Horse For The Course: PGA DFS Course History - 2026 Cognizant Classic

February 23, 2026

Todd McGill's DraftKings, FanDuel PGA DFS picks for the 2026 Cognizant Classic at PGA National. Picks for daily fantasy golf based on course history

It wasn't clean by any means, but Jacob Bridgeman hung on to win at Riviera this past Sunday for his first career victory. Winning such a high-profile tournament not only significantly helps the pocketbook but also guarantees prime opportunities to ensure a long tenure inside the ropes. The 26-year-old held off a red-hot Kurt Kityayama, a late charge by Rory McIlroy, and will surely have loads of confidence to carry him the rest of the season.

After many weeks on the West Coast, the PGA Tour is ready to start its Florida swing this week at the Cognizant Classic. A long-time event on the PGA Tour, this tournament has lost its luster over the last decade or so and is now more for guys lower in standings trying to get into the incredible tournaments coming up. In fact, no one from the top 25 in the world rankings is even making an appearance. However, there is still enough course history data to highlight some names of interest, as this event has a better predictive course history model than many others on the schedule.

Horse For The Course is an article highlighting players in this week's field with elite course history and is part of our free PGA DFS content here at RotoBaller. For some of the favorite DFS plays of the week, check out the Core Four article written by my buddy, Joe Nicely, here at RotoBaller every Wednesday. It's part of our amazing PGA Premium package that includes an all-new PGA Research Station, Lineup Builder & Optimizer, and some of the best articles in the PGA DFS industry! You can sign up now using the Promo Code TDG for an extra discount at checkout!

2026 Cognizant Classic

As previously stated, this field is far from what we've seen in the past couple of weeks. Ryan Gerard is the highest-ranking player, at 26th in the world. Whether it's the flight across the country or the golf course itself that has pushed players away in recent years, the creation of Signature Events and the difficulty of players not exactly picking their schedule now as much as they did before has certain tournaments feeling the negative impact, and this is certainly one.

Before the creation of LIV and the PGA Tour's response, this event used to be one of the most difficult on the regular tour season. Scores rarely exceeded -10 under par, but it has been much more gettable in recent memory. The last three iterations have taken -14, -17, and -19 under par to hoist the trophy. Joe Highsmith's victory last year was the lowest winning score since 2003.

While the course is difficult on its own, high winds mixed with brutally firm greens make for an interesting juggle on every approach shot. From a comparison standpoint, this event's venue has a similar statistical fit to that of Narashino Country Club (site of the ZOZO Championship) and even Riviera from last week.

You can find out who the smart money is on by checking out Spencer Aguiar's PGA DFS: Vegas Report weekly. Be sure to read our other top-notch weekly PGA DFS articles and Player News/Matchup Outlook Posts to help you win big!

PGA National - Champion Course

Par 71 - 7,223 | Greens: Bermudagrass | Designed By: Tom Fazio (Redesigned by Jack Nicklaus)

There are a few times when I will include the redesigner of certain courses, and PGA National is one of those places. The work Jack Nicklaus did on the closing stretch of holes—known as the Bear Trap—usually defines the winning moments of this tournament. The stretch of holes 15-17 is among the most difficult on the PGA Tour schedule.

While strokes gained putting is the largest contributor to overall strokes gained, this is undoubtedly a second-shot golf course. Most approach numbers will come from 125-200 yards (59%), with most of the concentration within that range being 150-175 yards.

Other important statistics to consider are three-putt avoidance, good drive percentage, and scrambling percentage from the sand. PGA National is a grind from start to finish, and though it hasn't played nearly as tough as it used to, the pillars of success haven't changed much.

Recent Genesis Invitational Winners

• 2025: Joe Highsmith (-19)
• 2024: Austin Eckroat (-17)
• 2023: Chris Kirk (-14)
• 2022: Sepp Straka (-10)
• 2021: Matt Jones (-12)

The Horse

Shane Lowry

• Notable Finishes: 2nd ('22), T4 ('24), T5 ('23)

With a couple of bigger names deciding to withdraw from the field, Shane Lowery is the de facto favorite come Thursday, and it's more than just his world ranking. Over the last five years, he has been a steady name on the first page of the leaderboard. This has mostly been accomplished through an absurd average of +1.284 strokes gained on approach, but he has gained strokes in all four individual metrics for an impressive +2.132 total strokes gained on average.

Through his first four starts of the season, Lowery has been slow to get going off the tee, which usually isn't the concern for the 38-year-old. However, he's managed to gain strokes in that area over his last two events and comes into this week hungry to pick up his first individual title since 2022.

The Ponies

Chris Kirk

• Notable Finishes: P1 ('23), T7 ('22)

During his offseason, Chris Kirk shot an 82 left-handed.

It came in handy @The_Cognizant when he came a yard short of an all-time golf shot 🤯 pic.twitter.com/UvEgNHwgun

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 1, 2024

Everyone in this section has had their fair share of poor performance here, but as a whole, most of these guys have the best course history found in the last five seasons outside of my final pick—which I'll cover in a moment—and Chris Kirk is no different. Most of these players find themselves at this event because of one thing: consistency. And while Kirk has a win and another quality finish here, some of his appearances haven't contained the same level of play.

Still, his overall statline at PGA National ranks fifth-best in the field, with the highest metric being +0.639 strokes gained on approach. He has played poorly to start 2026, but a solid performance this week could build some momentum for arguably his favorite run of events on the tour schedule.

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Keith Mitchell

• Notable Finishes: 1st ('19), T9 ('22 & '24)

"He [Travis Kelce] hits the ball way farther than I do." 🏌🏻‍♂️😳

The Chiefs' tight end and his pro partner Keith Mitchell join us for a walk-and-talk at Pebble Beach. @ATTProAm pic.twitter.com/Lfj3gOBBLy

— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) February 13, 2026

Always a name that pops up when we leave the discomfort on the West Coast greens, Keith Mitchell begins to look like a viable DFS option for the next several weeks. Not saying he'll be a regular talking point for this article, but bermudagrass is typically where the 34-year-old thrives. This is even more evident when you consider that he's gained strokes putting in all seven previous appearances. For a guy who is nearly unwatchable with a putter in hand, this kind of consistency is certainly worth mentioning.

The former Georgia Bulldog is a ball-striking connoisseur, doing much of his damage off the tee, as he currently ranks 16th in strokes gained off the tee (+0.658) this season. He's also hitting over 73% of his greens in regulation. As long as the putter cooperates, and this doesn't turn into a complete birdie fest, Mitchell is a solid DFS option.

Adam Scott 

• Notable Finishes: 1st ('16), T13 ('18 & '21)

45-year-old Adam Scott still has plenty of game!

In his 1,501st career round he shoots 63.

The Aussie is T2 and looking for his best finish since July 2024.

📺 CBS pic.twitter.com/9lgvqZ5RwK

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 22, 2026

Notably, it's been a long time since Adam Scott played this event with any regularity. His last appearance was in 2021, and it continued what's been a modest display of consistency from the former Masters Champion over a span of nine career appearances. Considering the run he made this past week at Riviera, it seems hard not to have high hopes for him at PGA National.

He has played well throughout the start of the new season on both the PGA and DP World Tours. Stateside, the Austrailian has played four events and ranks third on the season in strokes gained off the tee (+0.843) and 26th in strokes gained on approach (+0.591).

Though he is weirdly missing from the tour's tournament stats page, he is listed in the field everywhere else and is ranked as Data Golf's third-highest strokes gained total golfer at this venue for players with at least 12 rounds played; seventh when compared to every player with any course history. Considering his current form and lack of star power, Scott should be a high-priority name to draw consideration this week.

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