crane was the sixth wire-to-wire winner since 1996 when he clinched a victory here a couple of years ago. The fact that he failed to record a birdie in the final round and still won is testament to the fact that you can start strong and hang on. Crane has yet to record a top-10 finish yet this season but he placed 24th at the AT&T Byron Nelson and 29th at the DEAN & DELUCA Invitational so he is in decent form heading in to a tournament that he has proved he can contend in. He is worth taking a chance on at long odds this week.
Top 10 Odds To Win FedEx St. Jude Classic
Dustin Johnson +605
Phil Mickelson +1250
Brooks Koepka +1050
Ryan Palmer +1550
Gary Woodland +2050
Daniel Berger +2250
Harris English +2050
Colt Knost +3050
Kyle Reifers +4050
Charles Howell III +3550
