Carolinians in the FedEx St. Jude Championship

This week in Memphis, TN, the PGA Tour kicks off the first of three legs in the FedEx Cup Playoffs at TPC Southwind. The format is straightforward: the top 70 golfers in the FedEx Cup standings from the regular season qualify for the playoffs, which are based on a points system. Each week, the field is narrowed down — starting with 70 players this week, then cut to 50 for the BMW Championship, and finally down to 30 for the Tour Championship. This year, six players who were raised in the Carolinas will be competing in the playoffs. Let’s take a look at where they currently rank in the FedEx Cup standings and explore some betting options for each player this week.

The Golfers

Ben Griffin: Currently ranked 6th in the FedEx Cup standings, Ben Griffin finds himself in the best position of his career heading into the playoffs. This will be Griffin’s third playoff appearance; however, in his first two, he failed to advance past the St. Jude Championship. He’s had an impressive season overall, though his play hasn’t quite matched the level he showed during the mid-season stretch. That said, he performed well last week at the Wyndham Championship, finishing T-11, which should give him some momentum heading into the playoffs.

As for some betting angles on Griffin, he is currently +300 (via DraftKings) to finish in the top 10 this week. His first-round score line is set at 68.5 (over -110; under -120) (per DraftKings). Last year, he recorded only one round below that mark at TPC Southwind, but in 2023, he had two rounds under 68.5.

Andrew Novak: Andrew Novak is entering his first-ever FedEx Cup Playoffs, and after a solid season, he is currently ranked 12th in the standings. Since he hasn’t qualified for the playoffs before, there’s no tournament history for Novak at TPC Southwind. This season, he has one win, a runner-up finish, four top-10s, and has made 15 cuts in 23 events played. His recent form has been inconsistent, and he’s heading into the St. Jude Championship after missing the cut at the Wyndham Championship.

With no course history to reference, sportsbooks have taken a cautious approach — DraftKings has set his first-round score projection at 69.5 (over +105; under -140). If you believe Novak is poised for a strong showing, you can currently get him at +280 to finish inside the top 20, and +130 to finish inside the top 30 (per DraftKings).

Lucas Glover: Of the players on this list, Lucas Glover has the most experience at TPC Southwind and is currently ranked 27th in the FedEx Cup standings. Though he missed the playoffs last year, he posted strong finishes in his two most recent appearances at the FedEx St. Jude Championship — finishing 3rd in 2022 and winning the tournament in 2023. Heading into the 2023 playoffs, Glover’s game was red-hot, and he’s playing fairly well again this year, aside from a missed cut at last week’s Wyndham Championship.

Given his strong track record at TPC Southwind, Glover to finish inside the top 20 is currently listed at +200 on DraftKings — an intriguing value. Another available wager is a first-round matchup against Viktor Hovland, where Glover is +115 to post the lower score (per DraftKings).

Ryan Gerard: Ryan Gerard is currently just outside the Tour Championship cut line, ranked 31st in the FedEx Cup standings. He had his breakout season this year, securing his first win at the Barracuda Championship in late July. Unfortunately, he followed that up by missing the cut at the Wyndham Championship.

As this will be Gerard’s first appearance in the playoffs, he has never played TPC Southwind in a tournament setting and will likely be considered a flier this week. Sportsbooks also appear cautious about his outlook — he’s currently listed at +240 (per DraftKings) to finish inside the top 20, and his Round 1 line for birdies or better is set at 3.5 (over -175, per DraftKings).

Akshay Bhatia: Coming off a season where Akshay Bhatia slightly regressed, he still managed to hold things together and enter the playoffs ranked 45th in the FedEx Cup standings. He’s had a few solid performances recently, but last week raised some concerns, as he withdrew from the Wyndham Championship during the second round. Many speculate the withdrawal was simply due to poor play, but the hope is that he doesn’t carry that form into this week.

Bhatia hasn’t finished inside the top 20 since early June, so I wouldn’t consider him for any full-tournament props. The only notable market for him in Round 1 is a matchup against Harry Hall, where Bhatia is currently a slight underdog at -110, compared to Hall at -120 (per DraftKings). Hall has been extremely consistent this season — especially of late — so I’d be cautious with expectations for Bhatia in that matchup.

J.T. Poston: Lastly, from North Carolina, we have J.T. Poston, who is currently ranked 51st in the FedEx Cup standings. Poston has been fairly volatile this season, especially in recent weeks. One positive takeaway is his solid play in the majors — with the exception of the Open Championship, which, unfortunately, was the most recent of the four. He performed well last week, finishing in a tie for 11th.

Since the St. Jude Championship became a playoff event, Poston has finished 20th in 2022, 24th in 2023, and 33rd in 2024. If he can draw from his experience in 2022, he offers solid value at +175 (per DraftKings) to finish inside the top 20. You can also bet on his Round 1 birdies or better prop, which is currently set at 3.5 (over -185; under +135, per DraftKings). This season, Poston is averaging 3.78 birdies per round — just slightly above the PGA Tour average.