GOLF

Daily Fantasy Golf Course Primer: WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational

Brandon Gdula  —  @gdula13 Aug 2nd, 2021
A few big names have thrived at TPC Southwind. What should you know about the course for this week's WGC event?

Fresh off of a no-cut, short-field event for the Olympics, the PGA Tour schedule resumes with a no-cut, short-field event of its own.

The World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational features 66 of the world's best playing four rounds at TPC Southwind.

What should we know about the course?

TPC Southwind Course Information

Par: 70
Distance: 7,233
Average Green Size: 4,300 square feet
Green Type: Bermudagrass
Stimpmeter:
Past 2 Winning Scores as WGC Event: -13, -16
Prior 5 Winning Scores a Stroke Play Event: -19, -10, -13, -13, -10

TPC Southwind historically has hosted the FedEx St. Jude Classic, but the event shifted into a WGC event in 2019. Justin Thomas won the most recent event (notably while losing strokes with his putter), and Brooks Koepka won the initial WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational.

The tiny greens, averaging 4,300 square feet, rank as the third-smallest average greens among courses in the PGA Tour rotation (trailing just Pebble Beach [3,500] and Harbour Town [3,700]). No other courses rate out below 5,000 square feet for average green size.

The 7,233-yard course is just 70 yards longer than the typical par 70 on Tour.

TPC Southwind Hole-by-Hole Breakdown

TPC Southwind

Only five holes really stand out as any type of outlier from the median relative to par. We've got three long par 4s, rating out as 480 yards or longer.

And the two short holes are both par 3s, standing 171 yards or shorter.

In total, this view makes me still prioritize driving distance because of the lengthy par 4s, but it's not a constant need to launch it.

Courses Similar to TPC Southwind

Some other stroke-play courses that feature small bermuda greens:

- Harbour Town Golf Links (RBC Heritage)
- PGA West [Stadium Course] (The American Express)
- TPC Sawgrass [Stadium Course] (THE PLAYERS)
- Congaree Golf Club (Palmetto Championship)

Key Stats for the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational at TPC Southwind

- Strokes Gained: Approach
- Strokes Gained: Around the Green
- Birdie or Better Rate
- Strokes Gained: Putting on Bermuda

Datagolf's course fit tool shows a de-emphasis on driving distance but an added emphasis on approach and around-the-green play.

Sorting the leaderboard by strokes gained: approach at the two WGC iterations of the FedEx St. Jude Invitational reflects some of the best overall scores, so it becomes the key stat once again.

There's a strong case to be made to look at all-around play across a no-cut event.

While, yes, safety is ostensible because all golfers will play all four rounds, golfers with incomplete games can fall behind across 72 holes. Numerous golfers will finish double-digit strokes over par, and historically, golfers who finish worse than 50th will finish over par.

Golfers With Great Course History at TPC Southwind

These golfers have gained at least 1.5 strokes per round at TPC Southwind since 2012 among golfers with at least eight rounds played at the course, via FantasyNational.

- Daniel Berger (2.7)
- Dustin Johnson (2.5)
- Brooks Koepka (2.2)
- Matthew Fitzpatrick (2.0)
- Phil Mickelson (1.9)
- Webb Simpson (1.9)
- Justin Thomas (1.9)
- Rory McIlroy (1.5)
- Shane Lowry (1.5)
- Billy Horschel (1.4)
- Harris English (1.3)
- Louis Oosthuizen (1.3)
- Tommy Fleetwood (1.3)
- Justin Rose (1.3)
- Abraham Ancer (1.2)
- Ryan Palmer (1.1)
- Collin Morikawa (1.1)
- Stewart Cink (1.0)

The past winners at TPC Southwind (not specifically the WGC event) who are in the field include Justin Thomas (2020), Brooks Koepka (2019), Dustin Johnson (2012, 2018), Daniel Berger (2016, 2017), Harris English (2013), and Lee Westwood (2010).