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FedEx Cup playoffs 2022 preview: 10 players to watch at St. Jude Championship

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Michael Madrid-USA TODAY Sports

The first round of the FedEx St. Jude Championship at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tenn. begins Thursday morning and kicks off the first leg of the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

The game’s top 125 players will be on hand and at the conclusion of the event on Sunday, the players in the top 70 of the FedEx Cup Standings will move on to next week’s BMW Championship.

This week’s winner will receive 2,000 cup points and if that player is from the top 16 in the standings, they will most likely be at the top or right around the No. 1 spot with Scottie Scheffler.

Related: 2022 FedEx Cup playoffs preview

All players will not only be looking to get the win, but to also remain in contention, especially if they are around the top 70 in the standings. Such as Brandon Wu and Matthew NeSmith, who currently sit in the 71st and 72nd positions, respectively.

Here are 10 players to watch this weekend that could hoist the St. Jude Championship trophy.

Matt Fitzpatrick

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Credit: Michael Madrid-USA TODAY Sports

The reigning U.S. Open Champion comes into this week looking to capitalize on what he did in Brookline, Mass.

At the U.S. Open back in June, Matt Fitzpatrick led the field in greens in regulation and strokes gained off the tee, which means he was executing all of his shots ranging from off the tee or on the green. That also includes hitting great shots after bad shots like his approach shot on the 18th hole from the fairway bunker.

Fitzpatrick, who currently sits at No. 14 in the standings, will be in a good place come Sunday if he leads the field in those two categories either to win or have strong momentum going into the BMW Championship. Fitzpatrick will begin his round on Thursday at 7:59 AM. CT with Max Homa and Jordan Spieth in his group.

Will Zalatoris

All season long, Will Zalatoris has proven he can play at the top, even in the game’s biggest tournaments. However, he has come up close numerous times this season.

Despite having a new caddie on the bag, those inches of a read could be the difference in winning the TOUR Championship or missing by one stroke, similar to when he missed a 10-foot putt on the 72nd hole at Torrey Pines with a chance to win the Farmers Insurance Open in January.

While Zalatoris has missed putts on the biggest of stages, he has still shown he can compete with the game’s best as he has eight top-10s this season, including placing inside the top 10 at three of the four major tournaments. Zalatoris begins his first round at 12:55 PM CT.

Tony Finau

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Finau enters this week on a hot streak with consecutive wins at the Rocket Mortgage Classic and the 3M Open. The key thing for the 32-year-old was his accuracy to land on the green. He led the field with a 91.7% clip in greens in regulation to win the Rocket Mortgage Classic by five strokes.

A large part in executing successful approach shots is a result from the previous shot as he ranked third at the Rocket Mortgage and sixth at the 3M Open in driving accuracy, which determines how well a golfer hits his drives on the fairway. Finau said he has to translate his success from his last couple of starts as the playoffs begin.

“You’ve got to hit the fairway,” Finau said. “You’re going to get some crazy lies out of the rough, so keeping the ball in the fairway is a premium and it’s something I’ve done a great job of over the last couple of events.”

Patrick Cantlay

This season, Patrick Cantlay has one victory, which came in a team event back in April with Xander Schauffele. However, what has him at No. 5 in the standings is his consistency to be at or near the peak of leaderboards with ten top-10 finishes, which led all players this season.

Cantlay is looking to become the first player to win back-to-back FedEx Cup Championships since the FedEx Cup Championships for the PGA Tour playoffs began in 2007. In addition, Cantlay would join McIlroy and Tiger Woods as the only players to win multiple FedEx Cup titles.

Xander Schauffele

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Credit: Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports

Xander Schauffele enters the start of the FedEx Cup playoffs in Memphis after three weeks of rest since The Open Championship at St. Andrews last month. Schauffele has not finished lower than 18th since missing the cut at the Masters Tournament back in April. Since then, the 28-year-old has recorded three wins to along with a fifth-place finish in eight starts.

In the three majors following the Masters Tournament, Schauffele tied for 13th at PGA Championship, tied for 14th at the U.S. Open and tied for 15th at The Open Championship. As a whole, Schauffele ranks inside the top 10 in strokes gained: approach the green, strokes gained from the tee to the green and strokes gained total. Schauffele begins his first round at 1:06 PM CT on Thursday with Cantlay and McIlroy in his group.  

Justin Thomas

Like Schauffele, Justin Thomas has not played since The Open Championship, which is much needed rest for the reigning PGA Champion, who had competed in eight tournaments in a 10-week span earlier this season.

Related: 4 takeaways from the PGA Championship & Justin Thomas’ major victory

This season, Thomas has benefitted by playing well despite not finishing atop the leaderboard, like Cantlay. Thomas ended this season tied for a second-best nine top-10 finishes with Scottie Scheffler.

Heading into the week, Thomas is back to playing on a course where he has seen success, having won this event in 2020. Since the 2016-17 season, the 29-year-old has had at least one victory in the month of August every year except last season.

Thomas begins his round on Thursday at 8:21 AM CT with Finau and Cameron Young.

Rory McIlroy

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Credit: USA Today Network

Rory McIlroy enters the FedEx Cup playoffs off a regular season that was great, but not quite to the level of finishing weekends by winning tournaments. McIlroy finished inside the top 10 in all four major tournaments this season, in addition to two wins on his resume in this year’s PGA Tour schedule.

Since missing the cut at the Valero Texas Open a week before the Masters Tournament, McIlroy has six top-10 finishes in eight starts, which includes one of his wins that came at the RBC Canadian Open, a week before placing fifth in the U.S. Open.

McIlroy has been successful all season through his total strokes gained, which ranks atop the PGA Tour leaderboard. That means he is saving shots, whether that comes from hitting fairways or knocking down putts.

Sam Burns

Sam Burns enters the FedEx Cup playoffs as one of four golfers this year with at least three wins and is looking to join his friend, Scottie Scheffler, as the only players with four PGA Tour victories this season.

Burns started his season strong, recording five top-5 finishes in six starts to begin his 2021-22 campaign, highlighted by winning the Sanderson Farms Championship, which was the second event on the schedule. He would also go on to win the Valspar Championship, a week before THE PLAYERS Championship, and the Charles Schwab Challenge, a week after the PGA Championship.

Burns is looking for redemption this week at TPC Southwind while looking to be in a good position on Sunday.

“I’m excited to be back here in Memphis,” Burns said on Tuesday. “Played well here last year. I unfortunately lost in a playoff but it’s a golf course I really like. It’s the grass that I’m used to playing on. I grew up in Bermuda, so I feel comfortable around here and I’m excited for the week.”

Scottie Scheffler

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The leader in the FedEx Cup standings begins this week looking to remain in the top position after Sunday.  

“I want to continue to play good golf,” Scheffler said Tuesday. “I’ve been able to accomplish a lot this year and get to No. 1 in the world rankings. I’ve had a pretty good lead in the FedEx Cup for a while now and I want to continue to do it. I like being No. 1 in the world. I like being at the top of the FedEx Cup. Those are things that are fun for me. It’s enjoyable, so I want to just continue to improve on that.”

If a player from outside the top 16 in the standings pulls off the victory this week, and Scheffler still has a good showing, he will remain in the top spot entering next week’s BMW Championship. All Scheffler has to do is be in the top spot by the time the TOUR Championship arrives to already have a two-stroke lead on the field and 10 strokes from the bottom four players of the leaderboard.

Cameron Smith

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Credit: Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports

Cameron Smith enters this week’s FedEx Cup playoffs after three weeks of rest following his win at St. Andrews for the historic 150th Open Championship.

Last season in this event, Smith recorded a top-5 finish with his first three rounds in the 60s before his final round shooting a 72. In total, Smith recorded 93 putts in last year’s event, which was one more than the PGA record for putts in a 72-hole regulation tournament.

However, on the 72nd hole last year, Smith recorded a double bogey and lost his chances of making it into the playoff. Like Burns, Smith is looking for redemption as he is looking to end his season on a high note.

“This is a golf course that really suits my eye,” Smith said. “Looking back on it, I may have played the last hole a little bit differently, but I think it’s made me grow as a golfer and I’ve gone on to do some pretty good things since then.”

This season, Smith has won at both the Sentry Tournament of Champions in January and THE Players Championship in March before his win last month at the season’s final major. He will begin his round on Thursday with Burns and Scheffler beginning at 8:21 AM CT.

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