It’s not quite the Ryder Cup but it is team golf and that means fourballs and foursomes this week at the 2025 Zurich Classic of New Orleans.
The field is 160 players in 80 two-man teams. It’s four days and 72 holes, like individual events on the PGA Tour but the uniqueness is a nice change of pace during the season.
What is the Zurich Classic of New Orleans tournament history?
The tournament dates to 1938. It has been played at TPC Louisiana since 2005. It became a team event in 2017.
Harry Cooper won the first event. Other individual winners over the years include Byron Nelson, Billy Casper, Gary Players, Jack Nicklaus, Lee Trevino, Tom Watson, Seve Ballesteros and Ben Crenshaw.
Billy Horschel is the only golfer to win it when it was an individual stroke-play event (2013) and as a member of a team (2018). Cameron Smith, now of LIV Golf, is the only one to be on two different winning teams (2017 and 2021).
What is the format for the Zurich Classic of New Orleans?
The first round will have all the two-man teams playing fourballs, also known as best ball. For Friday’s second round, the duos will flip to foursomes, also known as alternate shot.
Friday night, there will be a cut to the low 33 teams plus ties. The advancing teams will play fourballs on Saturday and then Sunday’s final round will be foursomes once again.
What are the scoring records for the Zurich Classic of New Orleans?
The foursomes low round is 63, posted in 2023 by Adam Hadwin and Nick Taylor and also by Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele. In 2024, Chad Ramey and Martin Trainer matched it with a 63 of their own.
The fourballs low score of 59 was carded by the Patrick Cantlay-Xander Schauffele duo in 2022.
What is the prize money payouts for the Zurich Classic of New Orleans?
The total purse is $9,200,000. Each member of the winning team will pocket $1,329,400 for his efforts.
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