The finale of the 2021/22 PGA Tour Season is upon us as the top 30 players head to East Lake for the Tour Championship.
Due to the change in format a few years ago, the player that leads the FedEx Cup standings heading into the tournament starts at 10 under par, with every other player starting at least two shots behind, with the last player in at level par.
East Lake is a beautiful golf course that has been the home of the Tour Championship since 2004. It is not a course where driving distance is particularly important, although it never hurts. But it has always been a course that rewards greens in regulation. So accurate iron players is a must at this event.
It is Scottie Scheffler, on the back of an incredible season, that comes into this with that big advantage. He of course starts as favourite for the event, but it is East Lake specialist Xander Schauffele, starting four back that really catches the eye. He has twice finished as the low scorer (not necessarily winner with the handicap) but has never finished worse than seventh.
Betting $100 on @MaxHoma23 to win at every event he's played this year would've net $8300 👀
See the returns of each player in the top 30 💰
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 24, 2022
Schauffele has had a very good season with back-to-back wins in July and will be looking to add the FedEx Cup to his long list of honours. He is a player that always seems to turn up at the big events. He has such a good all-around game but his ability to grind out a round when conditions are tough is perhaps his best. He is within touching distance of the leaders going into the event and has every chance of taking home the Tour Championship and with it, the FedEx Cup and huge $18m that goes with it. 8/1 for the best 72 hole score without handicaps could be the best bet of the week.
Patrick Cantlay has had a reasonable season, but a win last week has given him every chance of defending his FedEx Cup title. He comes in as the second ranked player and preparations do not get much better than defending his BMW Championship. 7/2 is obviously a short price but that comes with the handicap in the event, so it should not put you off if you fancy him to become the first person in history to defend his title.
Go behind the scenes with golf icons @TigerWoods & Chris McDonald 🎥 pic.twitter.com/KWyEqUeM0Q
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 24, 2022
The system makes finding long shots hard as they have so much to overcome to even be in the running, so the 72 hole low scorer market is maybe a better place for that. K.H. Lee is a player that stands out at the bottom of the market. He played phenomenal golf to get into the event with a great Sunday at the BMW Championship and he can carry that over to East Lake.
He is an incredible talent and being so far down in the rankings could take some of the pressure off him as he looks to come from behind. He already has two PGA Tour victories and looks like a player that is ready to breakout and become a regular winner. 300/1 to actually win the event is a step too far, but 80/1 for the low score and 6/1 for a top 10 finish is very tempting.
Some people do not like the changes at this event with the handicapping system, but there have been very few complaints from the players since it was brought in. We have still seen some exciting finishes and the prestige of the event makes it fun to watch on its own. It was the venue of Tiger Woods’ big win in 2018 that many will remember for the rest of their lives. Rory McIlroy could become the first three time winner of the event, Cantlay could be the first to defend his title and Scheffler and Schauffele could well win their first to cap off great years. There are so many great storylines that could come out of this event that it makes it must watch.
