by This week the PGA Tour makes the trek to Louisiana for one of the more fun and relaxed weeks of the season. The Zurich Classic is a two-man team stroke play competition where teams will play better ball in rounds one and three with alternate shot played in rounds two and four. The field consists of 80 teams with 33 teams and ties making the cut.
So what is needed to succeed in an event with a different format like this? It’s pretty simple. We have seen year over year three key elements reign supreme: overall talent, high birdie rate, and comfortability with your partner. Let’s take a look at three teams to target this week as we try to take down a big tournament on DraftKings:
Justin Suh and Sahith Theegala, $10,000
While many will be playing Patrick Cantlay / Xander Schauffele and Max Homa / Collin Morikawa this week, the way to win a large field tournament may be pivoting down to Suh/Theegala at $10,000. This team is made up of two extremely consistent players who make lots of birdies and are looking to break through for their first win. Theegala has missed only two cuts in the last 13 months. Suh hasn’t missed the cut since the Shriners in the fall.
Taylor Montgomery and Kurt Kitayama, $9,100
This is the ultimate upside team. They can make birdies by the bunches, especially if Montgomery’s putter is hot like usual. These UNLV grads should pair well. I am not sure how they are priced cheaper than J.J. Spaun / Hayden Buckley and Beau Hossler / Wyndham Clark, who have much less overall talent and upside.
Scott Stallings and Trey Mullinax, $7,400
This price is really low if you solely look at world rankings. Stallings is the 18th highest ranked player in this field and Mullinax is 31st. So why are they the 33rd most expensive team? This is a team with two elite birdie makers who have won on Tour and should team well in this format. I would have expected a price around $8,400 for them this week. Take the value as it allows you to buy up in other spots in your lineup.
