FedEx St. Jude Championship 2024: PGA Tour playoffs get underway in Memphis

The PGA Tour playoffs begin at the FedEx St. Jude Championship

The top 70 players in the FedEx Cup standings travel to Memphis this week as the first playoff event takes place at the FedEx St. Jude Championship.

TPC Southwind welcomes the PGA Tour’s 70 best performers of 2024 for the FedEx St. Jude Championship, vying to secure themselves a place in the top 30 of the FedExCup standings and a lucrative end-of-season bonus at East Lake for the Tour Championship later in August.

The FedEx St. Jude was previously named the Northern Trust but changed names in 2022 amid a restructuring of the playoff events. TPC Southwind used to play host to the FedEx St. Jude Classic from 1989 to 2018 before FedEx took over sponsorship of the WGC Invitational in 2019.

This event was discontinued in 2022 with the first playoff event taking place in Memphis, thus the FedEx St. Jude Championship was born.

In 2023, Lucas Glover won the tournament with a playoff victory over Patrick Cantlay to secure back-to-back wins on the PGA Tour. Could there be another surprise winner this week? Or will one of the elite take home the title as the race for the $18m jackpot heats up?

Where is the FedEx St. Jude Championship played?

TPC Southwind in Memphis will play host for the third consecutive year, but the venue has been a mainstay on the PGA Tour since 1989, previously hosting the FedEx St. Jude Classic and the short-lived WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational.

The par-70, 7,244-yard course is as challenging as it gets on the PGA Tour. Water is in play on ten holes, while the 2004 remodeling of the course saw more trees planted, fairways re-contoured and over 200 yards added to the overall length. The fifth hole, originally a par-5, was converted to a par-4 during the remodel, establishing the track as a par-70.

The Ron Prichard design has seen some low scores over the years in the various tour events held at the venue, including Dustin Johnson’s -19 to win the St. Jude Classic in 2018, proving that there are birdie chances there if the player is excellent tee-to-green.

What is the format of the FedEx St. Jude Championship?

The format of the first playoff event is standard strokeplay played across 72 holes, with the lowest score winning the title.

One difference is the FedEx St. Jude Championship features no cut, which means all 70 players in the event will be guaranteed four days of competitive golf.

Who is in the field at the FedEx St. Jude Championship?

The top 70 players in the FedEx Cup standings comprise the field for the opening tournament of the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

The big hitters have already secured their place in the playoffs with Scottie Scheffler returning after winning Olympic Gold and Xander Schauffele aiming to add to his two Major titles this year. Rory McIlroy came close to winning a medal in Paris and currently occupies third place in the standings.

Americans Collin Morikawa, Wyndham Clark, and Sahith Theegala currently occupy a place in the top 10 alongside Ludvig Aberg, Hideki Matsuyama, Sungjae Im, and Shane Lowry.

Robert MacIntyre, Sepp Straka, and Matthieu Pavon, who all won PGA Tour cards courtesy of their DPWT performances last season, have an excellent chance of making their way up the standings with good displays in Memphis.

The full field can be found here.

Who will win the FedEx St. Jude Championship?

Selected odds (correct Mon 12 Aug, 11.00):

Scottie Scheffler 15/4

Xander Schauffele 8/1

Rory McIlroy 17/2

Collin Morikawa 14/1

Ludvig Aberg 18/1

Tommy Fleetwood 22/1

Patrick Cantlay 25/1

Viktor Hovland 30/1

Hideki Matsuyama 30/1

Shane Lowry 45/1

How much will the winner of the FedEx St. Jude Championship receive?

The winner of the first playoff event will take home a winner’s share of $3.6m from a $20m prize fund, significantly more than the majority of regular tour events and the purse competed for at this week’s concurrently running Czech Masters on the DP World Tour.

Additionally, the champion will win 2,000 FedEx Cup points – a massive increase on the 500 available at regular PGA Tour events – which will bolster their chances of success at East Lake in the season finale.

Who has won the FedEx St. Jude Championship?

How to watch the FedEx St. Jude Championship

Viewers in the UK can watch the FedEx St. Jude Championship on Sky Sports Golf.

All times BST

Thursday, 15^th August: Sky Sports Golf, 17.00

Friday, 16^th August: Sky Sports Golf, 17.00

Saturday, 17^th August: Sky Sports Golf, 17.00

Sunday, 18^th August: Sky Sports Golf, 18.00

Viewers in the US can watch all four days of the FedEx St. Jude Championship on the Golf Channel.

All times CDT

Thursday, 15^th August: The Golf Channel, 13.00

Friday, 16^th August: The Golf Channel, 13.00

Saturday, 17^th August: The Golf Channel, 12.00

Sunday, 18^th August: The Golf Channel, 12.00

FedEx St. Jude Championship: Tee times and groupings

Round 1:

Round 2:

Tee times and pairings for rounds 3 & 4 can be found here once available.

About the Author

Ross Kilvington – Contributing Golf News Writer

Ross Kilvington is a freelance writer from Scotland who currently writes previews for Today’s Golfer, covering events on the DP World, PGA and LPGA tours along with the LIV Golf Series.

Ross holds a passionate interest in golf and tries to play as often as possible, although having two daughters under the age of 6 means his quest to break 80 will have to wait a little longer.

Despite first picking up a club aged 11, highlights are few and far between on the golf course.

An Eagle on the par-4 16th at Kinghorn is one that stands out (it doesn’t matter that it was only 290 yards).