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2021 Zozo Championship: PGA Tour Betting Odds

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The PGA Tour returns to Japan this weekend with the 2021 Zozo Championship.  Xander Schauffele is favoured to win on the golf odds.

Considering the PGA Tour scrapped a few other tournaments in Asia scheduled for this fall, it’s a bit surprising the Zozo Championship was allowed to remain in Japan. Last year’s tournament was moved to the United States. There certainly may be some players who opt against the travel with COVID still an issue. For example, world No. 1 Jon Rahm isn’t playing. Neither is Rory McIlroy, who won the CJ Cup in Las Vegas on Sunday.

It’s a limited-field event of 78 players, so no cut. The fan favourite will be Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama, the reigning Masters champion. It is co-sanctioned with the Japan Golf Tour Organization so a handful of players from that Tour will be playing at the par-70 Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club in Chiba (about 7,040 yards).

This became the first-ever official PGA Tour event in golf-crazy Japan in 2019 when Tiger Woods won it – his record-tying 82nd Tour win. Tiger remains on that number and remains sidelined due to injury.

Last year it was played in California and won by Patrick Cantlay by one shot over Rahm and Justin Thomas. Cantlay didn’t have a bogey in the first three rounds and had two in the final round, yet shot a 65 to come from three shots back. That started Cantlay on his way to being named the 2020-21 PGA Tour Player of the Year and the FedExCup champion.

After this week, there are four official tournaments left in 2021 and the next two also are outside the United States with smaller purses.

Zozo Championship Golf Betting Odds

Xander Schauffele is the +571 favourite and already has had success in Japan this year, winning the Olympic gold medal in men’s golf. He was T10 in this tournament two years ago and then T17 last year in California. Schauffele shot a final-round 63 in Vegas on Sunday to finish T18 in the CJ Cup.

Collin Morikawa is +590 with Hideki Matsuyama +1300 and Will Zalatoris +1600. Morikawa finished second by a shot to Rory McIlroy at the CJ Cup. His best result in two trips to this event was T22 in 2019. Matsuyama is the winningest Japanese golfer of all time with six PGA Tour triumphs and was T59 on Sunday in Vegas. He was a runner-up here two years ago. Zalatoris makes his tournament debut.

No Canadians have won this event, but Corey Conners was T8 last year with a worst round of 69. Mackenzie Hughes finished T41, and Nick Taylor and Adam Hadwin T63. Hughes is the only Canadian who played in the CJ Cup and was T25. He’s +5700 this week. Roger Sloan is +13000.

Zozo Championship Golf Predictions

Take Schauffele and Morikawa for Top 10s, but the winner at +2900 is Joaquin Niemann. He comes off a T45 in Vegas and has been T33 and T17 in this event.