The PGA Tour wraps up its season with the top 30 golfers in the standings competing for the FedExCup title at the TOUR Championship starting Thursday. Accumulating points over the course of the season comes in handy this week with four-time winner Scottie Scheffler locking down the top spot thanks to his podium finish at the BMW Championship. That gives Scheffler a head start on the field and has him positioned as the betting favorite ahead of reigning FedExCup champ Patrick Cantlay, who moved into second in the standings with his win last week. Scheffler opens the tournament at famed East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta at 10-under with Cantlay at 8-under in the staggered leaderboard format. There is a gradual decline to the bottom five, who all start at even-par. Visit BookMaker.eu for a complete updated list of betting odds when you’re ready to make a wager.
Odds to Win TOUR Championship
Scottie Scheffler +225
Patrick Cantlay +405
Xander Schauffele +800
Rory McIlroy +885
Will Zalatoris +1351
Jon Rahm +1576
Sungjae Im +2603
Tony Finau +2608
Sam Burns +3075
Justin Thomas +3555
Cameron Smith +3555
Matthew Fitzpatrick +4550
Cameron Young +6050
Jordan Spieth +7550
Viktor Hovland +10050
Joaquin Niemann +11550
Corey Conners +11550
Collin Morikawa +12050
Hideki Matsuyama +12550
Max Homa +15050
Scott Stallings +15050
Sepp Straka +15050
Tom Hoge +20050
Billy Horschel +20050
Kyoung Hoon Lee +25050
Sahith Theegala +25050
Aaron Wise +25050
Adam Scott +25050
Brian Harman +30050
J.T. Poston +35050
Odds Analysis
Patrick Cantlay +405
I backed Cantlay last week for the simple fact that he seems to play a lot better at playoff time. And that move paid off. We’ve never seen a back-to-back FedExCup champ, but then again we had never seen a repeat winner at a playoff tournament until Cantlay successfully defended his BMW title, so why not. Cantlay opened in the No. 1 spot last year taking the title by one swing. He’ll need to make up a few shots this year but his game is spot on so I don’t see that being a huge issue.
Rory McIlroy +885
If anyone can overcome a stroke deficit it’s McIlroy, who did just that in the inaugural event featuring the staggered-start format. McIlroy started from the fifth position in 2019, five shots off the lead. He proceeded to score 13-under without the handicap, matching the lowest winning score from the previous 11 editions that were played in regular stroke-play format. It was also McIlroy’s second win at East Lake in four years, so I think he likes the layout. It’s a bit more challenging this year since he’s seventh on the board needing to make up six strokes. But like I said, if anyone can do it McIlroy can.
Xander Schauffele +800
The odds here include the handicap which is why Scheffler and Cantlay are the heavy favorites. You can’t give the two best players strokes and expect the rest of the field to catch up. It can happen and Schauffele is one who has the game and experience at East Lake to overcome his 4-shot starting deficit. Staggered start or not, the X-man has played in five previous events with four top-5s and he’s never finished above seventh. It’s not a huge gamble to back him in the handicap market and at +1200 in the stroke-play format he’s an inviting option.
Scottie Scheffler +225
There’s not a lot of value backing Scheffler at this price, but getting one of the top players this season with a lead over the shortened field can do that. Still, taking the favorite is a good bet since No. 1 in the field has prevailed in the previous two editions. He’s been the top ranked player most of the season and returned to that spot with a T3 at the BMW Championship flashing the form that got him four wins this season.
Will Zalatoris +1351
Assuming he’s healed from the back injury that forced him out of the BMW, Zalatoris is a sneaky good pick at his price. He got the monkey off his back winning the FedEx St. Jude Championship and has been solid again all season. Zalatoris starts in third, three shots behind Scheffler entering the first round, and he was rolling before his WD shooting 66 or lower in five of his previous eight rounds.
Course: East Lake Golf Club – 7,346 yards, Par 70
The staggered start format is in use for the fourth consecutive year, but the host venue remains the same. East Lake became the tournament’s permanent home in 2004. At over 7,300 yards it’s an easy course as long as you keep the ball in the fairway, but aren’t they all. In terms of width, the fairways rank in the bottom 10 and along with firm grass it becomes difficult to keep the golf ball on the fairways. Straight off the tee with a strong short game and you’ll be just fine. That’s easier said than done, though. On average the field hits fairways here a little over 50 percent of the time. In 11 playings before the staggered-start format winning scores ranged between -7 and -13 making it difficult for players at the bottom of the pack to make up enough ground. The last two winners started from the No. 1 position with Rory McIlroy winning the first staggered start format from the fifth spot.
TV Coverage: Golf Channel, NBC
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