Scottie Scheffler is the betting favorite as Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele and golf’s biggest stars invade Memphis for the FedExCup Playoffs.
The FedExCup Playoffs have arrived, and the opening act in Memphis looks more like a major championship than a normal PGA TOUR stop.
Scottie Scheffler enters the FedEx St. Jude Championship as the +500 favorite, leading a stacked field at TPC Southwind that features 19 of the top 20 players in the Official World Golf Ranking. Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, Tommy Fleetwood and Hideki Matsuyama are among the stars chasing Scheffler as the postseason begins.
Scheffler hasn’t exactly been struggling in 2026.
The World No. 1 owns one victory this season, but the numbers behind it are ridiculous. He’s piled up 11 top-five finishes, including five runner-up results and two thirds, and leads the PGA TOUR in both Strokes Gained: Total and Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green.
TPC Southwind hasn’t scared him, either.
Scheffler finished T4 in Memphis in 2024 and T3 last season, playing all eight rounds in the 60s and combining to shoot 29-under.
Then there’s McIlroy.
The three-time FedExCup champion is +1200 as he returns to Memphis after skipping the tournament last season.
McIlroy hasn’t played since July and sits No. 12 in the FedExCup standings, but another playoff victory would give him seven for his career and move him into rare territory.
McIlroy also has another green jacket in his closet after successfully defending his Masters title this spring.
Xander Schauffele (+1800) enters with momentum after finishing second at the Rocket Classic. He gained heavily from tee to green in Detroit, made only four bogeys all week and owns a runner-up finish at TPC Southwind from 2024.
Defending FedExCup champion Tommy Fleetwood (+2000) is another name demanding attention.
Fleetwood has finished T23 or better in eight of his last nine starts and already owns two T3 finishes in Memphis.
Nobody may be hotter than Hideki Matsuyama.
The 2024 FedEx St. Jude champion has made 31 consecutive cuts and arrives after finishes of T14, T14, T3, T5 and T7 in his last five starts. He’s played 17 of his last 20 rounds in the 60s.
Cameron Young, Sam Burns and Matt Fitzpatrick are each listed at +2200, while Ludvig Åberg checks in at +2700.
There’s also one unusual wrinkle this week: no cut.
Only 69 players will actually tee it up after Daniel Berger withdrew, meaning everyone who starts gets four rounds to make a move.
The regular season is over.
Now Scheffler, McIlroy and the rest of golf’s heavyweights get four pressure-packed rounds in Memphis to start separating themselves from the pack.
