DraftKings PGA DFS Lineup Picks - THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson (2026)

May 19, 2026

Zach's DraftKings PGA DFS lineup picks for THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson (2026). His PGA DFS targets and value plays for daily fantasy golf lineups.

Welcome, everyone, to my DraftKings PGA DFS lineup picks and advice for the 2026 edition of THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson. I'll be providing DFS picks and analysis to help you set those winning DraftKings lineups.

After last week's PGA Championship in Pennsylvania, the PGA TOUR heads to Texas for back-to-back weeks in the Lone Star State. THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson begins the two-week stay in the Dallas-Ft. Worth metro area with a trip to TPC Craig Ranch. The tournament has been a regular stop for the PGA TOUR since 1944, and has been held at this Tom Weiskopf design since 2021. The course has historically been very low-scoring at TPC Craig Ranch, but since last season, a major renovation has attempted to make the course a little tougher and more demanding, especially on approach, bringing new waste bunkers into play on several holes. With newly upgraded turf and grass on the fairway and greens as well, the par-71 layout could play tougher this season, but scores should still be very low. For the most part, Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green will be the top stat used to put together this week's picks, along with current form, course history, and history on similar courses in Texas.

The RotoBaller team has you covered with details on the course, the field, the history of the event, and much more throughout the week, so be sure to check out all the coverage available at the PGA hub on RotoBaller. In this post, I'll break down six of my top DFS fantasy golf plays coming into the week.

Big Dogs: Top-Tier PGA DFS Lineup Picks

Scottie Scheffler ($14.8K)

Scheffler's salary is ridiculously high, but he clearly stands out head-and-shoulders over the rest of the field. Only Si Woo Kim ($9,900) is ranked in the top 30 in the OWGR from the rest of the field. Scheffler trounced a similar field last year at this venue, which is important to him since it's where he made his PGA TOUR debut. 

He leads the field in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green, Strokes Gained: Approach, and Total Strokes Gained over the last six months, and he has been the best player in this field in almost every metric so far this season.

While he hasn't won since January in his 2026 debut, he has turned in great results, posting five top-five finishes in his nine events since that win and no finishes worse than T24. He was the solo runner-up at the Masters, the RBC Heritage, and the Cadillac Championship, and he was T14 at last week's PGA Championship.

He finished T47 in his debut at this track in 2021, T15 in 2022, T5 in 2023, sat out 2024, and then won last year. Even if he isn't at his absolute best, it's hard to see him not posting a very high finish with the potential to win, even if he's not 100% dialed in.

Since he's so obviously the top pay-up play for DFS contests, he'll likely be extremely popular, but it's hard to pass on his win equity if you can make the rest of your roster stand out with some leverage plays.

Scheffler brings both a high floor and a high ceiling as my top pay-up play at the PGA this week. After setting so many records last year, this seems like a perfect "get right" spot for Scottie.

6 shot lead? Still going right at the pin.

Scottie Scheffler is on another level right now. pic.twitter.com/rE60BPndZc

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 4, 2025

Davis Thompson ($9.2K)

Thompson didn't qualify for the PGA Championship last week, but he'll be back in action this week, looking to build on some trending form. He has missed three cuts this season, but he comes into this tournament with three straight strong finishes.

He has gained over 0.5 strokes on approach in each of those three straight events, finishing T14 at the Valero Texas Open, T6 at the Zurich Classic, and T13 at the ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic in the alternate-field event.

Thompson also finished fourth earlier this season at the Puerto Rico Open, showing he can place well in weaker fields in low-scoring events. The 26-year-old from Georgia claimed his lone career PGA TOUR victory at the 2024 John Deere Classic in a low-scoring birdie-fest with a weaker field similar to this week's event.

Thompson didn't play last year at this event and missed the cut in 2024. He has the upside to contend, though, if he can build on his recent form. He's an expensive play to partner with Scheffler, but he should be a leverage option since managers may not want to spend up without better course history.

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Underdogs: Mid-Range PGA DFS Lineup Picks

Eric Cole ($8.1K)

Cole is definitely not known for his work off the tee, but the shorter hitter has been able to find success at TPC Craig Ranch in the past, and he'll come back to THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson with some nice momentum. 

The 37-year-old is coming off three straight top-15 finishes with a T14 at the Valero Texas Open, a T6 at the Zurich Classic, and a T6 at the ONEflight Myrtle Beach. He struggled in February and March but posted top-30 finishes in The American Express and the Farmers Insurance Open.

If at first you don't succeed ... try again 💪

Eric Cole chips in to grab a share of the lead @TheAmExGolf.

📺 @PGATOURLIVE on ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/fanqQdDDme

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 24, 2026

Over the last 20 rounds, Cole ranks fourth in the field in Total Strokes Gained, leads the field in Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green, and ranks 15th in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green. He's still struggling off the tee, but with driving less important on this layout, which has historically been very forgiving, he has been able to find success in the past.

He has had success at TPC Craig Ranch, finishing T23 in 2023 at the AT&T Byron Nelson, and he was even better, finishing T5 last year at THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson. He lost strokes off the tee, but his short game and good approach play resulted in that strong finish.

Cole is ranked 78th in the FedExCup Points List after finishing No. 76 in the FedExCup Fall standings last year. He hasn't ever won on the PGA TOUR, but he has proven his current form is strong enough to contend.

Blades Brown ($7.8K)

Brown is almost 20 years younger than Cole, but he's a good option to consider for DFS golf lineups this week as well. Brown is immensely talented at just 18 years old, but he has proven he can contend right now.

Over the last three months, Brown has played five events on the PGA TOUR and four events on the Korn Ferry Tour. He has a total of four top-10 finishes in his last eight events, including a runner-up finish at the Tulum Championship on the Korn Ferry Tour and a T9 finish at the ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic.

Last week, he finished T16 at the Colonial Life Charity Classic on the Korn Ferry Tour, and he needs a solo 21st or better to secure Special Temporary Membership on the PGA TOUR. He also ranks in the top 10 on the Korn Ferry Tour, so he has multiple paths to membership that he can pursue.

Over the last three months, he ranks in the top 15 in the field in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green, but that doesn't reflect all his events since he has been playing so many events without ShotLink data. Brown is in form with a chance to secure his future this week, so look for Brown to be a great value under $8K.

Junkyard Dogs: Top PGA DFS Value Picks

Mark Hubbard ($7.2K)

While Brown is a young rising star, Hubbard is a veteran who is still looking for his first PGA TOUR win as well.

After struggling for much of the season and missing the cut in four of his previous five events. Hubbard came close to securing his breakthrough win with a runner-up finish at the ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic. He finished just behind Brandt Snedeker after bogeying the last hole, but his finish was by far his best of the year.

Mark Hubbard gets the birdie to fall to regain a share of the lead @MyrtleBeachCl 👀

-17 Mark Hubbard (thru 12)
-17 Brandt Snedeker (thru 13)
-16 Beau Hossler (thru 13)

📺 Golf Channel pic.twitter.com/fjxkJDBKcC

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 10, 2026

While Hubbard was struggling earlier in the season, he does have a good history at this event. The second-shot specialist has made the cut in each of his four appearances at TPC Craig Ranch, and he finished T5 last year in this event.

Hubbard is still high-risk due to his lack of consistency this season overall, but he has some converging trends after his runner-up in his last event and his T5 at this venue last year.

Chandler Phillips ($6.7K) 

Phillips is another player with some converging trends this week in Dallas. The Texas-native went to Texas A&M for college and has played well in Texas in his career. He also has had a few spike weeks this season, showing he has the potential to go off for a high finish.

While he missed the cut in Myrtle Beach two weeks ago, he had made the cut in his previous individual event with a T8 at the Valero Texas Open in San Antonio. He missed the cut in his debut at TPC Craig Ranch in 2024, but he finished T15 last year at the event.

Phillips finished No. 94 in the FedExCup Fall to earn his full-time membership this season. He's No. 120 right now in the FedExCup Points list, though, so he'll need to build on his T8 in San Antonio to have a good summer and keep his card.

He has the potential to contend and should be familiar with the layout, giving him more upside than many of the options under $7K.

For more value plays, be sure to check out my Value Plays post coming on Tuesday on the premium dashboard.

More PGA Analysis and Picks

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