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2021 WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational: Top 10 power rankings at TPC Southwind

By Mike Randleman

Jul 27, 2019; Memphis, TN, USA; General view of a tee box marker FedEx Express van on the fourth hole during the third round of the FedEx St. Jude Classic golf tournament at TPC Southwind. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 27, 2019; Memphis, TN, USA; General view of a tee box marker FedEx Express van on the fourth hole during the third round of the FedEx St. Jude Classic golf tournament at TPC Southwind. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports /
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The PGA Tour is back in Tennessee for its annual stop. After taking last week off for the Olympics, the PGA Tour picks back up in crunch time with just two weeks left before the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

There is also an opposite field event, the Barracuda Championship, this week. The Wyndham Championship next week is the final event before the playoffs.

Most of the PGA Tour members in this week’s field are safely projected into the top 125 to qualify for the playoffs, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a lot on the line as far as positioning themselves for the home stretch.

Nine of the top 10  and 48 of the top 50 in the world are teeing it up in the field of 66 players at TPC Southwind. A notable absence is world No. 1 Jon Rahm, who had to miss last week’s Olympics due to a positive COVID-19 test.

Christiaan Bezuidenhout is also Bezuiden-out.

The WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational took over in 2019 for the old summer WGC event, the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, formerly at Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio. The Invitational also takes over in Memphis for the FedEx St. Jude Classic, which was a standard full-field PGA Tour event from 1958-2018.

TPC Southwind has hosted since 1989. The course was designed by Tom Prichard with consultation from pro golfers Hubert Green and Fuzzy Zoeller.

It currently plays to a par 70 at 7,244 yards with a 75.5 course rating and 149 slope rating. TPC Southwind boasts 94 bunkers and 10 water hazards, and usually ranks as a top-third difficult course on the schedule.

The two par-5s tend to play as the two easiest on the course. Players who can score well on these holes, make birdies on the easier front nine and avoid the big numbers on the back will contend.

Length is not a requisite to win at TPC Southwind, but it is an advantage as long as you’re staying on dry land. Strokes gained approach is more important due to the small greens in play.

Winning scores the last two years have been 16- and 13-under, respectively, each by three shots. Nine of the 10 previous FedEx St. Jude Classic winners slotted between 11- and 17-under.

Zoyzia grass covers tee boxes, fairway and rough with Champion Bermuda on the greens.

It’s of little surprise that the weather forecast predicts a hot, humid week with temperatures in the 70s-80s with little to no precipitation expected.

Let’s get down to the top 10 I see contending in Tennessee:

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