I’m not shouting, YOU ARE SHOUTING.
Better hurry up and read this, they will be teeing off around 7pm ET…
ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP
Golf Accordia Narashino Country Club
Chiba, Japan
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Chalk (via Bet365.com)
My thoughts on the top 10 players
Xander Schauffele (7/1): Class is permanent. Form is temporary. Looking to pick up his third top 10 from four starts at Narashino, it’s hardly a surprise he’s the favorite. Limited field, no-cut events have been his calling card over the last five seasons. With ties to the area (his mother is Japanese), I would expect another spirited 72 holes.
Collin Morikawa (11/1): Making his fourth start, the two-time major champ will look to pick up his second top-10 paycheck. Flashing glimpses with 64 twice, the Californian has produced just one top 20 (T7) in three previous attempts. Punishing fairways and greens, I prefer his putter on Bentgrass, in play this week, over Bermuda.
Sungjae Im (12/1): The quiet summer finally bloomed when the biggest (non-major) money was on the table in the FedExCup Playoffs. Cashing T14 at Wyndham to end the regular season was followed by T6 in Memphis and solo seventh at the BMW Championship. Winning the Asian Games and finishing P2 last week in Korea suggests the momentum should be very real this week. I’m on board!
Hideki Matsuyama (16/1): Second on debut. Winner by five in his second attempt. Native son. Crowd favorite. The last time he played on TOUR he withdrew at the BMW Championship. Lovely risk/reward proposition based on his course history.
Rickie Fowler (16/1): Many, including myself, thought this would be his launching point for the 2022-23 season last October. Instead, he was beaten to the finish line in the final group by Keegan Bradley. The leader after 36 holes and 54 holes posted 70 in Round 4 and lost by a shot. If he’s healthy this week, he will factor again.
Min Woo Lee (16/1): There’s no chance I’ll ignore 30-under and a victory last week. The field in Macau wasn’t the strongest, but there’s no better tonic after three weeks off than a win, regardless of field or course. The rust is gone, the confidence is high, and the Australian will look to keep it going as summer approaches in his native land.
Sahith Theegala (18/1): The confluence of results here is strong. Winning for the first time on TOUR in his last time out combined with T5 in his first event here last October equals a “no-brainer”. Guys who win for the first time on TOUR should be allowed to celebrate, relax, and enjoy the fruits of the labor. I’m not fading Theegala this week. I’m also pushing him to the front.
Cameron Davis (20/1): Primed to kick down the door, the Australian has cashed in the top 10 in five of his last six events. Copy and paste until he does.
NOW PLAYING:
| Host Course | Narashino Country Club |
| Yards (per official scorecard): | 7,079. |
| Par: | 70 (34-36). |
| Greens: | Bentgrass. |
| Stimpmeter: | N/A. |
| Rough: | N/A. |
| Bunkers/Water Hazards/In-Play | N/A. |
| Architect(s): | Kinya Fujita (1965). |
| Defending Champion (event): | Keegan Bradley. |
| Multiple Champion(s) Entered: | N/A. |
| Course Record (last): | 61; John Huh (not entered), 2022. |
| 72 Hole Tournament Record (last): | 261; Tiger Woods (2019). |
| Fact of the Week: | The 2020 edition was held in Los Angeles at Sherwood Country Club. |
| Fact of the Week II: | Five Par-3 holes and three Par-5 holes. Oh, and every hole has two greens. |
Notes:
- Field of 78.
- The OWGR is represented by 15 of the top 50.
- 46 players competed last week in Las Vegas.
- Six of the top 10 in Las Vegas are in the field this week.
- The fourth event of the FedExCup Fall season (seven events).
- $8.5 million – $1.53 million – 500 FedExCup points – Sentry and Masters ticket punched.
Season Winners
2022-2023 Season Winners
| Event | Winner |
| Fortinet Championship | Max Homa |
| Sanderson Farms Championship | Mackenzie Holmes |
| Shriners Children’s Open | Tom Kim |
| ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP | Keegan Bradley |
| CJ CUP at CONGAREE | Rory McIlroy |
| Butterfield Bermuda Championship | Seamus Power |
| Mayakoba Championship | Russell Henley |
| Cadence Bank Houston Open | Tony Finau |
| The RSM Classic | Adam Svensson (first TOUR win) |
| Sentry Tournament of Champions | Jon Rahm |
| Sony Open in Hawaii | Si Woo Kim |
| The AMERICAN EXPRESS | Jon Rahm (2) |
| Farmers Insurance Open | Max Homa (2) |
| AT&T Pebble Beach | Justin Rose |
| WM Phoenix Open | Scottie Scheffler |
| The Genesis Invitational | Jon Rahm (3) |
| The Honda Classic | Chris Kirk |
| Arnold Palmer Invitational | Kurt Kitayama (first TOUR win) |
| THE PLAYERS Championship | Scottie Scheffler (2) |
| Valspar Championship | Taylor Moore (first TOUR win) |
| Corales Puntacana | Matt Wallace (first TOUR win) |
| WGC – Dell Technologies MP | Sam Burns |
| Valero Texas Open | Corey Conners |
| Masters | Jon Rahm (4) |
| RBC Heritage | Matt Fitzpatrick |
| Zurich Classic of New Orleans | Davis Riley & Nick Hardy (first TOUR win for each) |
| Mexico Open at Vidanta | Tony Finau (2) |
| Wells Fargo Championship | Wyndham Clark (first TOUR win) |
| AT&T Byron Nelson | Jason Day |
| PGA Championship | Brooks Koepka |
| Charles Schwab Challenge | Emiliano Grillo |
| Memorial | Viktor Hovland |
| RBC Canadian Open | Nick Taylor |
| U.S. Open | Wyndham Clark (2) |
| Travelers Championship | Keegan Bradley (2) |
| Rocket Mortgage Classic | Rickie Fowler |
| John Deere Classic | Sepp Straka |
| Genesis Scottish Open | Rory McIlroy (2) |
| The Open Championship | Brian Harman |
| 3M Open | Lee Hodges (first TOUR win) |
| Wyndham Championship | Lucas Glover |
| FedEx St. Jude Championship | Lucas Glover (2) |
| BMW Championship | Viktor Hovland (2) |
| TOUR Championship | Viktor Hovland (3) |
| Fortinet Championship | Sahith Theegala |
| Sanderson Farms Championship | Luke List |
| Shriners Children’s Open | Tom Kim |
Recent Winners – ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP
Italics – not entered this week.
| Year | Winner | Notes |
| 2022 | Keegan Bradley (-15) | Caught and passed second and third round leader Rickie Fowler in the final group on Sunday. |
| 2021 | Hideki Matsuyama (-15) | Opened with 64, closed with 65 and won by five after being runner-up to Tiger Woods in the inaugural event in 2019. |
| 2020 | Patrick Cantlay | Won in Los Angeles. |
| 2019 | Tiger Woods (-19) | Circled 27 birdies, most in the field by seven. Won by three over Matsuyama. Six clear of third. |
Longer Shots, Longest Shots, Others
Cameron Champ (45/1): There’s no value here, but the heat is real. After missing the cut at Fortinet, he rebounded with T9 at SFC and T18 last week in Las Vegas. Posting four rounds in the 60s on debut last year, he went home with solo eighth prize money. … Alex Noren (45/1) cashed T3 last week after hitting T2 GIR. Game travels. … Joel Dahmen (66/1) has produced in his last three on Bentgrass greens (T7, T13, and T10). Sold. … With all the eyeballs on Matsuyama, Takumi Kanaya (80/1), another former great Japanese amateur, will look to sneak in the back door again. Posting four top sevens in his last seven events, I’ll play one JTGO member this week. Cashing T7 here in 2021 doesn’t push me away. … Michael Kim (90/1) closed 65-65 last week in Las Vegas for T18 after T5 in his previous TOUR start. … Mackenzie Hughes (110/1) has made two visits and they have resulted in T4 and T23.
Glass Houses 