Zurich Classic of New Orleans - Golfers to Bet
By: StatFox.com
Some of the top PGA golfers will be competing at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans this weekend. The tournament begins on Thursday, and this field will include top 10 golfers (OWGR) like Jason Day, Hideki Matsuyama, Jordan Spieth, Henrik Stenson, Justin Rose, and Rickie Fowler. That is quite the group of pros, and there are still plenty of other talented players teeing off on Thursday. Of the top 10 guys competing in this tournament, Justin Rose is the one that will have the most confidence when he heads to the first tee. Rose won this event back in 2015, shooting a 22-under to defeat Cameron Tringale by one stroke. That 22-under was the best score shot in this tournament since Vijay Singh had the same score back in 2004. The record for the best score shot in the event is, however, a 26-under. That was shot by Chip Beck in 1988, and it’s not likely that somebody will reach that number ever again. With that out of the way, let’s take a look at some of the weekend’s best value plays:
Justin Rose - After a disappointing finish at The Masters, Justin Rose has a very good chance of regrouping and coming away with a quick victory in New Orleans. While Rose is definitely beating himself up over the way he lost the major, he still played fantastic golf and he shouldn’t let his confidence take a hit coming into this one. He won this tournament in 2015, shooting an absurd 22-under. It’s not easy to dominate a course like that, but he clearly knew exactly how to navigate this one. Expect him to get right back to that and give himself a chance to win come Sunday.
Thomas Pieters - Pieters has not yet won a PGA event in his career, but that is clearly going to change very soon. The 25-year-old put himself on the map with an excellent performance at The Masters, and things are only going to get better for the 6’5’’ ball-striker. Pieters finished tied for fourth at The Masters a few weeks ago, displaying the ability to make any shot that was required of him. Look for him to seriously compete come Sunday, and don’t be afraid to back him with his favorable odds. He might be the tournament’s best overall value.
Cameron Tringale - This season has been a bit of a struggle for Tringale, who has been cut five times and finished over par in four other tournaments. That shouldn’t matter this weekend, though. Tringale has proven that he has the ability to win at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, as he went toe-to-toe with Rose back in 2015. Tringale shot a 21-under in that tournament, and that would have been good enough for a victory in nine of the 10 of the past 11 installments of this tournament. If he can regain that magic then he’s a great value, so putting a half-unit or quarter-unit could pay off big.
Robert Streb - Picking Streb didn’t work out well last week, but he should be able to come through in New Orleans. He was excellent here back in 2014, shooting a 17-under to tie for second place. And while last week’s outing was far from great, he did make that cut. That is something he hadn’t done in four of his previous five tournaments. Now, expect Streb to regain his touch on a course that has done him well in the past. At these odds, he’s definitely worth a shot on a small play.
10 Teams to Watch: Zurich Classic of New Orleans
By Vegasinsider.com
The Zurich Classic of New Orleans is being contested by 80 two-man teams at stroke play, although there are elements usually associated with team match-play, as two rounds of foursomes (alternate shot) and fourball (best ball) will be played to determine the winners. This is the first team event for a PGA Tour regular-season event since 1982. Below are 10 teams to watch in New Orleans.
1. Henrik Stenson, Sweden-Justin Rose, England -- These Ryder Cup teammates and major champions finished 1-2 in the Olympics last summer in Rio de Janeiro, with the Englishman taking the gold medal. This is one of two teams in the tournament with both players in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Rankings, as Stenson is at No. 6 and Rose checks in at No. 8. Rose has a 12-7-1 overall team record in match play, including 4-2 alongside Stenson. Last year, they routed Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed, 5 and 4, in fourball at Hazeltine, but also lost to the American pair in foursomes and another four-ball match. In 2014, the European pair won all three of their matches as Europe claimed the Cup at Gleneagles in Scotland. Stenson holds a 14-12-4 career mark in team match play and also is very good playing on his own in the format. He beat Geoff Ogilvy of Australia, 2 and 1, to win the 2007 WGC-World Match Play Championship and lost in the final to Mikko Ilonen of Finland, 3 and 1, in the final of the 2014 World Match Play.
2. Jason Day, Australia-Rickie Fowler, United States -- This is the other team in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans with both players in the top 10 of the World Rankings, with Day third and Fowler ninth. Day, however, has yet to play his best golf this season after sitting out the last three months of 2016 to rest a chronic back problem, and more recently dealing with his mother's battle with cancer. Day, the 2015 PGA champion, is very good on his own in match play with a 22-9 record, including victories in the WGC-Match Play in 2014 (beating Victor Dubuisson of France on the 23rd hole of the final) and 2016 (5 and 4 over Louis Oosthuizen of South Africa). However, he is only 3-6-3 with teammates for the International team in the last three Presidents Cups. Fowler also has not done well with teammates in the Ryder and Presidents Cups, with a 2-5-4 record, but they have the talent to be a powerhouse team if they can jell at TPC Louisiana.
3. Jordan Spieth, United States-Ryan Palmer, United States -- Spieth, a two-time major champion and No. 5 in the world, figures to set the tone for this pair because Palmer has never played in a team event as a professional and has a 1-4 record in singles during his two appearances at the WGC-Match Play Championships. Spieth, on the other hand, has a 9-3-2 record in team play in the Ryder and Presidents Cups. He is an exceptional putter, especially in the clutch, and simply has a knack for getting the ball into the hole, which is the name of the game in team play. Palmer's small sample of match play experience doesn't tell us much and although he is ranked 85th in the world he is a three-time winner on the PGA Tour and a seasoned 40-year-old veteran on the circuit who is coming off a tie for sixth last week in the Valero Texas Open and a tie for 11th in the RBC Heritage. He might be the perfect partner for Spieth, 23.
4. Branden Grace, South Africa-Louis Oosthuizen, South Africa -- A rising star on the PGA Tour after winning 10 times on the European and Sunshine Tours, Grace carried the International team with a 5-0 record even though the United States pulled out the victory in the 2015 Presidents Cup at Jack Nicklaus Golf Club in Korea. His four doubles victories were alongside Oosthuizen, who captured the 2010 Open Championship at St. Andrews, and they weren't picky about the teams they beat. Grace and Oosthuizen defeated Bubba Watson and J.B. Holmes, Rickie Fowler and Patrick Reed, Dustin Johnson and Jordan Spieth, and Matt Kuchar and Reed. Thanks to the help from Grace, Oosthuizen has a 5-3 record in two appearances in the Presidents Cup, but also is very good in singles match play, with a 17-10 record and reach the final of the WGC-Match Play Championship last year before Jason Day beat him, 5 and 4.
5. Bubba Watson, United States-J.B. Holmes, United States -- If the Zurich Classic of New Orleans was a long-drive championship, this is the team that would be favored. However, Watson and Holmes also have some finesse to their games, which make them a formidable duo. Bubba, the two-time Masters champion, has a 7-7-1 team match-play record in Ryder and Presidents Cups, including 2-1-1 alongside Holmes in the 2015 Presidents Cup at Jack Nicklaus Golf Course in Korea. Included was an impressive 3-and-2 victory over Adam Scott of Australia and Hideki Matsuyama of Japan. Watson also went 3-1 in the team portion of the 2011 Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne. Holmes was instrumental in the United States' victory in the 2008 Ryder Cup at Valhalla, posting a 2-0-1 record, including a 2-and-1 singles victory over Soren Hansen of Denmark. Watson has flown back from the Shenzhen International in China, where he led with a first-round 66, but slid to a tie for 26th with a closing 74.
6. Hideki Matsuyama, Japan-Hideto Tanihara, Japan -- Even though Matsuyama is No. 4 in the world rankings, this is a team that might fly under the radar but certainly has the ability to win this week at TPC Louisiana. Matsuyama has won four times on the PGA Tour, including the Phoenix Open earlier this year, and Tanihara, 38, has won 14 times in Japan and in March reached the semifinals of the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play before eventual champion Dustin Johnson edged him, 1 up. Included in that run was a 4-and-2 upset of Jordan Spieth in the first round, and Tanihara also has a 2-1-1 record in team match play in the 2009 Royal Trophy and the 2014 Eurasia Cup. Matsuyama has a 2-3-2 record in twosomes play at the 2013 and 2015 Presidents Cup, in addition to winning his first three matches in the 2015 WGC-Match Play at Harding Park in San Francisco. before losing to eventual champion Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland in the Round of 16, 6 and 5.
7. Thomas Pieters, Belgium-Daniel Berger, United States -- This is another team that won't get a lot of attention based on name reputation, but they are two of the best young players in the world. Pieters, 25, who has won three times on the European Tour and finished just off of the medal platform at fourth in the Olympic Games last summer in Rio de Janeiro, and was a star for Europe in the 2016 Ryder Cup at Hazeltine. He posted a 4-1 record, teaming with Rory McIlroy for victories over Dustin Johnson and Matt Kuchar, Rickie Fowler and Phil Mickelson, and Johnson and Brooks Koepka, before beating J.B. Holmes in singles, 3 and 2. Berger, 24, who claimed his first PGA Tour victory last year in the FedEx St. Jude Classic, hasn't yet made a Ryder Cup or United States team for the Presidents Cup, and has only a 1-5 record in two WGC-Match Play tournaments, but that one was an impressive 7-and-5 victory over J.B. Holmes last month. He was 0-3 in the 2016 tournament while playing despite a wrist injury.
8. Kevin Chappell, United States-Gary Woodland, United States -- Coming off his first PGA Tour victory in the Valero Texas Open on Sunday, Chappell will try to avoid a letdown in what appears to be one of the sleeper teams in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. Neither player has ever made a United States team for the Ryder Cup or the Presidents Cup, but two-time PGA Tour winner Woodland has posted a 7-5 record in four appearances in the WGC-Match Play, most of that damage coming in the 2015 event, when he rolled through Jimmy Walker, Ian Poulter, Webb Simpson, Marc Leishman, John Senden and Danny Willett before losing the final to Rory McIlroy, 4 and 2. Chappell, who earned his first victory in 180 starts on the PGA Tour after finishing second six times, got his first chance in the WGC-Match Play last month and beat Shane Lowry of Ireland, but lost to Masters champion Sergio Garcia and another Spaniard, rookie Jon Rahm.
9. Keegan Bradley, United States-Brendan Steele, United States -- While Bradley has shown some signs this season that the form that took him to the 2011 PGA Championship might be close to returning, he has played very well in team match play events and could form a strong team with Steele. Bradley has a 6-2-1 record in the Ryder and Presidents Cups, although it must be pointed out that he played alongside Phil Mickelson in all of those matches. Included was a 3-0 record with Lefty in the 2012 Ryder Cup and a 3-1 mark in the 2013 Presidents Cup. Perhaps he can play the mentor role in his pairing with Steele, who earned his second PGA Tour victory at the start of this season in the Safeway Classic. Steele got his first taste of match play as a pro last month in the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play and acquitted himself well by beating Tommy Fleetwood and halving his match with Matt Kuchar before Zach Johnson won their group by beating him, 1 up.
10. Seung-Yul Noh, South Korea-Byeong Hun An, South Korea -- The South Korean men golfers are playing big-time catch-up to the women, but Noh and An are helping them get closer. Noh has won four times as a pro, including the 2014 Zurich Classic of New Orleans, while An has three pro titles and has been knocking on the door on the U.S. tour, losing in a playoff to Brian Stuard at TPC Louisiana last year. Noh's match play as a pro has been limited to the 2011 Royal Trophy, where he posted a 2-0-1 record for Asia in a 9-7 loss to Europe, teaming with Liang Wen-Chong of China for victories over Colin Montgomerie and Johan Edfors in both foursome and four-ball in addition to routing Peter Hanson, 7 and 6, in singles. An had a 1-1 record in doubles play in the 2016 Eurasia Cup, but is only 1-5-2 in the WGC-Match play, beating Jason Dufner and halving matches with Rickie Fowler and Scott Piercy last year.
PGA Tour Spices Things Up in New Orleans
By Brady Kannon
The Big Easy, the big purse, the spicy food, the good times.. none of it was enough to lure many of the big time players to TPC Louisiana for The Zurich Classic of New Orleans. In 2017 however, The PGA Tour has spiced things up in Cajun Country and before anybody has even hit their first golf shot, the changes are already a huge success.
In 2016, 23-players ranked inside the Top 100 in the world, played The Zurich Classic. This year, 46-players ranked in the Top 100 will be in attendance, 24 of which rank inside the Top 50, and 6 of which are in the world's Top 10. The Tour has transformed a relatively stale stroke play event that sat inconveniently on the schedule, situated between The Masters and The Players Championship, and turned it into a very intriguing team play event that has the players genuinely excited about taking part.
The tournament remains a 72-hole stroke play event. Teams of two will compete. The winning team will each receive individual FedEx Cup Points, each will earn roughly one million dollars for the win, and each will also earn a two year exemption on Tour. Thursday and Saturday will be Foursomes, which is alternate shot. Friday and Sunday will be Four Ball, which is the best ball between the two teammates. There will be a cut after the 2nd round with the top 35 teams and ties advancing to the weekend. One very cool twist is that the players were given the freedom to choose their teammate for the tournament. You will note that many friends, college teammates, fellow countrymen, Ryder Cup partners.. are paired together this week in New Orleans.
As far as what it takes to win at TPC Louisiana, that is somewhat of a mystery. More so than any other course on Tour, The Zurich very much lacks a definitive set of skills that produce results year in and year out. Neither Driving Distance or Driving Accuracy seem to matter much. Greens in Regulation has proven to be an indicator - but what kind of news is that? Players who have putted well and scrambled well have had success here but this can be misleading as the course features some of the easiest greens to putt on the circuit. Pete Dye designed TPC Louisiana, so we can look to some other Dye designs on Tour for telling information. This combined with the fact that the tournament has typically been a birdie fest, I would also look at Birdie Percentage in my handicap. Perhaps what angle I prefer most however, is looking at the skill sets of each player on each two man team. What I want when forecasting success is almost polar opposites. One guy who bombs it and one guy who is very accurate. One guy who is fantastic tee to green and one guy who putts lights out, one guy who is a wizard with a wedge, one guy who is tremendous with his long irons. As is so often true in team play events on any level, a "ham & egg" effort goes a long way. I would rather have a contrast in styles between the two players that complement each other versus two players that succeed in similar ways.
The weather is also of note here this week. Thursday looks very benign with Friday getting breezy and then the weekend gets pretty nasty. Winds are expected to blow over 25-miles per hour and Sunday will almost surely include thunderstorms.
The Favorites
Jason Day & Rickie Fowler (+7.360 Pinnacle) With injury, illness, and most recently his mother's illness, Day has been inconsistent at best this season. Fowler was brilliant in the wind at The Masters until folding on the final day in perfect conditions. Day has finished 5th and 4th the last two years in New Orleans. Justin Rose & Henrik Stenson (+7.400 Pinnacle) Paired together in Ryder Cup play and also dueled down the stretch in Rio at The Olympic Games to finish with Gold & Silver respectively, these two Major Champions are very familiar with one another. Stenson has missed three cuts in a row on Tour and Rose may still be dealing with his near miss at The Masters. Rose won The Zurich Classic in 2015. Jordan Spieth & Ryan Palmer (+11.380 Pinnacle) Two Texans that are good friends and have great complimentary games. Spieth ranks 2nd on Tour in Greens in Regulation, 2nd in Birdie Average, and 8th in Putting Average. Palmer bangs it off of the tee and ranks 12th in Strokes Gained Tee to Green. Their Texas roots ought to give them an edge playing in the wind this weekend.
The Contenders
Daniel Berger & Thomas Pieters (+1617 Bookmaker) Both of these young players are having excellent seasons and Pieters showed his prowess for team play at The Ryder Cup last Fall. Berger is 15th in Birdie Average and putts very well on Bermuda Grass greens. Pieters is 13th in Birdie Average and 10th in Putting Average. Berger finished 27th at The Masters, Pieters was 4th. J.B. Holmes & Bubba Watson (+3257 Bookmaker) Two of the longest of the bombers off of the tee, Bubba won here in 2011 and Holmes has finished Top 15 twice. Watson has also won twice at another Pete Dye design, TPC River Highlands. Luke Donald & Jamie Lovemark (+4000 5Dimes) Lovemark lost in a playoff here at The Zurich last year while Donald has posted two Top 10 finishes at TPC Louisiana. Good complimentary games here and Donald has had great success on Dye courses, at both Harbour Town and TPC Sawgrass.
The Long Shots
Tony Finau & Daniel Summerhays (+5000 5Dimes) Certainly one of the best complimentary pairings in the field as Summerhays drives it straight and putts very well. Finau is huge off of the tee, ranking 7th in Strokes Gained and 8th in Strokes Gained Tee to Green. He is 22nd in Birdie Average and 7th in Greens in Regulation. Summerhays has two Top 30 finishes here in four tries. Byeong Hun An & Seung-Yul Noh (+4200 5Dimes) Like Jamie Lovemark, Byeong Hun An was also a loser in the playoff here last season while his partner, Noh, won this event in 2014. Both players bang it off of the tee. Noh is a solid putter and is fantastic out of the sand. An is yet to miss a cut this season. Harris English & Hudson Swafford (+58.920 Pinnacle) A pairing of University of Georgia Bulldogs and close friends. Swafford won earlier this year on a Pete Dye course at The Career Builder Challenge and English has had arguably his greatest success as a pro in a team event. The Franklin Templeton Shootout is not an official Tour event but paired with Matt Kuchar, English (and Kuchar) have finished 1-2-2-1 the last four years.
The Pick
Louis Oosthuizen & Branden Grace (15.230 Pinnacle) The bad news here is that neither one of these players has ever played this tournament before but I love the camaraderie the two South Africans share and the complimentary styles in their games. In the 2015 President's Cup, they were paired together four times and swept the board, going 4-and-0 in their matches. Louis is a sweet swinging ball striker and accurate bomber off of the tee. Grace excels in Hole Proximity, Scrambling, and can get streaky hot with the putter. Grace has shown an affinity for Pete Dye courses with a win last year and an 11th place finish this year at The RBC Heritage. He's never missed a cut at The Players Championship. And how about the wind? Oosthuizen finished 21st at The Honda Classic this season while Grace was 10th last week at The Valero and 13th this year at The Sony in Hawaii. With the stats, the results, and the intangibles all lining up, I think they have all the tools to make for a very strong pairing this week.