Scottie Scheffler has won four of his last five starts -- with a runner-up in the other -- but no one has to worry about him finishing at the top of the leaderboard at the 2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans. That's because the World No. 1 isn't a part of the field, which consists of 80 pairs of teams, so you'll have to look elsewhere for Zurich Classic fantasy picks. The event begins on Thursday from TPC Louisiana and utilizes alternating formats of best ball and foursomes, with Zurich Classic fantasy lineups consisting of two-man teams instead of individual golfers.
It is the only PGA Tour event that uses the team stroke play format, which saw Nick Hardy and Davis Riley shoot a tournament record 30-under-par in their victory last year. That duo is at +8000 in the latest Zurich Classic 2024 odds, which makes them an intriguing team to maneuver into a fantasy golf strategy. The teams at the top of the odds board are Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele (+500), Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry (+800) and Will Zalatoris and Sahith Theegala (+1100). Before making any 2024 Zurich Classic fantasy golf picks, you have to see the Zurich Classic fantasy golf rankings from SportsLine handicapper Eric Cohen.
Cohen is an avid golf bettor who correctly predicted the pre-tournament outright winner of the 2024 Masters (Scottie Scheffler, +350), Players Championship (Scheffler +550), 2023 Rocket Mortgage Classic (Rickie Fowler +1400), 2023 PGA Championship (Brooks Koepka +2000), 2023 Honda Classic (Chris Kirk +3500), 2022 Open Championship (Cameron Smith +2200), 2022 U.S. Open (Matt Fitzpatrick +2500), and 2022 Phoenix Open (Scheffler's first career victory at +2800).
Cohen is a contributor to SportsLine's YouTube shows including "Early Edge" and is the host of "The Early Wedge" golf show. Anyone who has followed Cohen's predictions has made positive gains on their golf picks.
Now, Cohen has ranked his top golfers for the 2024 Zurich Classic. Cohen's picks are only available at SportsLine.
2024 Zurich Classic expert picks
We can tell you he is backing the duo of Corey Conners and Taylor Pendrith at +3500. The styles of these two complement each other as well as you'll find with any team as Conners is an elite ball-striker who ranks in the top 15 in strokes gained: tee-to-green, greens in regulation percentage and strokes gained: approach the green. Meanwhile, Pendrith's strengths are his first shot and his final shot. He ranks ninth on tour in driving distance and is 22nd in strokes gained: putting.
The two lowest scores in this tournament's history have come in the last two years, so breaking par repeatedly is essential. This pairing cumulatively ranks in the top 10 of the field in birdies or better gained, with Conners ranking in the top 20 of the entire PGA Tour in both total birdies and total eagles. Add in that Pendrith finished 13th at this tournament last year while playing with a golfer currently ranked 792nd in the world, and the sky's the limit with him now teaming with the No. 51 golfer in World Ranking.
On the other hand, Cohen is fading the oddsmakers' second choice, McIlroy and Lowry at +800. This will be McIlroy's first start at TPC Louisiana while Lowry has played it four times previously. He has just one top 25 over that stretch -- which includes when it was both an individual event and a team event -- and he's missed two of four cuts. This year, Lowry has twice as many finishes outside the top 40 (four) as he has inside the top 10 (two).
That's still twice as many top 10s as McIlroy has in 2024 as the Irishman hasn't found the form he had at the end of last season when he ended it with 10 straight top 10s. McIlroy's scoring average of 70.29 ranks just 87th on tour as his short game is struggling. He ranks outside the top 100 in strokes gained: around-the-green, and as is the case with most Pete Dye-designed courses, TPC Louisiana puts an emphasis on the short game. Lowry can't help out his partner much with that aspect as he also ranks outside the top 100 around the green, so this duo is one to avoid considering their short odds. See all of Cohen's Zurich Classic picks at SportsLine.
How to set 2024 Zurich Classic Fantasy golf lineups
For this week, Cohen is backing several underdogs in his 2024 Zurich Classic fantasy golf picks, including a triple-digit longshot team which could "potentially be a wise play in placement bets" and could help spice up your Fantasy golf lineups. See who it is, and get all of Cohen's fantasy golf picks, at SportsLine.
Who wins Zurich Classic 2024, and who are the top teams to target for your PGA fantasy golf picks? Visit SportsLine now to get Eric Cohen's fantasy golf rankings, all from the fantasy expert who has called seven outright winners since 2022, and find out.
