This week will be anything but ordinary as the 2023 Zurich Classic takes its annual place on the PGA Tour calendar. Welcoming 80 teams of two to TPC Louisiana, the sixth edition of the team-style tournament will see competitors play four-ball in Rounds 1 and 3 and foursomes -- also known as alternate shot -- in Rounds 2 and 4.
Last season, good friends, as well as Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup teammates, Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay took home the title. They arrive this year as the prohibitive favorites and only the second team in the event's history to feature two players inside the top five of the Official World Golf Rankings.
Schauffele and Cantlay are two of the five players from last week's leaderboard who will be making the trip from Hilton Head, South Carolina, to New Orleans with RBC Heritage champion Matt Fitzpatrick also in the field.
The world No. 8 joins forces with his younger brother, Alex, who is making just his second career start on the PGA Tour. Hayden Buckley will be teaming up with J.J. Spaun while Sahith Theegala has sought the services of reigning Korn Ferry Tour Player of the Year Justin Suh.
Californians and Presidents Cup teammates Max Homa and Collin Morikawa are a pair for the first time, as are International teammates Si Woo Kim and Tom Kim. While the Americans were never featured alongside each other this past fall at Quail Hollow, the Kims were and memorably took down Cantlay and Schauffele in four-balls.
Event information
Event: 2023 Zurich Classic | Dates: Apr. 20-23
Location: TPC Louisiana — Avondale, Louisiana
Par: 72 | Yardage: 7,425 | Purse: $8,600,000
Format
The Zurich Classic will employ an alternating-round of four-ball and foursomes. Teams will begin in the four-ball format in Round 1 and utilize it again in Round 3 while foursomes — commonly referred to as alternate shot — will be used in Rounds 2 and 4.
- Four-ball: Players from each team will play their own ball throughout the round with the best score between the two being used for each hole. If Schauffele makes par on No. 1 and Cantlay makes birdie, the team will record a birdie.
- Foursome: Before the round begins, teams will determine which member will tee off on which holes. One player will be designated to strike the first tee shot on odd holes while the other will begin the even holes. If Cantlay strikes the tee shot on No. 1, Schauffele will take on the approach with Cantlay then hitting the third. This alternating will continue until the ball is holed. Even if Schauffele is the last to strike a shot on No. 1, he will hit the tee shot on the second hole in this instance.
Rick Gehman is joined by Kyle Porter, Mark Immelman and Patrick McDonald to break down a unique team event as the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. It's picks, storylines and the highly competitive One & Done. Follow & listen to The First Cut on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
2023 Zurich Classic field, odds
Odds via Caesars Sportsbook
- Xander Schauffele/Patrick Cantlay (3-1)
- Collin Morikawa/Max Homa (13/2): The Cali kids team up for the first time, and both find themselves inside the top 15 of the Official World Golf Rankings. While on paper the two should gel, Homa's lack of quality since the Florida Swing may be cause for concern. He hasn't struck the ball well over the past month, and missed his first cut in 15 starts last week at Harbour Town. Morikawa's irons are capable of carrying the load, but his shortcomings on the greens may be emphasized in this format. Teaming up with Viktor Hovland in last year's proceedings, Morikawa was only able to muster together a T29 effort.
- Sungjae Im/Keith Mitchell (11-1): This unlikely duo may be the team to give the top dogs a scare. Mitchell has been hounding at Im to team up in recent years and finally he gets his wish. The South Korean is coming off a T7 at the RBC Heritage where he ranked second in strokes gained tee to green, second in strokes gained off the tee and seventh in strokes gained around the green. With Mitchell's booming drives and Im's pristine iron play, this team may be able to separate over the two rounds of foursomes if the putters behave.
- Si Woo Kim/Tom Kim (14-1): The two were together during Tom Kim's coming out party at the 2022 Presidents Cup. Holing eagle putts, clinching birdie bids and letting out screams that reverberated throughout the Lower 48, this South Korean twosome took Quail Hollow by storm. However, that was then and this is now. Both players are playing respectfully from tee to green but have fallen short with the putter in hand. The good news is both can run red hot on the greens. The bad news is they can both run ice cold. Anything from a missed cut to a win may be on the table.
- Sam Burns/Billy Horschel (18-1): Rounds of 62-68-63-68 saw them reach the 27-under total in 2022. It would have been good enough any other year to raise the trophy, but Schauffele and Cantlay's record performance meant this SEC duo finished two strokes out of first. This will be their third appearance together as they check in as one of the five teams to have two players inside the top 50 of the OWGR. Both players can roll the rock with the best of them, which makes them ultra dangerous, but Horschel's iron will need to get them to the putting surface first.
- Kurt Kitayama/Taylor Montgomery (22-1):
- Sahith Theegala/Justin Suh (22-1)
- Wyndham Clark/Beau Hossler (22-1)
- Matt Fitzpatrick/Alex Fitzpatrick (28-1)
- J.J. Spaun/Hayden Buckley (33-1)
- Nick Taylor/Adam Hadwin (33-1)
- Davis Riley/Nick Hardy (33-1)
- Harris English/Tom Hoge (33-1): This is a potentially sneaky team made up of a couple veterans. Putting their alma mater's recent differences aside (Georgia and TCU), English and Hoge have the makeup of a perfect ham-and-egg partnership. Both players make birdies in bunches, which should allow them to keep pace in four-ball. In foursomes, the combination of Hoge's iron play and English's putting could be the difference maker.
- Joel Dahmen/Denny McCarthy (33-1)
2023 Zurich Classic expert picks
| Winner (3-1): Let's not overthink this. Schauffele and Cantlay are two of the top five players in the world, let alone this field. Setting the 18-, 36-, 54- and 72-hole scoring records in this tournament a season ago, the Americans arrive this time around in arguably better form. Over the last three months, they rank first and second, respectively, in total strokes gained with Cantlay leading the way off the tee and Schauffele leading the way on approach. They can both chip, they can both putt and they will use this tournament as a springboard for the rest of the season just as they did in 2022. | |
| Contender (22-1): Holing putts is key in this team event as showcased by champions like Schauffele and Cantlay as well as Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith. Clark and Hossler have the firepower both tee to green and on the greens to successfully maneuver around TPC Louisiana no matter the format. Clark ranks fifth in the field in strokes gained tee to green over the last three months while Hossler is seemingly rounding into form. | |
Thorbjorn Olesen
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| Sleeper (50-1): Olesen teams up with his fellow countryman Nicolai Hojgaard, who just accepted special temporary membership on the PGA Tour. While Hojgaard has been busy racking up FedEx Cup points here stateside, Olesen has been cruising on the DP World Tour. He ranks sixth in this field in total strokes gained over the last three months as he has connected on five top-20 finishes — including a victory — in five starts this year. The Danish duo will be able to ball-strike their way around TPC Louisiana, and if the putters cooperate, they should be right there. | |
Which team will win the Zurich Classic, and which longshots will stun the golfing world? Visit SportsLine now to see the projected leaderboard and best bets, all from the model that's nailed nine golf majors and is up over $7,300 since June 2020.
