CJ Cup Fantasy Golf Power Rankings: Odds, Picks Among Top Contenders

Our weekly fantasy golf power rankings highlight the golfers near the top of the odds lists and pinpoint who to select in your pools this week for the CJ Cup.

The PGA Tour returns to the United States for the CJ Cup. The field is loaded, with 15 of the top-20 players in the Official World Golf Rankings teeing it up. This is a no-cut event being played for the first time at Congaree Golf Club in Ridgeland, SC.

Here are my CJ Cup fantasy golf power rankings.

CJ Cup Odds

CJ Cup Course Info and Stats to Know

The CJ Cup is being played this week at Congaree Golf Club, and not at The Summit Club in Las Vegas, NV, the host venue in 2021. The Palmetto Championship in 2021 was played at Congaree, so poolies and punters shouldn’t over-emphasize last year’s CJ Cup results and performances.

Congaree is a long track, and strokes gained: tee-to-green proved to be a key metric during the Palmetto in 2021. Additionally, I’m also eyeing greens-in-regulation percentage and Par 4 scoring, as eight of the 11 Par 4s played over par in 2021. 

Additionally, among the top finishers at Congaree, gaining strokes on and around the greens was an outlier and not a consistent trend. With that in mind, I’m putting more emphasis on bogey avoidance this week.

Finally, this field is considerably more talented and deep than the collection of golfers who teed it up for the 2021 Palmetto, so I’m also leaning more on current form than course fit.

CJ Cup Fantasy Golf Power Rankings

10. Billy Horschel

With consecutive top-10 finishes on the DP World Tour, Horschel returns to the U.S. in solid form. He ranked 40th in SG: tee-to-green, tied for 24th in bogey avoidance, and was 33rd in Par 4 birdie-or-better percentage on the PGA Tour in 2021. He's a respectable floor option in pools this week. 

9. Collin Morikawa

Morikawa didn’t show off last week at the Zozo Championship, but he’s still a strong fit for Congaree after ranking 17th in SG: tee-to-green, 30th in greens-in-regulation percentage (68.2%), and 18th in par 4 birdie-or-better percentage during the 2021-22 season. He hit 72.2% of greens in regulation at the Zozo and ranks 15th in the field in SG: tee-to-green through his past 50 rounds. His ball-striking remains encouraging. 

8. Sam Burns

Despite a ho-hum showing during his title defense at the Sanderson Farms Championship, Burns is still an interesting player this week because of his well-rounded game. He finished 2021 fifth in Par 4 birdie-or-better percentage, 26th in greens-in-regulation percentage, and 32nd in SG: tee-to-green.

7. Justin Thomas

I’m not concerned about Thomas taking a few weeks off following the Presidents Cup. He should be rested ahead of this event, and it’s a potentially perfect course fit. The 29-year-old American finished third in SG: tee-to-green, first in Par 4 birdie-or-better percentage, and 12th in bogey-avoidance percentage during the 2021-22 season. 

6. Shane Lowry

The Irishman won the BMW PGA Championship on the DP World Tour in September after posting four top-10 results on the PGA Tour last season. He's appealing on difficult and demanding tracks. Lowry finished seventh in bogey-avoidance percentage and 22nd in SG: tee-to-green last season on the PGA Tour. He also paced the DP Tour in greens-in-regulation percentage through his 10 events.

5. Matt Fitzpatrick

Another player I like on tougher tracks, Fitzpatrick finished third on the PGA Tour in both bogey-avoidance percentage and scoring percentage. Add in ranking seventh in SG: tee-to-green for the year, and there’s a lot to like about Fitzpatrick’s potential at Congaree. I’m also impressed with his recent play in more competitive fields, including his U.S. Open win in July.

4. Rory McIlroy

The betting favorite and defending champion has been on an incredible roll with three consecutive top-five finishes on the DP World Tour following his win at the Tour Championship in August. McIlroy finished second in SG: tee-to-green, first in SG: total, and first in scoring average last season. There are no holes in his game right now. I'm only ranking McIlroy this low because I expect him to be a popular target in pools, and fading him could provide contrarian value.

3. Viktor Hovland

Hovland hit 53 of 72 greens (73.6%) en route to firing four sub-70 rounds and finishing tied for fifth in the Zozo Championship last week. He comes with the potential to produce another solid showing at Congaree. Hovland also finished eighth in Par 4 birdie-or-better percentage and seventh in overall birdie percentage on tour in 2021. 

2. Scottie Scheffler

There were a few peaks and valleys down the stretch for Scheffler in 2021-22, but he still finished the campaign with four wins and elite statistics. Scheffler ranked first in greens-in-regulation percentage, fourth in SG: tee-to-green, second in birdie average, and ninth in bogey-avoidance percentage on the PGA Tour last year.

1. Jon Rahm

Coming off a win on the DP World Tour, expect Rahm to start this PGA Tour season in top form. He finished third in greens-in-regulation percentage and 12th in SG: tee-to-green in 2021-22, and the seven-time tour winner ranks second in SG: total through his past 20 rounds among all players in this week’s field.

Where to Bet on the CJ Cup

Here are our top-rated sportsbooks:

FanDuel Sportsbook
Caesars Sportsbook
DraftKings Sportsbook
PointsBet
BetMGM

CJ Cup fantasy golf power rankings made 10/17/2022 at 2:30 a.m. ET.