Can the Fitzpatrick’s Win Again?: Zurich Classic Power Rankings

As the PGA Tour heads to TPC Louisiana for the Zurich Classic, the only team event on the schedule brings a unique twist to the season. With alternate shot and best ball formats testing chemistry as much as skill, finding the right pairing is just as important as individual form. From established duos to new partnerships looking to make a statement, here are my power rankings for this week’s Zurich Classic.

10. Keefer / Brennan

The first young group of duos is a good one. Michael Brennan is teaming up with 2025 Korn Ferry Rookie of the Year Johnny Keefer this week. Brennan has had a bit of a slow start to his rookie PGA Tour season. Since grabbing his first win last fall, he’s only tallied one top 25 in 11 starts. However, he did show some promise last week before a pair of weekend rounds in the 70s saw him fall out of contention. Keefer’s season has been much of the same. His best finish this came at the Houston Open where finished in a tie for 3rd. Outside of that finish though, it has been a disappointing year for the promising rookie. He has missed his last two cuts, and finished T69 in last week no-cut signature event. There’s no doubt the talent is there, but whether it comes together this week remains uncertain.

9. Thompson / Eckroat

Davis Thompson and Austin Eckroat are one of the more overlooked teams this week, but they have all the tools to contend. Thompson has been playing solid to start the year, with 2 top 25’s, including a solo 4th finish at the Puerto Rico Open. He also finished tied for 14th in his last start. On the other hand, Eckroat has been a different story. His start to the season was anything but perfect, as he missed 4/8 cuts and didn’t card one top 25. Yet, it seemed he has found something in his last start. He finished in a tie for 10th at the Valero Texas Open just three weeks ago. The pair looks to both build off the momentum of their last start as they make their debut together.

8. Penge / Wallace

Marco Penge and Matt Wallace presents a really intriguing pairing this week. Penge has shown flashes of excellence to start the year, tallying 3 top 25’s in 10 starts. His best finish came at the Valspar Championship where he finished in a tie for 4th after a final round 71. Wallace is the veteran in the group, making his sixth start at the Zurich Classic. He’s had a bit of a wild start to the season, with just one top 25, yet that top 25 was a T2 at the Valero Texas open just 3 weeks ago. Neither excelled last week at the RBC Heritage, but the pair looks to change things at a much better course fit this weeks.

7. Li / Smith

While I can’t guarantee Haotong Li and Jordan Smith will be hoisting the trophy this week, I can guarantee that they will be having the most fun. As for the golf, Haotong has been a little bit wild so far this year, highlighted by his 10 on 13 at Augusta National on Masters Sunday. Outside of the Masters, he has a pair of top 15’s, highlighted by a tie for 8th at the American Express. Meanwhile, Smith is coming off of a tie for 16th at the Heritage last week, one of 4 top 25’s for him this season. This year’s tournament will mark the first playing for Li, and the second for Smith who missed the cut after teeing it up with Laurie Canter last year.

6. McCarty / Meissner

Matt Mccarthy and Mac Meissner are teaming up for the first time this year. While the pairing is new, the two have been playing some solid golf to start the year. While Meissner only has one top 25 in 9 starts, he’s finished T28 and T30 in his past two, showing some solid form. On the other end, McCarty has been in great form recently. His best start of the year came at the American Express where he finished runner-up to Scottie Scheffler. Since then, he’s added 4 top 25’s including a T12 in last week’s RBC Heritage. If the two can get some chemistry rolling early, I wouldn’t be surprised to see there names at the top of the leaderboard.

5. Rai / Theegala

Aaron Rai and Sahith Theegala marks a very solid team this week. Theegala has been playing some of the best golf out of anyone yet to win this year with 4 top 10’s and 7 top 25’s to start the year. Unfortunately for Theegala, he’ll probably have to do a lot of the heavy lifting for Rai this week. It has been a disappointing start for Rai, with only one top 25 in 7 starts this season. They finished in a tie for 18th last year, and with Sahith in much better form, they look to improve on that this year.

4. Thorbjornsen / Vilips

Karl Vilips and Michael Thorbjornsen are one of the most exciting groups this week. The two finished in a tie for fourth in their debut here last year and have been teammates since college. Thorbjornsen has shown some true potential, but has struggled under the spotlight on Sundays. Still he’s tallied 4 top 25’s this year including a 3rd place finish at the Waste Managment. As for Vilips, his sophomore season has been off to a bit a bit of a slow start, with just two top 25’s in 9 starts. The former Stanford Cardinals look to kickstart their season this week in New Orleans.

3. Novak / Griffin

Andrew Novak and Ben Griffin are the defending champions of this years Zurich classic. The win came as the first for both last year, and propelled both players to career seasons. However, this year has been a bit of a sophomore slump for both. Novak has been the better of the two, garnering 3 top 25’s in 11 starts. As for Griffin, the golf hasn’t been bad, it just hasn’t been very good either. He has made 8/11 cuts to start the season, while only tallying 2 top 25’s in the process. Still, the two have had success here in the past, and hopefully the good memories can bring some good golf as they look to defend their title.

2. Koepka / Lowry

Brooks Koepka and Shane Lowry are perhaps the two biggest names in the field this week and they’re teeing it up with each other. Lowry has had great success at the Zurich in the past, winning the event in 2024 with Rory McIlroy. Brooks has had success at well, albeit not recent, finishing T5 in 2017. Brooks is in great form, finishing inside the top 20 in 4 of his last 5 starts, including a T12 at the Masters 2 weeks ago. Lowry has been on a lapse of form recently. While he started his season with 2 top 10 finishes, it seems to have come at a cost. He hasn’t finished inside of the top 25 since his unfortunate collapse at the Cognizant Classic in February. Still, the duo will bring the firepower this week, and if Lowry can return to his early season self, he could become the first two-time team winner of the Zurich Classic.

1. Fitzpatrick / Fitzpatrick

The Fitzpatrick brothers are undoubtedly the top team this week. Both Matt Fitzpatrick and Alex Fitzpatrick are in incredible form, each coming off a win in their most recent start. Matt has had a career resurgence this year. He currently sits in 2nd in the FedExCup rankings, and 3rd in the world following his second victory of the season at the RBC Heritage. As for his brother, well he’s doing alright himself. Alex broke through at the Hero Indian Open for his first DP World Tour victory. Outside of his win, he has still shown incredible form, finishing inside of the top 25 in his last 4 starts. While they missed the cut on the number last year, their level of play is elite right no, and that momentum will cruise into this week.

18th hole at Zurich Classic TPC Louisiana, CC: YourGolfTravel

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