{"id":620858,"date":"2026-04-22T10:46:46","date_gmt":"2026-04-22T10:46:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/620858\/"},"modified":"2026-04-22T10:46:46","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T10:46:46","slug":"the-five-intriguing-teams-at-zurich-classic-of-new-orleans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/620858\/","title":{"rendered":"The Five: Intriguing teams at Zurich Classic of New Orleans"},"content":{"rendered":"

20H AGO<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

5 Min Read<\/p>\n

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<\/a>*:not(style){overflow:hidden;position:absolute;top:0px;right:0px;bottom:0px;left:0px;display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;width:100%;height:100%;}.css-17ygvlf>img,.css-17ygvlf>video{object-fit:cover;}.css-17ygvlf::before{height:0px;content:””;display:block;padding-bottom:56.25%;}]]>\"Matt<\/p>\n

Matt Fitzpatrick walks in birdie putt for Team Fitzpatrick at Zurich Classic<\/p>\n

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A<\/p>\n

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Written by Paul Hodowanic<\/p>\n

It\u2019s time to team up. The PGA TOUR schedule has arrived at the lone team event of the season \u2013 the Zurich Classic of New Orleans.<\/p>\n

Andrew Novak and Ben Griffin return as defending champions, arriving in the Bayou State with plenty of momentum. Can that springboard them to success at TPC Louisiana again?<\/p>\n

Each two-man team will play Four-ball (best ball) on Thursday and Foursomes (alternate shot) on Friday. After the cut, 33 teams and ties, they will play Four-ball on Saturday and Foursomes on Sunday.<\/p>\n

Ahead of the competition, let\u2019s talk about the most intriguing teams teeing it up at the Zurich Classic.<\/p>\n

Shane Lowry\/Brooks Koepka<\/p>\n

No Rory McIlroy, no problem for Lowry. After a successful two-year partnership with his Irish best friend, Lowry has pivoted to five-time major champion Koepka. That\u2019s a heck of a replacement.<\/p>\n

*:not(style){overflow:hidden;position:absolute;top:0px;right:0px;bottom:0px;left:0px;display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;width:100%;height:100%;}.css-17ygvlf>img,.css-17ygvlf>video{object-fit:cover;}.css-17ygvlf::before{height:0px;content:””;display:block;padding-bottom:56.25%;}]]>\"Rory<\/p>\n

Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry embrace partnership at Zurich Classic<\/p>\n

Koepka should be incredibly motivated to play well, still on the outside looking in for the remaining Signature Events on the calendar. He nearly got into the RBC Heritage last week, hanging around the range all day Thursday as the first alternate. Koepka\u2019s opportunity never came, and the only way to avoid a similar situation is to knock the door down and force his way in. He is playing plenty well enough to believe a win could be in the cards, with four top-20 finishes in his last five starts. He ranks second on TOUR in approach play this year, and he looks the part; his swing is in a better technical position than it\u2019s been in years.<\/p>\n

Koepka is also one of the best closers in golf, which should be of particular help to Lowry, who has consistently put together incredibly solid weeks that he just can\u2019t quite finish out.<\/p>\n

Johnny Keefer\/Michael Brennan<\/p>\n

Just a fun pairing of two young golfers who may very well become top-20 players on the PGA TOUR in the near and distant future.<\/p>\n

Keefer, 25, is the reigning Korn Ferry Tour player and rookie of the year, and though he\u2019s struggled with consistency in his first season on TOUR, he\u2019s showcased the elite skills that are worth betting on long-term. He\u2019s already one of the longest players on TOUR and has shown himself to be an above-average approach player. His biggest issue is putting, where he\u2019s lost strokes to the field in nine of 11 events. That should get better with time and experience playing on TOUR.<\/p>\n

Brennan, 24, broke through last year when he won the Bank of Utah Championship while still a member of PGA TOUR Americas. He boasts an even more extreme version of Keefer\u2019s statistical profile. He\u2019s a top-five driver and one of the worst putters on TOUR this year.<\/p>\n

The duo has all the makings of a volatile, exciting pairing. Expect both to pin their ears back in the Four-ball portion of the competition. This group\u2019s challenge, more than most, will be to survive the Foursomes rounds. If they can do that, they should contend.<\/p>\n

Ryan Gerard\/Sudarshan Yellamaraju<\/p>\n

This pairing was a last-minute match. Gerard was slated to play alongside fellow Tar Heel graduate David Ford, but when Ford had to pull out late due to an injury, it sent Gerard on a search that ultimately led to Yellamaraju.<\/p>\n

Who else did Gerard consider? NBC analyst Smylie Kaufman was one of the possible partners Gerard reached out to. The retired pro golfer hasn\u2019t played a TOUR event since the 2022 Puerto Rico Open, so Gerard likely made the right choice in selecting Yellamaraju instead.<\/p>\n

This duo is more than a novelty, though, and should be considered one of the favorites in New Orleans. Yellamaraju has played incredibly steady golf over the last month. He finished fifth at THE PLAYERS Championship, sixth in Houston and 14th in San Antonio. Gerard fell off the blistering pace he began the year with, but shot 65-67 on the weekend in Hilton Head to bring some momentum into this week. Gerard and Yellamaraju boast similar profiles, both incredibly steady with their approach play and on the greens. That\u2019s the name of the game at TPC Louisiana, which will require birdies in bunches to contend.<\/p>\n

\"Sudarshan<\/p>\n

Sudarshan Yellamaraju on his impressive play as a PGA TOUR rookie<\/p>\n

Luke Clanton\/Blades Brown<\/p>\n

There are golfers at the Zurich Classic older than this team’s combined age. Clanton, 22, and Brown, 18, are the youngest duo in this field, and it\u2019s only part of the reason for being one of the most intriguing. They can also be one of the most competitive.<\/p>\n

Brown is playing stellar golf as a full-time Korn Ferry Tour member. He has three top-three finishes in his last five starts, one of which came at the Puerto Rico Open. He also played in the final pairing on the weekend alongside Scottie Scheffler at The American Express in January.<\/p>\n

Clanton has struggled to replicate the outstanding play that helped him earn his TOUR card via the PGA TOUR University Accelerated program, but he has made the cut in three of his last four starts, including a T5 in Puerto Rico.<\/p>\n

\"Hit<\/p>\n

Hit The Number Challenge | PGA TOUR rising stars Luke Clanton, David Ford face off in Hawaii<\/p>\n

Could this be a Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup duo in the next 5-10 years? Both have the potential to be in that conversation. Their stories would be forever linked if they could get their first TOUR wins together in New Orleans.<\/p>\n

Matt Fitzpatrick\/Alex Fitzpatrick<\/p>\n

Could there be another Fitzpatrick on the PGA TOUR at this time next week? While Alex Fitzpatrick is only a DP World Tour member this season, he would earn his TOUR card via a win alongside his brother this week. It seems quite possible given the form both take into the event. Older brother Matt just outlasted Scottie Scheffler to win the RBC Heritage, his second title of the season. There\u2019s an argument that no player has been better over the last two months than Matt Fitzpatrick, and even the most pessimistic look at his run of form would still place him among the five best players this year.<\/p>\n

\"Matt<\/p>\n

Matt Fitzpatrick birdies first playoff hole to defeat Scottie Scheffler at RBC Heritage<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, younger brother Alex won his most recent event \u2013 the Hero Indian Open. It wasn\u2019t one isolated hot week, either. Alex Fitzpatrick has five top-20 finishes in his last seven starts.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s why the Fitzpatrick brothers lead the betting odds this week.<\/p>\n

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Apr 21, 2026<\/p>\n

Expert Picks: Who are experts fishing for in the Bayou? <\/a>Expert Picks<\/a>\"Image\"Image<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"20H AGO 5 Min Read Need to Know *:not(style){overflow:hidden;position:absolute;top:0px;right:0px;bottom:0px;left:0px;display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;width:100%;height:100%;}.css-17ygvlf>img,.css-17ygvlf>video{object-fit:cover;}.css-17ygvlf::before{height:0px;content:””;display:block;padding-bottom:56.25%;}]]> Matt Fitzpatrick walks in birdie putt for Team Fitzpatrick…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":620859,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[443],"tags":[49,48,622,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-620858","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-golf","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-golf","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/620858","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=620858"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/620858\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/620859"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=620858"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=620858"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=620858"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}