Breaking down our THE PLAYERS Championship DraftKings picks with plays and fades at each pricing tier and building a PGA DFS golf lineup.
The week of THE PLAYERS Championship is truly one of the best in golf. Though not officially considered a major championship, the trip to TPC Sawgrass is the flagship event of the PGA Tour with the biggest purse in golf, meaning that the field is extremely loaded. And that means we’ve got work to do with the DraftKings PGA DFS slate, one that’s incredibly deep.
We’ve been blowing it out this week for THE PLAYERS Championship at FanSided and with the BetSided crew as well. There’s my betting preview linked above, a video breakdown of my picks and those of Iain MacMillan and Ben Heisler of BetSided, and Iain has plenty more content, including a look at dark horses for the week, which can be useful for trying to find value on DraftKings.
So let’s get right into as we go with my top play and top fade from each PGA DFS pricing tier before building a winning lineup for this week at THE PLAYERS Championship.
DraftKings picks for THE PLAYERS Championship PGA DFS lineup: Top Plays
$10,000: Viktor Hovland ($10,100) – Despite the level of player in the $10K range, I’m going to the bottom of it for Hovland. He’s been T-4 or better in four of his last five starts worldwide and his ball-striking should fit Sawgrass well. He’s my pick to win this week, so getting him at the bottom of this loaded tier is too good for me to pass up.
Having said that, he’s one of BetSided’s Iain MacMillan’s players to avoid, so perhaps proceed with caution. Here’s what Iain had to say.
"Viktor Hovland is a popular bet heading into this week, and for good reason. He’s coming off two-straight top 5 finishes, and his ball striking numbers are amongst the best on Tour.With that being said, he’s one of the worst chippers and he even admitted to it last week after the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He had a chance to win the event, but his play around the greens cost him. He ranks 216th in strokes gained: around the green heading into this week, which is one of the worst marks on Tour. Until he fixes that area of his game, I’d proceed with caution when deciding if you want to wager on him."
$9,000: Hideki Matsuyama ($9,600) – Matsuyama has been playing terrific golf in 2022, punctuated by his win at the Sony Open. His combination of around-the-green and ball-striking play are a great fit for Sawgrass and, given that he has succeeded at THE PLAYERS before, I love him in this range. Also consider: Patrick Antlay ($9,900), Xander Schauffele ($9,700), Cameron Smith ($9,400)
$8,000: Brooks Koepka ($8,600) – I’m projecting a big week for Koepka, a guy who is showing that he’s healthy and has two top-20 (and one top-10) finish in his last three starts. He’s been a fantastic putter at Sawgrass in his career and should pair that with improving ball-striking this week to make him great value in the middle of the $8K range. Also consider: Will Zalatoris ($8,900), Daniel Berger ($8,800), Joaquin Niemann ($8,400), Adam Scott ($8,200), Shane Lowry ($8,000)
$7,000: Matt Fitzpatrick ($7,700) – This just feels like a misprice that you have to take advantage of. Fitzpatrick has finished T-10 or better in each of his last three starts and has just been showing that his all-around game is in terrific form right now. He’s a legitimate threat to win, so getting him at $7,700 is just a gift from DraftKings. Also consider: Tyrell Hatton ($7,800), Max Homa ($7,500), Jason Day ($7,500), Sergio Garcia ($7,400), Corey Conners ($7,300), Cameron Young ($7,200), Luke List ($7,200), Kevin Kisner ($7,100), Chris Kirk ($7,000)
$6,000: Keegan Bradley ($6,900) – Quietly, we’ve seen Bradley in some decent form of late with his last three starts resulting in T-26, T-48 and T-11. He’s also got three straight top-30 finishes at TPC Sawgrass. His ball-striking just needs a break-even putting week and he’ll be in a great spot for the $6K range and that’s doable at a place he has good feels for. Also Consider: Martin Laird ($6,800), Mito Pereira ($6,700), Sebastian Muñoz ($6,700), Beau Hossler ($6,500), J.J. Spaun ($6,300)
DraftKings picks for THE PLAYERS Championship PGA DFS lineup: Top Fades
$10,000: Jon Rahm ($11,100) – One of these weeks, fading Rahm is going to burn me and he’s going to win — he’s just that good. But with the state of his short game right now, I don’t know how you could possibly justify using hundreds of dollars more of your DraftKings salary on the Spaniard when you could have guys like Hovland, Collin Morikawa and Justin Thomas in your lineup.
$9,000: Dustin Johnson ($9,800) – Just point blank, DJ hasn’t been the DJ that we’ve come to know and appreciate over the years. His off-the-tee struggles have been most notable as that has long been the strength of his game, but it’s been exacerbated by the fact that his putter hasn’t been good either. In a range with several great options, you won’t find Johnson in any of my lineups.
$8,000: Tony Finau ($8,500) – Much in the same vein as Johnson, Tony Finau has looked nothing like the consistent presence on leaderboards that we grew accustomed to seeing. His putting and short game have been suspect but it’s more concerning that his ball-striking has recently taken a hit. That’s not a recipe for his success and he’s an easy choice to fade this week at TPC Sawgrass.
$7,000: Webb Simpson ($7,600) – In a vacuum, it would make sense to have Simpson in your lineup for THE PLAYERS. However, this sport isn’t played in a vacuum and Simpson is playing for the first time since the Sony Open in January as he missed time with an injury. That’s always a sketchy proposition to back and, with the strength of the $7K range, I think you can afford to not take on that risk.
THE PLAYERS Championship: Best DraftKings golf lineup
- Viktor Hovland ($10,100)
- Will Zalatoris ($8,900)
- Brooks Koepka ($8,600)
- Matt Fitzpatrick ($7,700)
- Max Homa ($7,500)
- Cameron Young ($7,200)
This is pretty self-explanatory of a lineup given the breakdowns. The only real thing to say is that I’m fading the $9K range because of the immense value in the $7K and $8K ranges.
All told, I truly believe that all six players in this lineup have the ability to win THE PLAYERS Championship this week and are trending in a way that would suggest that’s a possibility. At worse, though, they all have high ceilings and should be relatively comfortable in terms of the floor.
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