The 2026 FedEx St. Jude Championship kicks off at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee, launching the PGA Tour postseason with a $20 million purse and major playoff implications. As the top 70 golfers battle through Thursday’s opening rounds, world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler emerges as the clear betting favorite to secure his first win of the season.
The Bottom Line
- The Field: The top 70 players in the FedEx Cup standings have advanced to TPC Southwind, with only the top 50 moving on to the BMW Championship next week, according to CBS Sports.
- The Purse: Competitors are eyeing a massive $20 million prize pool, with $3.6 million reserved for Sunday’s winner, as noted by Sports Illustrated.
- The Favorites: Scottie Scheffler leads the odds boards across major sportsbooks like FanDuel and DraftKings, trading between +445 and +550.
Chasing the Crown at TPC Southwind
The PGA Tour regular season is officially in the rearview mirror, and the stakes have never been higher for the world’s elite players. Kicking off Thursday at 8:10 a.m. ET, the FedEx St. Jude Championship represents the first leg of a grueling three-event playoff stretch. Because points are quadrupled compared to standard regular-season stops, the FedEx Cup standings are primed for dramatic shifts by Sunday afternoon, according to CBS Sports.
At the center of the conversation is Scottie Scheffler. The reigning top-ranked golfer in the world enters the week seeking to break a winless drought that has lingered since his victory at The American Express earlier in 2026. Despite racking up five runner-up finishes this season—including a nail-biting close call at the 3M Open—his underlying metrics remain untouchable. According to Sports Illustrated’s betting preview, Scheffler is gaining strokes across all four major statistical areas, proving his game lacks a single glaring weakness.
The Odds and Contenders Board
Bookmakers have established a clear hierarchy at the top of the board, though a handful of value picks are capturing the attention of sharp bettors. DraftKings and FanDuel list the top contenders with distinct pricing advantages:
| Golfer | DraftKings Odds | FanDuel Odds |
|---|---|---|
| Scottie Scheffler | +445 | +480 / +550 |
| Rory McIlroy | +970 | +1300 |
| Xander Schauffele | +1950 | +1800 |
| Tommy Fleetwood | +1950 | +2000 |
| Sam Burns | +2000 | +2200 |
While Scheffler commands a shorter price, value hunters are eyeing names further down the sheet. Sam Burns enters the week with considerable momentum. According to Sports Illustrated, Burns sits second on the PGA Tour in Par 4 scoring at 3.95—trailing only Scheffler—and ranks fourth in total strokes gained over the past three months. CBS Sports highlights that Burns has hovered right on the doorstep of victory at major events all year, securing top-seven finishes at the Masters, the Memorial, the U.S. Open, and the Open Championship.
Defending the turf from last year is Justin Rose, whose 2026 campaign has proven to be a roller coaster ride featuring a victory at the Farmers Insurance Open, a T3 at the Masters, and a T10 at the PGA Championship, alongside four missed cuts, as reported by Sports Illustrated. Meanwhile, computational models from platforms like SportsLine indicate that players like Xander Schauffele may face an uphill battle at lower odds due to a lack of recent top-tier finishes since May.
Navigating the Broadcast and Cut Dynamics
Unlike standard events, this week features a crucial survival threshold. While all 70 players teeing off on Thursday will play through the weekend without a traditional 36-hole cut, only the top 50 in the updated standings will punch their tickets to the following week’s BMW Championship, as detailed by CBS Sports. That means every single stroke logged on the greens at TPC Southwind carries massive financial and postseason consequences.
Fans tuning in from home can catch the comprehensive television and streaming coverage spanning the weekend. The Golf Channel holds the early afternoon windows from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. ET on Thursday and Friday, while weekend coverage splits between the Golf Channel and CBS, ensuring full visibility of the championship stretch. As the weekend unfolds, the math will ultimately decide who survives the first playoff cut and who heads home early.
