Once again, the CJ Cup has a different look due to COVID-19. The CJ Cup was one of the signature events on the PGA schedule known as the “PGA Asian Swing” but now is once again being shifted to Las Vegas. The event has quickly become one that is looked forward to by many players including some big names starting with three players riding the top of the odds list at +1200.
Heading into Thursday’s play Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas, and Xander Schauffele all top the list at +1200. There are plenty of other players trailing close behind, including Rory McIlroy at +1600, before things begin to spread out a bit. Thirteen big-time players are ranging between +2000 and +3500.
One of the things that make the CJ Cup exciting is that it is a limited-field no-cut event! And, it is packed with 78 of the best players from the PGA, Korean Tour, Asian Tour, along with winners of the GENESIS Championship and KPGA Championship, along with exemption players. There are also plenty of Ryder Cup players teeing off at the CJ Cup.
One big note if you are looking at course trends – you can toss past CJ Cup stats into the trash bin. The venue has changed once again! The first three CJ Cups were held at Nine Bridges in South Korea where Justin Thomas won two of three. Then, due to COVID travel restrictions, the tournament was held at Shadow Creek in Las Vegas. This year the event, while still in Vegas, heads over to the Summit Club.
Here are the favorites through +1600 to win the 2021 Las Vegas version of the CJ Cup at The Summit outright according to Intertops.
Dustin Johnson +1200
Justin Thomas +1200
Xander Schauffele +1200
Collin Morikawa +1600
Rory McIlroy +1600
2021 CJ Cup Preview
Where: Las Vegas, Nevada
Course: The Summit Club
Format: Stroke Play
Par: 72
Length: 7,431
When: Oct 15-17, 2021
Purse: $9.7 Million.
TV Coverage: Golf Channel
The Summit does not look like a typical dessert course – much more lush and packed with green than one might expect! The course was designed by Tom Fazio and it has all of the trappings that make his courses exciting.
There are plenty of well-placed bunkers protecting tricky greens with deceptive fronts. The fairways range from tight with quick roll-off areas to slightly open with targeted landing zones. Fazio seems to like players on his course to make use of as many clubs in the bag as possible.
That being said, there are plenty of scorable holes on the course – especially for PGA Tour players. Just ask Collin Morikawa (+1600) as he’s a member of the Summit and scored a 62 on the course.
One fun note about the layout, it sits near famed Red Rock Canyon, but the lure of the Vegas strip can be viewed in the distance from the No. 6 tee box. This joke is floating around… if things are going bad – a player may consider sliding on down to the strip to roll a few dice!
2021 CJ Cup Predictions
Xander Schauffele +1200
Xander Schauffele is coming off a great season that included winning the Gold at the Olympics. He followed with a T5 at East Lake and a 3-1-0 record at the Ryder Cup. This type of no-cut format lends itself to Schauffele who tends to zero in during these types of events.
Collin Morikawa +1600
I’m leaning towards Collin Morikawa at +1600 for the reason I mentioned above. He knows this course from being a member and he has carded a 65 here in the past. There is nothing wrong with taking the home course favorite. He’s had a few weeks off from being part of the winning Ryder Cup team for the USA and should be well rested from a busy summer.
Viktor Hovland +2800
Viktor Hovland has been on a run since the COVID-19 break last season. Since then, the former Oklahoma State player from Norway has only missed one cut. That’s an amazing stat. Plus, he’s won twice in his brief PGA career including the 2020 Purto Rican Open and the 2021 Mayakoba Golf Classic.
Others: Sungjae Im (+2500) won at TPC Summerlin and can zone in on courses similar to Summit. Jason Kokrak (+4500) is the defending CJ Cup winner, even though it was on a different course, his performance last year is worth taking a look.
2021 CJ Cup Betting Lines
Dustin Johnson +1200
Justin Thomas +1200
Xander Schauffele +1200
Collin Morikawa +1600
Rory McIlroy +1600
Jordan Spieth +2000
Tony Finau +2500
Sungjae Im +2500
Sam Burns +2500
Viktor Hovland +2800
Brooks Koepka +2800
Cameron Smith +2800
Louis Oosthuizen +3000
Scottie Scheffler +3000
Hideki Matsuyama +3300
Abraham Ancer +3300
Webb Simpson +3500
Harris English +3500
Tyrrell Hatton +4000
Tommy Fleetwood +4000
Shane Lowry +4000
Marc Leishman +4500
Paul Casey +4500
Jason Kokrak +4500
Justin Rose +5000
Sergio Garcia +5000
Patrick Reed +5000
Max Homa +5000
Si-Woo Kim +5000
Kevin Na +5500
Joaquin Niemann +5500
Adam Scott +5500
Aaron Wise +6000
Cameron Tringale +6000
Alex Noren +6600
Russell Henley +6600
Talor Gooch +6600
Harold Varner III +7000
Maverick McNealy +7000
Jason Day +8000
Charley Hoffman +9000
Erik Van Rooyen +10000
Brian Harman +10000
Branden Grace +10000
Kevin Streelman +11000
Gary Woodland +11000
Keegan Bradley +12500
Ian Poulter +12500
Rickie Fowler +12500
Cameron Davis +12500
Kyoung-Hoon Lee +12500
Emiliano Grillo +12500
Carlos Ortiz +12500
Patton Kizzire +14000
Jhonattan Vegas +14000
Kevin Kisner +15000
Mackenzie Hughes +15000
Stewart Cink +15000
Charl Schwartzel+15000
Chris Kirk +15000
Matt Jones +15000
Sebastian Munoz +15000
Rasmus Hojgaard +15000
Tom Hoge +20000
Harry Higgs +20000
Lucas Glover +20000
Sung Kang +25000
Keith Mitchell +25000
Joohyung Kim +25000
Byeong-Hun An +25000
Hudson Swafford +25000
Robert Streb +30000
Han Byeol Kim +35000
Seonghyeon Kim +40000
Yoseop Seo +50000
Minkyu Kim +50000
Sanghun Shin +50000
Jaekyeong Lee +50000
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