Following Cameron Young’s maiden PGA Tour win in the final regular season event the Wyndham Championship, the PGA Tour playoffs kick off with the FedEx St Jude Championship from the classic TPC Southwind course. All 70 competitors will be jockeying for one of the Top 30 positions at East Lake and the Tour Championship in two weeks time.
Key Stats/Skill Set Required
- GIR
- Strokes Gained: Approach
- Ball Striking
- Scrambling
- Bogey Avoidance
- Driving Distance
- Putting Average
- Par 4 Scoring
Form from the tee is not critical at TPC Southwind but Ball Striking is important and distance is a help. It is a second-shot course though and a bang-on approach game is the best guide. Avoiding trouble and putting well are important.
Key Correlation Courses/Tournaments
- Sony Open
- RSM Classic
- Charles Schwab Classic
It is absolutely impossible to go past Scottie Scheffler this week, who added the Open Championship to his already impressive resume that includes a PGA Championship win this year, two Masters victories and Olympic gold. His profile could not be any better for this. He leads the Tour in Strokes Gained: Approach, Bogey Avoidance and Par 4 Scoring while he is 2nd in Scrambling, 4th in Putting Average, 7th in Ball Striking and 12th in GIR. Won four of his last eight starts. This is at his beckoning.
Austrian Sepp Straka has had his best season to date with two wins. He has a solid record in this event with a runner-up finish in 2022 when on debut. He has a super profile for this. He ranks 4th in Strokes Gained: Approach, 6th in Bogey Avoidance, 8th in GIR and 14th in Putting Average. He finished 5th in the 2024 Charles Schwab Classic, a strong guide.
This has been a breakout season for Chris Gotterup, who won the Scottish Open before finishing a remarkable 3rd in the Open Championship. He played in two majors this year and finished Top 25 in both. He ranks 3rd in Bogey Avoidance, 4th in GIR, 7th in Par 4 Scoring, 9th in Scrambling and 10th in Driving Distance.
Kurt Kitayama is one of the more underrated players on Tour and off a win in the 3M Open two starts back, he can run a race here. Ranks 8th in Driving Distance, 12th in Putting Average and 14th in Par 4 Scoring. Finished Top 25 in the 2024 Sony Open and 2025 Charles Schwab Classic.
The key to Nick Taylor’s chances is his form at the Sony Open, the key guide. He won the Sony Open in 2025 while he finished 7th the year prior. He has a Top 25 here. Ranks 12th in Strokes Gained: Approach.
Harry Hall has a super profile this week and is a great value bet to top the British contingent again. He ranks 2nd in Putting Average, 2nd in Par 4 Scoring, 6th in Scrambling and 9th in Bogey Avoidance.
Four Canadians tee it up this week and very keen on Nick Taylor finishing on top. He has form at the key correlation event and is a big price.