The PGA Tour heads to Japan this week for the staging of the Zozo Championship, arguably the highlight of the fall schedule with the limited 78-man field featuring major winners Xander Schauffele, Collin Morikawa, Hideki Matsuyama and Justin Thomas.
Key Stats/Skill Set Required
- Par 3 Scoring
- Strokes Gained: Off The Tee
- Scrambling
- Strokes Gained: Around The Green
- GIR
- Putting Average
- Ball Striking
- Driving Accuracy
- Birdie or Better
Narashino Country Club is a unique Par 70 that features double greens across the entire course.
Form off the tee helps but a strong short game and sinking putts is key to success.
Key Correlation Courses/Tournaments
- Augusta National
- TPC Southwind
- Colonial
BEST BET
XANDER SCHAUFFELE
The one strong strand that runs through the winners here at Narashino CC is that class players with form at Augusta perform very well.
Tiger and Hideki have both won at Augusta while Morikawa has a Top 10 and Keegan has four Top 30s.
Xander is favourite this week and deservedly so on the back of his two-major season.
He leads the Tour in Par 3 Scoring and Scrambling while he ranks Top 15 in Birdie or Better, Ball Striking, Strokes Gained: Off The Tee and Putting Average.
He is the best putter in the field on bent greens and looks a very good bet.
BEST VALUE
DOUG GHIM
Ghim has been trending upwards for a while and nearly broke through last week at the Shriners when he finished a shot back in second.
He ranks fifth in GIR, eighth in Ball Striking and 14th in Driving Accuracy.
Positive putting is the key to his game, in the last five tournaments he gained strokes on the green, he has finished Top 16.
He tends to group good putting performances too (four of his five positive strokes gained came in a five-tournament run) so can be relied on.
HARRY HALL
Englishman Harry Hall has been playing some super golf and has to be considered a contender this week.
He won back in July and in his last nine tournaments across the globe he has finished Top 25 six times.
Hall ranks fourth in Birdie or Better, fifth in Strokes Gained: Around The Green and 12th in Putting Average.
Big runner.
BEST ROUGHIES
PATRICK FISHBURN
Patrick Fishburn has been well and truly on the up, particularly over the backend of the season.
He has three Top 6 finishes in his last seven starts on the back of a strong all-round game.
He leads the Tour in GIR, ranks second in Ball Striking and seventh in Strokes Gained: Off The Tee.
If everything comes together, he is more than capable of winning.
KEVIN YU
Kevin Yu enjoyed a much-deserved breakthrough win when he won the Sanderson Farms.
He profiles well here and can show up again after an easily-forgivable missed cut last week at the Shriners.
Ranks Top 15 in Par 3 Scoring, Strokes Gained: Off The Tee and GIR.
TOP ASIAN
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA
Matsuyama has won this tournament and the third favourite in the tournament will be at his best in this tournament.
This is a big field, but it is also a course that suits the star.
TOP GB & IRELAND
HARRY HALL
Only three Brits and Irishmen are teeing it up with Seamus Power the mispriced favourite. Harry Hall is a great bet.
He should be the favourite in this market and should be deep odds-on.