Maybe they’ll be paired for the weekend or even better, down the stretch on Sunday, but the grouping we all want won’t take place Thursday and Friday at the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational.
We’re talking about Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau, who are both in the field this week at TPC Southwind in Memphis but not playing together.
Who are the featured groups this week in a tournament that features 45 of the top 50 ranked players in the Official World Golf Ranking?
Bryson DeChambeau, Rickie Fowler, Jon Rahm
DeChambeau was last seen writing a 10 on his scorecard and subsequently missing the cut two weeks ago at the Memorial. He’ll play the first two rounds this week with Rahm, who is making his debut as the No. 1-ranked player in world, and Rickie Fowler, who hasn’t won on Tour since the 2019 Waste Management Phoenix Open, a string of 28 starts which includes missing the cut in three of his last five starts.
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Patrick Reed, Viktor Hovland, Brooks Koepka
Koepka is the defending champ this week and next at the PGA Championship but he is just 155th in the FedExCup standings. Reed already has one WGC victory this year at the Mexico Championship. He is seeking to become the first golfer since Dustin Johnson and Hideki Matsuyama in 2016-17 to win multiple WGCs in a season. Viktor Hovland is making his first start in a WGC event.
Rory McIlroy, Webb Simpson, Jordan Spieth
McIlroy was No. 1 till Rahm won the Memorial two weeks ago and overtook the top spot. Simpson is one of the hotter players on Tour this year with a pair of wins, one before the 91-day pandemic break (WM Phoenix Open) and one after (RBC Heritage). He joins Justin Thomas and Brendon Todd as two-time winners on Tour this season. Spieth turned 27 on Monday.
Hideki Matsuyama, Collin Morikawa, Justin Thomas
Thomas is first in the FedEx Cup rankings. He skipped the 3M, was T-18 at the Memorial and lost in a playoff in the Workday Charity Open. Morikawa won the Workday in a playoff over Thomas. He also has a runner-up finish in the Charles Schwab Challenge, the first event on the Tour’s restart. Matsuyama has two career WGC wins: the 2016 WGC-HSBC Champions and the 2017 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.
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