Out of the Rough: Zurich Classic of New Orleans (2025)

With the stress of the Masters Tournament and the Signature Event, RBC Heritage that followed, behind us, the PGA Tour takes a break from standard stroke-play in favor of this week’s unique format.

The world’s best golfers will team up in groups of two to take to TPC Louisiana for this week’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans.

This is a polarizing event that is either loved by golf fans or hated. It seems that there is no inbetween.

This event has served as the Tour’s lone duo-event since 2017 as previously, it served as a standard stroke-play event.

The Format/Scoring

Scoring is the most important thing to understand this week as every day calls for a different format.

The event begins on Thursday with the duos taking part in a best ball format. This means that each golfer will play their own ball throughout the entirety of the round, with the best score on each hole being recorded. Saturday is also best ball.

Friday and Sunday are played in a foursomes format. This means that players will rotate tee shots. One player will hit the tee shot on the odd-numbered holes as the other tees off on the even numbered holes. Golfers then alternate shots from there.

Most of the scoring will be done through the best ball format as the likes of Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay opened with a 59 in 2022. They would win the event at -29, with -25 coming from the two best ball rounds.

As for DFS scoring, only one golfer per team can be played, but the cumulative score of the duo will count towards scoring. For example, if you play Schauffele in one lineup, you too cannot play Cantlay. However, if you played Cantlay in a separate lineup, they would each record the same DFS score.

Easy enough to understand, right?

The Field

The defending champions, Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry, return this year in an attempt to make it back-to-back Zurich Classic victories.

McIlroy and Lowry topped Chad Ramey and Martin Trainer in a playoff a season ago.

Collin Morikawa and Kurt Kitayama will once again team up this season as last year, these Call of Duty gaming partners, placed T23rd.

Billy Horschel, who won this event as an individual in 2013, also won this event with partner Scott Piercy in 2018. He’ll team up with Tom Hoge this season.

Other notable pairings include Robert MacIntyre and Thomas Detry, Will Zalatoris and Nick Dunlap, Wyndham Clark and Taylore Moore, Sahith Theegala and Aaron Rai and Akshay Bhatia and Carson Young.

We’ll see some nationality driven pairings such as lifelong best friends and roommates, Adam Hadwin and Nick Taylor representing Canada. Si Woo Kim and Sangmoon Bae will represent South Korea, Matthieu Pavon and Victor Perez will represent France, Erik van Rooyen and Christiaan Bezuidenhout will represent South Africa, Laurie Canter and Jordan Smith will represent England, Ryo Hisatstune and Takumi Kanaya will represent Japan, among other nationality pairings.

What is really unique about this event is the ability for siblings to play together. The most notable being the Hojgaard twins as both Nicolai and Rasmus are back for another season.

This is the event we were first introduced to Alex Fitzptrick, who paired with brother and U.S. Open Champion Matt in 2023. The Fitzpatrick brothers will be back this season as well.

For the first time, Yannik Paul and Jeremy Paul will be teeing it up together this season as well. The German brothers had not played this event previously.

Davis Riley and Nick Hardy, the 2023 winners of this event, will be back this year as well. Other former winners of this event teeing it up include Ryan Palmer (2019) and Nick Watney (2007.)

Charley Hoffman and Nick Watney will be playing in their eighth consecutive Zurich Classic together. They’ve played in every installment as a duo together. Kevin Tway had played in the previous seven installments with Kelly Kraft but will be paired with Bud Cauley this season.

The cut line this week will fall at the top 33-teams plus ties.

The Course

TPC Louisiana plays as a par-72 at 7,400 yards and sits just 15 minutes from downtown New Orleans.

It too is a Pete Dye design which resides in Avondale, Louisiana. It was constructed on 250 acres of former wetlands and features 100 bunkers.

The course is littered with water hazards which are a prominent feature of TPC Louisiana. However, the course is still one of the most scorable tracks on the PGA Tour.

Such is the case with most Pete Dye designed courses, along with the familiarity of TPC courses, they play towards a tendency of positional angels off-the-tee with around-the-green emphases.

Bunkers, along with the water hazards, play as the main line of defense at TPC Louisiana. There too are random hazards such as trees in the center of the fairway.

Despite the lists of hazards previously mentioned, there are plenty of scoring opportunities to be had.

Play off-the-tee will not be of the utmost importance this week as proven in year’s past. We’ve seen the success of both teams and individuals find success without being strong off-the-tee.

In all, TPC Louisiana is a glorified second-shot course which emphasizes on strong approach play to avoid the aforementioned greenside water hazards and bunkers.

The signature hole here at TPC Louisiana is the par-five 18th, where there’s water all the way down the right hand side.

The Weather

As of the time of writing this, we can expect some wet conditions this week. Leading into play on Thursday, Monday calls for a 70-percent chance of precipitation with heavy thunderstorms, Tuesday an 80-percent chance of precipitation with thunderstorms and Wednesday a 40-percent chance with scattered thunderstorms. Storms could continue into Thursday with a 30-percent chance of precipitation with isolated thunderstorms. From there, Friday calls for a 15-percent chance of precipitation as Saturday and Sunday both call for a 25-percent chance. Winds will be at the highest on both Thursday and Friday at 12 miles-per-hour. Winds will dip to nine miles-per-hour on Saturday and return to ten miles-per-hour on Sunday. Temperatures will begin at 83-degrees for both Friday and Saturday before peaking at 84-degrees on Saturday and Sunday. 

Key Statistics

• Strokes Gained: Approach (SG: APP)

• Birdie or Better Percentage

• Strokes Gained: Around the Green (SG: ATG)

• Sand Saves Percentage

• Strokes Gained: Putting 

• Par-Five Average Scoring

• Scrambling

• Bogey Avoidance

• Greens in Regulation Percentage (GIR%)

• Strokes Gained: Total

DFS Suggestions

$10,000+

With this technically being an 80-man field (160 golfers on teams of two,) I’m going to have one suggestion per price range. With that being said, we can’t ignore Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry ($12,400.) They’re getting what we call the “Scottie Scheffler Treatment” in DFS with their price tag this week, but it is warranted. They’re far and away the best team in this field. McIlroy has been the best golfer on the entire PGA Tour this season and currently ranks first in SG: TOT, fifth in scrambling, sixth in all three of birdie-or-better percentage, par-five average scoring and bogey avoidance and tenth in SG: PUTT. Lowry is currently sixth on Tour in SG: TOT and 12th in both SG: APP and SG: ATG. They’re the defending champions of this event for a reason. Darn near life-long best friends who will have fun on the golf course during this event. There isn’t much more that needs to be said.

$9,000-$9,900

One of my favorite pairings this week is Wyndham Clark and Taylore Moore ($9,500.) From a statistical standpoint, they both seem to complement each other rather well. The approach numbers for the season are lacking for both of them but Clark is 16th in birdie-or-better percentage while Moore is 54th. Moore is 12th in SG: ATG as Clark is 47th. They both play par-fives rather well with Moore third on Tour in par-five average scoring and Clark 35th. They’re pretty evenly matched across the board from there. Clark placed third here in 2023 with Beau Hossler, tenth in 2022 with Cameron Tringale and 17th in 2021 with Erik van Rooyen. Moore had played each of the last three editions of this event with Matthew NeSmith where they missed the cut in 2024 and placed fourth in both 2023 and 2022. Both golfers have proven success here with separate partners, we’ll see if they mesh well together. 

$8,000-$8,900

Per my stats based model, my second favorite team to just McIlroy and Lowry is Sepp Straka and Brice Garnett ($8,800.) This team is obviously heavily carried by Straka who is first on Tour in SG: APP and par-five average scoring which off-sets Garnett’s 155th in SG: APP and 132nd in par-five average scoring. Straka is also second in birdie-or-better percentage while Garnett is 121st. Garnett is much better around the green as he ranks 40th in SG: ATG as Straka is 116th. Garnett is also 23rd in scrambling as Straka is 83rd. Both play out of the sand well, avoid bogeys and both are in the top ten of GIR%. Straka is eighth in SG: TOT as Garnett is 103rd. This pairing played together a season ago where they finished 11th. They are also on my betting card at +3300.

$7,000-$7,900

My favorite value play this week is Ryan Gerard and Danny Walker ($7,500.) This is a team that compliments each other’s weaknesses well. Walker is 17th in birdie-or-better percentage while Gerard is 48th. Gerard is 28th in SG: APP while Walker is 44th. Walker is 45th in SG: ATG as Gerard is 106th. Gerard is 51st in sand saves percentage as Walker is 133rd. Gerard is 15th in SG: PUTT as Walker is 113th. Walker is 35th in par-five average scoring while Gerard is 82nd. Gerard is 45th in scrambling and 47th in bogey avoidance as Walker is 155th and 159th. You get my point. Where one of these two has a weakness, the other has a strength. Neither of these two have proven success here, with Gerard being the only of the pair with a start here, missing the cut in 2023 with Ben Griffin. They are also on my betting card at + 5500.

$6,900-

My final play for DFS is Ben Silverman and Sami Valimaki ($6,900.) It’s hard to find value in this field but I believe this pairing does just that. Again, this is a group that compliments each other’s weaknesses well. Valimaki is 8th on Tour in SG: APP as Silverman is 173rd in SG: APP. Silverman is 55th in SG: ATG as Valimaki is 154th. Valimaki is 14th in SG: PUTT as Silverman is 116th. Valimaki is 48th in par-five average scoring as Silverman is 91st. Valimaki is 44th in bogey avoidance, 75th in GIR% and 38th in SG: TOT as Silverman is 118th, 153rd and 147th respectively. Like the previously mentioned pairing, neither of these two have proven success here. Silverman played here a season ago, missing the cut a season ago with Kevin Dougherty.

Betting Card

• Billy Horschel & Tom Hoge (+2800)

• Sepp Straka & Brice Garnett (+3300)

• Ryan Gerard & Danny Walker (+5500)

• Beau Hossler & Andrew Putnam (+6000)

Billy Horschel & Tom Hoge (+2800)

If you haven’t noticed yet, I like to find pairings that compliment each other’s weaknesses. Hoge is currently 14th on Tour in SG: APP as Horschel is 82nd. Hoge is 31st in sand saves as Horschel is 76th. Horschel is 76th in SG: ATG as Hoge is 132nd. Horschel is 48th in par-five average scoring as Hoge is 72nd. You get my point. Hoge placed 13th here in 2023 with Harris English and 34th in 2019 with J.J. Henry. Horschel had played three consecutive seasons between 2021 and 2023 with Sam Burns as they placed 11th in 2023, second in 2022 and fourth in 2021. Horschel has seemed to have figured out how to attack this unique format. We’ll see if Hoge’s elite iron play can elevate them to a victory. 

Beau Hossler & Andrew Putnam (+6000)

You get it by now, these golfers compliment each other. Putnam is 28th in SG: APP while Hossler is 147th. Putnam is also fourth in bogey avoidance and seventh in GIR% while Hossler is 117th and 165th respectively. Unlike most of the pairings I’ve talked about however, these golfers have the same strengths. Hossler is 19th in SG: ATG as Putnam is 27th. Hossler is 31st in SG: PUTT and Putnam is 48th. Putnam is 51st in scrambling as Hossler is 66th. Hossler placed third here in 2023 with Wyndham Clark as Putnam has missed the cut each of the past three seasons.