Zozo Championship Fantasy Golf Power Rankings: Odds, Picks Among Top Contenders

Our weekly fantasy golf power rankings look at the golfers near the top of the odds lists and pinpoint who to select in your pools for the Zozo Championship this week.

The PGA Tour returns to Japan for the fourth edition of the Zozo Championship this week. Defending champion Hideki Matsuyama will headline the field on his home turf.

Tokyo Olympics gold medalist Xander Schauffele is also playing this week, and he’s the top-ranked player in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR). Collin Morikawa (No. 9), Viktor Hovland (No. 11), Tom Kim (No. 15), Cameron Young (No. 16), Matsuyama (No. 19), and Sungjae Im (No. 20) are the other top-20 golfers in the field.

Additionally, the past two winners on the PGA Tour this season, Kim and Mackenzie Hughes, are teeing it up at Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club in Chiba, Japan.

Check out our top picks to win the Zozo Championship.

Zozo Championship Odds

Zozo Championship Course Info and Stats to Know

The yardage of the 10 par 4s at Accordia Golf Narashino CC is special compared to other stops on the PGA Tour. Five par 4s are 425 yards or shorter, and the other five are at least 486 yards in length.

The venue is also characterized by narrow, tree-lined fairways.

Because length will be important this week, strokes gained: off-the-tee is an important statistic to keep in mind. Additionally, SG: approach, SG: around-the-green, greens-in-regulation percentage, and SG: putting are key metrics. 

Of course, it’s important to note that there hasn’t been shot link data at this event for the past two trips to Japan, and the 2020 Zozo Championship was played at Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks, Calif.

Zozo Championship Fantasy Golf Power Rankings

Beware: Kim

If Kim didn’t win last week, he’d be high on these rankings. It’s just incredibly difficult to win back-to-back events, and this is a tougher field than he took down in the Wyndham Championship in August or last week at the Shriners Children’s Open. Still, the 20-year-old star hit 73.2% of fairways and 87.5% of greens in regulation while gaining 6.05 strokes putting on the field last week. 

10. Bradley

This will be the third trip to Accordia Golf Narashino for Keegan Bradley, and he finished T-7 and T-13 in his past two stops. The veteran ranked 23rd in SG: off-the-tee and 21st in SG: total last year, and he gained a total of 6.14 strokes putting en route to a T-5 result in the Sanderson Farms Championship two weeks ago. I’m confident he’ll go low at least once during this tournament, as his second-round 63 during the 2019 event is tied for the course record.

9. McNealy

A Sunday 64 propelled Maverick McNealy to a T-10 finish last week at the Shriners Children’s Open, and he also tied for 25th at Accordia in 2021. Ranking 19th in SG: putting, 19th in birdie average, and 39th in SG: total last year affirm McNealy’s upside to win his first career event sooner than later. I’d just like to see him tidy up his ball-striking. The 26-year-old American finished 130th in driving accuracy and 81st in greens-in-regulation percentage last season.

8. Hatton

I’m always more inclined to back Tyrrell Hatton on tough tracks, and he’s a good bet to contend in Japan this week. Hatton made 17 of 19 cuts with 11 top-25 finishes last season, and he heads to Accordia Golf Narashino CC with consecutive top-10 showings on the DP World Tour. Hatton ranked fourth in SG: putting and 24th in scoring average on the PGA Tour last season, so his current form only reinforces his upside. 

7. Kim

Si Woo Kim fired four rounds in the 60s and finished T-8 at the Shriners last week, and this will be his third trip to Accordia Golf Narashino. Most notably, Kim hit 73.2% of fairways and 79.2% of greens in regulation at TPC Summerlin last week. That positions him well for another strong showing this week. Additionally, Kim is eyeing statistical correction on the greens after finishing 177th in SG: putting on Tour last year. He gained 2.33 total strokes putting on the field last week, which is further encouraging.

6. Young

I’m viewing Cameron Young as a high-ceiling, low-floor target after leading the PGA Tour in distance off the tee but also ranking 122nd in driving accuracy (58.7%) last year. This will also be Young’s first tournament since the Presidents Cup, so while he ranked 16th in scoring average and 15th in SG: total last year, there’s legitimate boom-or-bust potential attached for his debut trip to Accordia. 

5. Hovland

The obvious flaw in Viktor Hovland’s game is his work around the greens, but it’s almost impossible to imagine he doesn’t improve statistically this year after finishing 191st in SG: around-the-green and losing 36.43 strokes to the field in 2021-22. Additionally, there could also be positive regression in the Norwegian’s ball-striking statistics after he finished fifth in SG: off-the-tee and ninth in SG: total two years ago. He dipped to respective ranks of 26th and 34th last season. 

4. Morikawa

Another ball-striking wiz, Collin Morikawa struggled on and around the greens last year with ranks of 152nd in SG: around-the-green and 131st in SG: putting. He also failed to record a PGA Tour win in a season for the first time since breaking through on Tour during the 2018-19 season. Still, considering he made 15 of 19 cuts and carded eight top-10 finishes, Morikawa is a player to target early and often this year. I’m confident he will play well this week.

3. Im

Good luck finding a weakness in Sungjae Im’s game. He finished third at the 2019 Zozo Championship and seventh last week at the Shriners Chidren's Open. Ranking eighth in SG: off-the-tee, sixth in SG: total, and 13th in scoring average last season are additional encouraging marks for his outlook this week. Im also finished T-15 or better in each of his past six events. He’s dialed in.

2. Schauffele

Simply put, Schauffele is in high-end form. He played the weekend in eight consecutive solo events with a cut, which includes two wins and three other top-10 finishes. This will also be his third trip to Accordia Golf Narashino. While I’m not bullish on backing the betting favorite at his low odds, it’s impossible to ignore Schauffele's sterling stretch and well-rounded statistical profile. Schauffele paces the field in SG: approach and SG: total through his past 50 measured rounds, after all.

1. Matsuyama

The defending champion also posted a second-place finish in the 2019 event, and Matsuyama has carded a sub-70 score in each of his eight rounds at this venue. I’m definitely concerned about his driving accuracy after hitting just 25 of 56 fairways (44.6%) during the Fortinet Championship in September, but I’d be shocked if Matsuyama wasn’t positioned among the leaders this weekend. Matsuyama is a high-floor, high-ceiling target for poolies.

Where to Bet on the Zozo Championship

Here are our top-rated sportsbooks:

• FanDuel Sportsbook
• Caesars Sportsbook
• DraftKings Sportsbook
• PointsBet
• BetMGM

Zozo Championship Power Rankings made 10/11/2022 at 10:30 a.m. ET.