This article is part of our Weekly PGA Preview series.
ZOZO Championship
Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club
Chiba, Japan
The PGA Tour heads to Japan for the another edition of the ZOZO Championship.
I've spent the past month discussing how the fall portion of the PGA Tour season is a bit rough to get through for those that are used to seeing big names almost every week throughout the spring and summer, but this week is the one chance we get to see some of the bigger names on the PGA Tour. Now, before you get too excited, this is the fall after all, so we can't just get all the best players in the world to show up, it has to be a watered-down version of a strong field, so instead of getting Xander Schauffele, Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy, we get just Schauffele. Instead of getting almost all of the top-20 players in the world this week, we get a handful, but hey, it's better than Keith Mitchell being the favorite, right? All jokes aside, it will be fun to see Schauffele back in action along with Collin Morikawa and Hideki Matsuyama. It's not a major, but it kind of feels like one this week when you consider the fields we've had over the past month or so. We know what the fall season is, we know what to expect, so let's just appreciate a week like this in the middle of the fall season and not compare it to a "big" event in the middle of the summer.
All odds via FanDuel Sportsbook as of 11:00 AM ET Wednesday.
FAVORITES
Xander Schauffele (9-2)
Schauffele is wrapping up what is undoubtedly his best season on the PGA Tour, so no would blame him if he were to coast to the finish line this season, but I don't think he's wired like that. The issue for Schauffele this week is that he doesn't have a great track record on this course. It's not terrible, but he has just one top-10 in three starts at this event on this course. The value simply isn't there.
Collin Morikawa (13-2)
Morikawa had a good, but not great 2024 season to this point. He set a new career-best in earnings this season, but he failed to pick up a single win. Morikawa has been a model of consistency this season, but you know he wants to get a win before the 2024 season ends. I don't like the value here, but I do think he's got a good shot to win.
Hideki Matsuyama (15-2)
Like Morikawa, Matsuyama also set a career-best earnings number in 2024, but unlike Morikawa, Matsuyama was able to close the deal not once, but twice. Matsuyama had a down 2023 season, but he wasted no time in getting back to his top form in 2024. He won this event in 2021, but he's struggled here in his past two starts. That likely has more to do with his form at the time than his affection for this course however.
THE NEXT TIER
Sahith Theegala (18-1)
I should have mentioned this earlier, but the odds are lower this week because there are only 78 golfers in the field, so while the chances of winning are increased slightly, the odds are going to be much lower than normal, hence the top-3 all well under 10-1. With that said, there is some value out there still and Theegala certainly has some at 18-1. Theegala has played here twice, and he finished inside the top-20 both times.
Kurt Kitayama (22-1)
I've been fading Kitayama this fall because he didn't have a good 2024 season, but to his credit, he's starting to turn his game around in the fall. He posted a top-25 at the Black Desert Championship two weeks back and he finished inside the top-10 this past week at the Shriners. Picking up a win this week would be a big leap, but it appears as though he's heading in the right direction.
Beau Hossler (35-1)
Hossler has played really well this fall season. He finished runner-up at the Sanderson Farms at the beginning of the month and he followed that with a T11 at the Black Desert. He scored a top-25 at the Shriners this past week, so it looks like he's still on top of his game. He's also fared well here before, with a runner-up this past year and a T16 the year prior.
LONG SHOTS
Doug Ghim (40-1)
Ghim is coming off his best showing of 2024 and if he can keep that momentum into this week, he might have a shot at winning. Ghim posted a runner-up at the Shriners, but that performance didn't come out of nowhere. He was trending in that direction with every start this fall, and it looks like he might finally be putting everything together.
Max Homa (50-1)
Homa has had a season to forget, there's no debating that, but at 50-1, I'm almost obligated to make this play, right? Sure, the odds that a guy who has been off his game for almost the entire year will suddenly find a win are slim, but we all know he's got the talent, he just needs to find it again. I doubt he wins, and he probably doesn't contend, but wouldn't it be fun to have him at 50-1 if he were to somehow find his old form?
ONE-AND-DONE LEAGUES
Highly-Chosen Pick: Hideki Matsuyama - There's no way to gauge who is left in any OAD pools that still may be going on, so I'm just going with who I think are the best plays. At the top of the list is Matsuyama, who has had a great season and is playing in front of the home crowd, which should help his cause.
Moderately-Chosen Pick: Sahith Theegala - Theegala has already had a great 2024 season, but I feel like there's more in the tank. Whether that comes out this week is in question, but we know that he has the talent to win any given week. It might just be a matter of motivation as the season comes to a close.
Lightly-Chosen Pick: Doug Ghim - Even if your season runs from January through November, you still might have Ghim on your list of available players as he's saved his best for last. Ghim seemingly has a high ceiling, but we haven't seen that form much over the past few years. Perhaps he's just tapping into that now.
Buyer Beware: Min Woo Lee - Lee just simply has not panned out this season. That's not to say that he won't turn it around in 2025, but expectations were pretty high for him entering this season and by most measures, he failed to meet them. Lee will likely need the offseason to get his game straight.
FANDUEL PICKS
Upper Range: Hideki Matsuyama ($12,400)
Middle Range: Doug Ghim ($10,000)
Lower Range: Mark Hubbard ($8,600)
