The reduced FedEx Cup Playoff field this season has proven to be a windfall for the Wyndham Championship.
With only 70 players qualifying for next week’s FedEx St. Jude Championship, the regular-season finale has heightened drama this year. Previously an event many of the marquee players skipped to rest up for a playoff run, there are several big-name players in this week’s field making a last-ditch attempt to keep their seasons alive.
Former major champions and No. 1-ranked players in the world Justin Thomas and Adam Scott are in Greensboro, N.C., as is 2019 Open Championship winner Shane Lowry. They are in a featured pairing the first two rounds, with each needing strong weeks to punch their tickets to Memphis for the first playoff leg.
Our golf experts break down the Wyndham Championship, which begins Thursday at Sedgefield Country Club, and provide their favorite prop picks along with best bets to win this week.
WYNDHAM CHAMPIONSHIP
Location: Greensboro, N.C., Aug. 3-6
Course: Sedgefield Country Club (Par 70, 7,131 yards)
Purse: $7.6M (Winner: $1.368M)
Defending Champion: Tom Kim
FedEx Cup leader: Jon Rahm
HOW TO FOLLOW
TV: Thursday-Friday, 2-6 p.m. ET (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 1-3 p.m. (GC), 3-6 p.m. (CBS)
Streaming (ESPN+): Thursday-Friday, 6:45 a.m.-6 p.m. ET; Saturday-Sunday, 7:45 a.m.-6 p.m.
Twitter: @WyndhamChamp
PROP PICKS
–Adam Scott to Beat Justin Thomas Round 1 (-110 at DraftKings): Both players have their playoff backs firmly against the wall and need four solid rounds to advance to next week. That has been a problem for Thomas and Scott, who each have one sub-70 opening round in their past five events. It has been even rougher for Thomas, whose first-round scoring average has been 75 in the five cuts he has missed in his past seven starts. Scott did play at Sedgefield last year, where he opened and closed with rounds of 68 despite scuffling to a T76.
–Denny McCarthy to Finish Top 20 (+110 at BetMGM): McCarthy feels like he has been knocking on the door of his first career PGA Tour victory almost weekly this year. Along with a runner-up at the Memorial, he has three other top 10s in his past eight starts. McCarthy is coming off a missed cut at The Open in his last start and hasn’t yet shown the ability to close on Sunday, so we’re hedging our bet a bit by not taking the bait of the +220 odds for another top-10.
–J.T. Poston to Beat Chris Kirk (-120 at DraftKings): Kirk produced one of the top feel-good stories of the year with his win at the Honda Classic. However, he has only one top-10 in 14 starts since while missing five cuts – including four of his past six. Poston is coming off a T2 last week and finished a solid T21 at last year’s Wyndham. The last time Poston finished runner-up in an event, he went on to win the following week at the 2022 Travelers.
2023 Prop Picks Record: 35-45-2
BEST BETS
–Hideki Matsuyama (+2000 at BetMGM) is coming off a T30 at the 3M Open as he seeks his first victory since the 2022 Sony Open. He missed the cut in his most recent start at the Wyndham in 2021. Matsuyama is second in the field with 6.6 percent of the total bets and 7.9 percent of the money backing him to win, making the Japanese star the book’s third biggest liability.
–Si Woo Kim (+2000) is the top player in the FedEx Cup standings in the field at No. 18. Despite missing his past two cuts, Kim has been the most popular player in the field, drawing 6.7 and 11.1 percent of the action, respecitively, since opening at +3300 at BetMGM. He’s the book’s biggest liability.
–Russell Henley (+2000) is among the pre-tournament favorites despite his last top-10 coming at the Masters in April. He is also +2000 at DraftKings, where Henley is second in the field with 8 percent of the money backing him to win. Henley did tie for fifth here last year.
–Denny McCarthy (+2500) missed the cut last year but enters a career-high 32nd in the world rankings with three top-7s in his past five starts. He has been the most popular player with the same odds at DraftKings, where he has been backed by 9 percent of the bets and 13 percent of the money to claim his first PGA Tour victory this week.
–Sam Burns (+2500) has five top-10 finishes this year as he seeks his sixth career PGA Tour victory.
–J.T. Poston (+2800) is coming off a runner-up at the 3M Open. He is BetMGM’s second biggest liability, having been backed by 5.4 percent of the bets and 7.6 percent of the money since opening at +3000.
–Justin Thomas (+3300) has missed his past two cuts and his three top-10s thus far are his fewest in any season as a pro.
NOTES
–This is the final regular-season event, with only the top 70 in the FedEx Cup standings after this event qualifying for the first leg of the playoffs. Austin Eckroat currently occupies the No. 70 spot. Notable names that are currently outside of the Top 70 include Lowry (76), Thomas (79) and Scott (81).
–Lowry needs at least a tie for 23rd this week to remain eligible for the playoffs. Thomas, who has reached the playoffs every season of his career, needs a solo 18th or better to have a chance to extend that streak to nine and a three-way tie for fourth to secure his spot in the Top 70. Scott and Matt Kuchar are the only players to qualify for the playoffs every year since their inception. Scott needs at least a tie for ninth to remain eligible for the playoffs.
–Akshay Bhatia earned full PGA Tour membership with his win at the Barracuda Championship, but he remains 99th in the FedEx Cup standings.
–Wesley Bryan outlasted his brother, George, in the Monday Qualifier playoff to earn a spot in the field.
–Field Level Media
