The PGA Tour tees off in New Orleans this week for the eighth edition of the Zurich Classic, the only team event on the tour’s regular season schedule.
The field at TPC Louisiana includes 160 players comprised of 80 two-man teams, headlined by the defending champion duo of Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry, who won here in 2024.
As we do each week, what follows is a roundup of information and historical data to get you prepped for what should be an exciting week of golf in New Orleans.
2025 Zurich Classic Primer
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The Skinny
Zurich Classic of New Orleans
Dates: April 24-27, 2025
Where: Avondale, LA
Course: TPC Louisiana
Distance: Par 72, 7425 yards
Architect: Pete Dye
Format: Best-ball (Th, Sa), Alt-shot (Fr, Su)
Field: 160 players, 80 teams
Purse: $9,200,000
Win Share: $1,329,450 (each)
FedEx Pts (Win): 400 (each)
Defending Champions: Rory McIlroy & Shane Lowry
Marquee Teams: McIlroy & Lowry, Collin Morikawa & Kurt Kitayama, Wyndham Clark & Taylor Moore, JT Poston & Keith Mitchell, Matt Fitzpatrick & Alex Fitzpatrick, Nick Taylor & Adam Hadwin, Billy Horschel & Tom Hoge
How to Follow the Zurich Classic
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Watch on ESPN+
PGA TOUR RADIO: Thu-Fri: 1-6:30 p.m.; Sat-Sun: 1-6 p.m.
(PGA TOUR Radio (CH. 92) on SiriusXM and PGATour.com Live Stream)
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Zurich Classic History
While this will only be the eighth edition as a team format event, the Zurich Classic has been around for a very long time, with roots going all the way back to 1938. That first tournament was called the “Crescent City Open,” with Harry Cooper cashing a winner’s check worth $1,200. It was the 30th victory of his 31-win Hall of Fame career.
Other legendary Zurich champions include Jimmy Demaret (1940), Byron Nelson (1945-46), Billy Casper (1958, 1975), Gary Player (1972), Jack Nicklaus (1973), Lee Trevino (1974), Tom Watson (1980-81), Seve Ballesteros (1985), Ben Crenshaw (1987, 1994), Vijay Singh (2004), Bubba Watson (2011) and Justin Rose (2015).
Carlos Franco (1999 and 2000) was the last golfer to snag the title two times. He was also the fourth player in tournament history go back-to-back in the Big Easy, joining the aforementioned Nelson (1945-46) and Watson (1980-81), alongside Bo Wininger (1962-63).
Billy Horschel is the only two-time champion who won amid the individual stroke-play era (2013) and as part of a team (2018), while Cam Smith is the only two-time winner during the team format era (2017-Jonas Blixt and 2021-Marc Leishman).
The event has always been held in the New Orleans area, with TPC Louisiana – a design of the legendary architect Pete Dye, first hosting in 2005. It has been the host course since 2007 and has been prone to surrendering some very low scores.
In late 2016, fresh off the exciting 2016 Ryder Cup matches, the tournament received approval from the Tour to change to a team format event and debuted in 2017 with eighty (80) teams of two players: one member of each team is initially chosen via the Tour priority rankings, and his partner must be either a PGA Tour member or earn entry through a sponsor exemption.
History: Tournament Names
- Zurich Classic of New Orleans (2005-25)
- HP Classic of New Orleans (2003-04)
- Compaq Classic of New Orleans (1999-02)
- Freeport-McDermott Classic (1996-98)
- Freeport-McMoran Classic (1994-95)
- Freeport-McMoran Golf Classic (1992-93)
- USF&G Classic (1982-1991)
- USF&G New Orleans Open (1981)
- Greater New Orleans Open (1980)
- First NBC New Orleans Open (1975-1979)
- Greater New Orleans Invitational (1972-74)
- Greater New Orleans Open Invitational (1958-78)
- New Orleans Open (1939-1948)
- Crescent City Open (1938)
History: Recent Winners
2023: Rory McIlroy/Shane Lowry (-25)
2023: Nick Hardy/Davis Riley (-30)
2021: Cam Smith/Marc Leishman (-20)
2019: Jon Rahm/Ryan Palmer (-22)
2018: Billy Horschel/Scott Piercy (-22)
2017: Cam Smith/Jonas Blixt (-27)
—
2016: Brian Stuard (-15)
2015: Justin Rose (-22)
2016: Seung-yul Noh (-19)
2015: Billy Horschel (-20)
History: Tournament Records
SINGLE-PLAYER SCORING: 262 (-26) Chip Beck (1988)
TEAM SCORING: 258 (-30) Nick Hardy/Davis Riley (2023)
WINS: 2 – Henry Picard (1939, 1941), Byron Nelson (1945-46), Bo Wininger (1962-63), Frank Beard (1966, 1971), Billy Casper (1958, 1975), Tom Watson (1980-81), Chip Beck (1988, 1992), Ben Crenshaw (1987, 1994), Carlos Franco (1999-00), Billy Horschel (2013, 2018), Cam Smith (2017, 2021)
The Field at the 2025 Zurich Classic
Team play is notoriously hard to predict, as evidenced by the 2023 winners: Nick Hardy (180) and Davis Riley (245) each of whom was not ranked inside the world top 150.
In 2022 and 2024, though, the two top-ranked teams won. In 2022, it was Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay, while in 2024 it was Ireland’s Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry taking home the title.
World No.2 McIlroy, making his first appearance since winning the Masters, and Lowry (No.12) will return to defend. The Irishmen are easily the highest-credentialed team in the field.
Aaron Rai (27) and Sahith Theegala (28) are the only other team with a pair of top-30 ranked players.
Two more high-profile duo — each with a pair of top-50 ranked players: Billy Horschel (24) and Tom Hoge (41) and Robert MacIntyre (21) and Thomas Detry (31).
Finally, two more groups to keep an eye on, include: Collin Morikawa (4) and Kurt Kitayama (97), along with JT Poston (46) and Keith Mitchell (91).
Odds to Win the 2025 Zurich Classic
At +400, the top-ranked duo of Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry are heavy favorites, with Collin Morikawa and Kurt Kitayama next at +1100.
Scotsman Robert MacIntyre and Belgian Thomas Detry are listed at +1800 alongside J.T. Poston and Keith Mitchell.
At +2000, Billy Horschel and Tom Hoge rounded out the top-5 betting favorites.
The high-powered Brit-American duo of Aaron Rai and Sahith Theegala are listed at +2200, alongside a pair of teams in Andrew Novak and Ben Griffin and Wyndham Clark and Taylor Moore.
Top-5 Betting Favorites
1. McIlroy/Lowry (+400)
2. Morikawa/Kitayama (+1100)
3. Poston/Mitchell (+1800)
4. MacIntyre/Detry (+1800)
4. Horschel/Hoge (+2000)
Full Field & Odds
Zurich Classic | TPC Louisiana | New Orleans, LA | April 24-27, 2025
Joel Cook and Carey Hoffman contributed to this report.
Credits: PGA Tour Media, Getty Images
