Denny McCarthy grabs share of FedEx St. Jude Championship lead despite hip injury

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Denny McCarthy defied a hip injury to storm into the early second-round lead of the FedEx St. Jude Championship at TPC Southwind.

McCarthy, who reportedly has a torn labrum in his left hip that may require surgery in the offseason, carded an impressive 7-under 63 to move to 11-under and the clubhouse lead as he signed his scorecard. He was joined by Hideki Matsuyama (64) at the top and one shot clear of Sam Burns who also shot a 63 to get to 10-under.

After contending at the Valero Texas Open (second) and the Wells Fargo Championship (T6) in May, McCarthy’s season stalled. And while a T7 at the John Deere Classic was decent, the cold weather climate in Scotland is where the injury became a concern. He has missed two cuts in his last three starts, including The Open Championship.

At 45th in the FedExCup standings leading into this week, McCarthy needed a decent finish to ensure his place in the top 50 for the BMW Championships and with it Signature Event status in 2025. At this rate he’s trending towards locking up a spot in the top 30 and the TOUR Championship.

“I don't want to divulge too much. It's bothering me, and I've been able to do enough the last few days to push through it,” McCarthy said post-round of the injury.

“It's just coming through on the downswing a little bit. It's just hard to maybe get a little more rotation, push up through the ground than I would like. It's been okay. The heat really helps it. It really loosens it up. But I've had to spend a lot of time post-round, pre-round getting it loose, getting it ready to go to play a full round.

“I haven't been thinking about it too much, which is nice. Just kind of been focused on… sounds cliche, I've just been focused on each shot really, trying to put the same amount of importance and focus into each shot.”

Having to make an adjustment to his swing hasn’t helped in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee where he ranks 68th of 70 players. But he has made up for it everywhere else, ranking inside the top five in SG: Tee-to-Green, SG: Approach, SG: Around-the-Green and SG: Putting.

While it remains to be seen if he can continue to push through the pain barrier in the Playoffs, the bigger problem for McCarthy will come should the injury require surgery. Generally, hip labrum surgery can carry a three-to-six-month recovery process, according to the Mayo Clinic, which could eat into the 2025 season, including Signature Events should he make it through to Denver next week.

“I don't know yet. I'm not looking that far ahead,” McCarthy said on a possible surgical solution. “I'm kind of just focused on trying to get better each day this week, and that's all I'm really focused on.”

McCarthy opened the week between a +10000 longshot with BetMGM Sportsbook and was as high as +15000 elsewhere. Those odds ballooned to 250-to-1 after he bogeyed the opening hole of the tournament before his impressive fightback. Midway through the second round, his odds sat at +900 to win.

The 31-year-old is yet to win on the PGA TOUR but has lost in a playoff in each of the last two seasons. He fell just short to Akshay Bhatia at the Valero Texas Open in April this year and was also runner-up to Viktor Hovland in the 2023 Memorial Tournament presented by Workday.

“I've just got to keep doing what I'm doing. We play a really hard sport. Some of the guys out here make it look really easy, and that's frustrating at times when those guys continue to play well and I continue to maybe struggle here or there, get there every once in a while,” McCarthy added.

“It's hard to win out here. It's hard to put yourself in contention. I've just got to remind myself that we play a really hard game, and it's not for a lack of trying when I don't play well. I care a lot and I'm very competitive. It's just sometimes you've just got to be patient. Sometimes the process just takes a little longer than you want.”