2022 CJ CUP Round 3 PrizePicks Plays: Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy Among 5 Saturday Picks
Rob Carr/Getty Images. Pictured: Jon Rahm.
Jon Rahm and Kurt Kitayama are tied for first and hold a one-stroke lead (11-under) following the second round of THE CJ CUP.
Now, we look forward to Saturday's third round, which features plenty of prop angles to attack on PrizePicks.
Below, I give out my five PrizePicks flex plays for the third round of THE CJ CUP. For those unfamiliar with flex plays in golf, different combinations of overs and unders generate different payouts.
Using the five plays below, getting five-of-five correct registers a 12.5x payout, four-of-five correct registers a 2x payout and three-of-five correct registers a 0.4x payout.
THE CJ CUP Round 3 PrizePicks Plays
Jon Rahm: Round 3 Under 68 Strokes
For the first time ever, Congaree Golf Club in Ridgeland, South Carolina is hosting this event. This track previously hosted one TOUR event, the Palmetto Championship in 2021.
Looking at the top of that leaderboard, the metrics that indicate the biggest likelihood of success at this course include SG: Tee-to-Green and Greens in Regulation percentage (GIR%). A longer-course, Congaree is a par-71, 7,655-yard track that benefits longer hitters.
We are going to be backing a few golfers on Saturday, starting with Jon Rahm. As mentioned in the intro, Rahm is T1 at 11-under. After shooting a 69 on Thursday, Rahm went nuclear on Friday, making 10 birdies and finishing with a 62.
Entering the weekend, he appears to be entering one of those famous "Rahm zones" where he makes the game look so easy. Among the field, Rahm ranks first in SG: Tee-to-Green and sixth in GIR%.
Rahm's irons picked up where they left off last year. On TOUR last season, he finished 12th in SG: Tee-to-Green and third in GIR%.
I would play this total down to 67.5.
Rory McIlroy: Round 3 Under 68 Strokes
Another golfer we are backing in the third round is Rory McIlroy, who is in fifth place at 9-under.
After shooting a 67 or lower in each of the first two rounds, we should expect the world's No. 2 ranked golfer to continue to excel over the weekend. Like Rahm, this is McIlroy's first event of the season as he looks to defend his TOUR championship.
On TOUR last season, McIlroy ranked second in SG: Tee-to-Green and 12th in GIR%. He ended last season in incredible form as he made 10 of his final 11 cuts with two wins, eight top-10 finishes and 10 top-20 finishes.
This is McIlroy's first event of the TOUR season, but he played three World Tour events in September. Those events obviously featured watered-down fields compared to the TOUR, but he still posted top-five finishes in all three tournaments.
I would play this number down to 67.5.
Tom Kim: Round 3 Under 68.5 Strokes
The last golfer we are backing on Saturday is Tom Kim, who is is T6 at 7-under.
Kim shot a 66 in the first round and a 69 in the second, although we should expect the third to go more like the first. Among the field, he ranks 14th in SG: Tee-to-Green and 20th in GIR%.
Starting the year in terrific form, he excelled at the Presidents Cup, won the Shriners Children's Open and finished T25 at the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP. On TOUR this season, he ranks second in SG: Tee-to-Green and ninth in GIR%.
His metrics did not qualify for an official ranking last season because he only played in 11 events. However, his iron play was phenomenal and, if he qualified, he would have ranked 26th in SG: Tee-to-Green and SG: Approach-the-Green.
On the brink of superstardom, look for the 20-year-old to be at the top of leaderboards numerous times this season.
I would play this total down to 68.
Tommy Fleetwood: Round 3 Over 69 Strokes
We are also going to fade a couple of golfers on Saturday, starting with Tommy Fleetwood. Entering the third round, Fleetwood is T31 at 5-under.
His irons have not been very sharp as he ranks 37th among the field in SG: Tee-to-Green and 56th in GIR%. Fleetwood did not look very sharp at the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP either as he finished T53.
That is the only event he's played this season, but last season was also tough in terms of finding greens as he ranked 118th on TOUR in GIR%. In his lone appearance at Congaree, Fleetwood finished 35th at the 2021 Palmetto Championship.
Fleetwood shot a 73 on Thursday and a 66 on Friday, but his metrics suggest the second round will likely be his best of the week.
I would not play this total higher than 69.
Sepp Straka: Round 3 Over 70 Strokes
The other golfer we are fading on Saturday is Sepp Straka. Entering the third round, Straka is T46 at 1-under and has failed to break 70 in either of the first two rounds.
Like Fleetwood, Straka's iron play hasn't been very strong through the first two rounds as he ranks 42nd in SG: Tee-to-Green and 29th in GIR%. Although his irons have been sharp to start the season, regression is predictably starting to hit Straka.
On TOUR last season, he ranked just 147th in SG: Tee-to-Green and 89th in GIR%. At the 2021 Palmetto Championship at Congaree, Straka missed the cut after going 74-74.
I would play this number up to 70.5.
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