This week’s PGA Tour stop, the Zurich Classic, is a short drive from the Big Easy at the TPC New Orleans. The only team event on Tour will take place at the par-72 Pete Dye-designed layout, where it moved in 2005.
The tournament was an individual stroke play event until 2017, when the Tour decided to add some variety to its offerings. Jonas Blixt and Cameron Smith won in the initial team format tournament in a playoff over Scott Brown and Kevin Kisner.
The 2020 version was canceled due to COVID-19, so 2019 winners Jon Rahm and Ryan Palmer are the defending champions. They won convincingly by three shots over Tommy Fleetwood and Sergio Garcia.
There are 80 two-man teams in the field, and they’ll play best ball on Thursday and Saturday, switching to an alternate-shot format on Friday and Sunday. The low 35 teams and ties after Friday’s second round will make the cut for the final two rounds.
Byeong Hun An and Sungjae Im are teaming up with odds of +4500 to come out on top at the TPC New Orleans.
Betting Odds Leaders
The defending champions are the betting favorites at +600, followed by Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele at +650. Cantlay hasn’t played well in the past month, while Schauffele has had flashes of solid play recently.
Smith has switched partners and will be playing alongside Marc Leishman at +1400, with both players having good seasons. Smith shot a first-round 62 last week in the RBC Heritage but wasn’t able to follow it up on the weekend.
Two young stars on the rise, Collin Morikawa and Matthew Wolff, will pair up and also have odds of +1400. Veteran Bubba Watson will team with 24-year-old Scottie Scheffler in an interesting pairing as they complete the top five in betting odds at +1600.
Zurich Classic Underdog Picks
Byeong Hun An and Sungjae Im are teaming up with odds of +4500 to come out on top at the TPC New Orleans. Im is one of the hardest-working players on Tour. He’s already played in 20 Tour events in the 2021 season and has only missed two cuts, the most recent at the Masters.
An has also been busy, appearing in 16 tournaments and making his first 12 cuts of the year but missing the last four. He’s not been playing well, but pairing with his fellow South Korean might change his fortunes this week.
A potential Ryder Cup pairing is Justin Rose with Henrik Stenson, also with odds of +4500. Rose was the winner on his own in 2015, so he has a good track record around the course. Stenson is a strong team player and, along with his countryman, could be a real factor in Louisiana.
Andrew Landry and Austin Cook, former teammates out of the University of Arkansas, will be teaming up in what is certain to be a comfortable pairing. Both players are former PGA Tour winners, with Landry’s the most recent at the American Express in 2020. The comfort level of playing together makes them a good longshot pick at +12500.
