Weekly Preview: THE CJ CUP in South Carolina

THE CJ CUP in South Carolina

Congaree GC
Ridgeland, SC

The PGA Tour heads to the Hilton Head area -- the third different locale that has hosted this tournament since its inception.

Before we get to that, let's take a quick look back at the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP. I don't always look in reverse in this piece, but when something of note occurs, I feel it's necessary to acknowledge it. A couple things happened actually, one is that Keegan Bradley ended a long drought by picking up another PGA Tour victory. However, the most important development was the potential return of Rickie Fowler. He did not win, but he put together his best effort in years and finished runner-up. Fowler's return to form would be a huge boost for the PGA Tour, especially with LIV Golf now part of the picture. Everything sounds positive about this past week, so let's hope Fowler found something and can again be a force on the PGA Tour.

As for this week, it's interesting, the official name of this event is "THE CJ CUP in South Carolina." This event has moved so many times over the past few years that they actually have to tell you where it is being played each year. As you can guess, since it's not the THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES or THE CJ CUP @ SUMMIT we have no course history, which is always a bummer. We do, however, have the first blockbuster field of the fall season, so it should be a fun week.
                              
All odds via FanDuel Sportsbook as of 9:05 PM ET Tuesday.

LAST YEAR

Rory McIlroy shot a final-round 66 on his way to a one-stroke victory over Collin Morikawa.

FAVORITES

Rory McIlroy (13-2)

I'm not surprised that McIlroy is favored, but I am a little surprised at the short number on him this week. These odds are usually reserved for an elite player against a weaker field and this is nowhere near that. McIlroy has played at an extremely high level for a few months, and while I think he will be in the mix to win, I don't think there is enough value at this price.

Jon Rahm (19-2)

Again, with no course history and not much recent play to go off of, the odds makers are going to lean on what they know and that's how the public is going to bet. McIlroy and Rahm are crowd favorites and they're going to receive a lot of backing, so it makes sense that they are at the top of the list. As is the case with McIlroy however, the number is a little short on Rahm considering the strength of this field.

Scottie Scheffler (12-1)

I doubt there are many observers out there that think Scheffler is a one hit wonder, but it will be interesting to see how he responds this season after what he accomplished this past season. We don't have a great gauge on his current form, so jumping in at 12-1 doesn't seem like a great idea. Scheffler had some crazy runs this past season, but he also had some periods where he was off, so he's not an automatic play. I'd hold off on him at 12-1.

THE NEXT TIER

Matt Fitzpatrick (24-1)

Fitzpatrick made a huge leap this past season when he won his first major, and now we'll see if that catapults him into a different stratosphere. It seems odd to say that a major winner has another level to get to, but you have to remember that expectations have always been high for Fitzpatrick, and one major is not the ultimate goal. He'll want to get more majors of course, but is he determined to become a force on the PGA Tour as well? We'll see starting this week. Fitzpatrick will be making his season debut, but he has played four times overseas since the TOUR Championship and fell in a playoff in the middle of last month. At 24-1, he's worth a look.

Viktor Hovland (24-1)

It was a tale of two seasons for Hovland this past year as he started out on fire, but ultimately failed to accomplish much after the month of March. To be honest, the second half of the season was dreadful as Hovland completely disappeared during the big events. He's off to a good start this season though as he posted a T5 this past week at the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP. Hovland has the talent to become of a force on the PGA Tour, but he needs to figure out his short game. Some weeks it doesn't matter though, maybe this is one of those weeks.

Tom Kim (26-1)

Kim is stepping up in class this week as he's facing the world's elite, but as we all know by now, he's got the skills to compete with anyone. The improvement in the field makes it harder to win of course, but it also gives us a chance to get odds like this, which won't last very long once he starts ripping off even more wins. Kim doesn't seem to be intimidated by anyone, so the fact that he's up against this much firepower this week shouldn't matter much.

LONG SHOTS

Rickie Fowler (66-1)

Fowler is going to be a popular underdog and I hate jumping on the bandwagon, but with a field like this, you want someone like him who has been there before and won't crack under the pressure. Now, will this version of Fowler crack if he's in contention? That we don't know because we don't know where his confidence is right now, but if this past week is any indication, he's close to getting back to the old Fowler and the old Fowler would have a chance at winning this week.

Mito Pereira (70-1)

Speaking of cracking under pressure, no, that's a cheap shot and if I really believed Pereira couldn't handle the pressure, I wouldn't have him here. Look, Pereira has failed under pressure a couple times, but that's only going to help him down the road. What I see in those situations is a guy who is good enough to be in those spots, he just needs to get to the finish line. If Pereira can get to the 72nd tee box with the lead at a major, he can get the better of a field like this.

ONE-AND-DONE LEAGUES

Highly-owned Pick: Viktor Hovland - There is a large segment of OAD players that refuses to go elite in the fall and that coupled with wanting to save the likes of McIlroy, Rahm and Scheffler for the majors leaves someone at the level of Hovland as the most popular play this week. As much as I'd like to save Hovland for next year, I like this play as he seems to be in form right now and unless he fixes that short game, he won't be a huge factor at the majors going forward.

Moderately-owned Pick: Rickie Fowler - I would never have guessed that I'd be placing Fowler in this section at all this season, let alone in the "moderate" part, but after this past week, that's where we are. Fowler is going to draw attention when he plays well and for those looking to avoid going big this week, he's probably your best bet.

Lightly-owned Pick: Andrew Putnam - Putnam will only be lightly owned if you take him this week as I don't see anyone else making this play. If you are really trying to avoid anyone that you might use in 2023, then Putnam could be your guy this week as he's coming in off a very solid T2 this past week. Putnam has won on the PGA Tour and he's just 33, so perhaps he's finding his best game right now.

Buyer Beware: Sungjae Im - I had Im here this past week and it worked as he finished T29. The reason I had him here this past week was that I thought he was overpriced and that's again the case this week. Im is the fifth favorite this week, ahead of Fitzpatrick, Hovland and Sam Burns, which I just don't understand, so once again, I'll tell you to beware of him because I don't believe he should be 22-1 in this field.

This Week: Rickie Fowler - My hot start has allowed me the freedom to go a bit further down the list than I normally would, so I'm going to try and get lucky with Fowler this week. There is a bit of a quandary here though I must admit as if he does play well this week and he is truly back at some point this season, then he will have some value down the road. With that said, I like to strike while this iron is hot, so I'll take the long shot.

Previous Results

FANDUEL PICKS

Upper Range: Matt Fitzpatrick ($11,200)
Middle Range: Rickie Fowler ($9,800)
Lower Range: Andrew Putnam ($8,300)

SURVIVOR LEAGUES

Previous Results