February 24, 2026
After a frustrating last six months inside the ropes, Joe Highsmith returns to PGA National this week in hopes of defending his title from last season. The now 25-year-old held off many of the prominent players en route to victory in 2025. However, things have been much tougher as of late. He's only had one top 30 finish in his last 25 starts. The solid putting that carried him to not only a win in the Palm Beaches, but also a host of other events in 2024 and last year has been MIA for a while. In just his five events this new season, Highsmith has averaged -0.402 strokes gained on the greens. Throw into the mix his mediocre ball striking, and the thought of defending looks bleak. Look elsewhere for better DFS options.
--Todd McGillSource: PGA Tour
February 24, 2026
As Joel Dahmen continues to try to plod his way back into the upper echelon of the PGA Tour, he now heads to the East Coast with a set of irons and a putter that have mirrored each other through the first three starts of this season. However, that hasn't been to his benefit, as his last outing at the WM Phoenix Open saw him lose over two strokes putting and over two and a half strokes on approach. He's back in action this week at PGA National, where his best finish is T32 in four appearances. As a GPP play, Dahmen is always a lower-priced option with the ability to sprout up on any leaderboard. The difficulty is pinpointing where it will happen. When it happens, it's usually on the back of his ironplay. Given the rough shape it's been in, this isn't the place to hope he figures it out.
--Todd McGillSource: Data Golf
February 24, 2026
What started as a decent opening to the season for Daniel Berger has taken a turn for the worse in recent weeks. After beginning with top-10 and 20 finishes in two of the first three starts, the 32-year-old finished nearly dead last at Pebble Beach and missed the cut last week at Riviera. The ball striking has remained fairly consistent, but he's bled strokes on and around the green, losing an average of -1.32 strokes between the two metrics over his last three starts. Berger has had a nice run at PGA National over his last few appearances, with T4 finishes in 2020 and 2022. The ball striking is good enough to give him a chance, but the putting and short game slump make him a hard sell right now.
--Todd McGillSource: Data Golf
February 24, 2026
Davis Thompson is struggling some to start 2026. The American golfer has no Top 25 results in three events. Worse, he took time off after winding up over par at the WM Phoenix Open. For a tournament that features a lot of birdies, that does not bode well for tougher events like the Cognizant Classic. Thompson has won once in his career and that was in 2024 (John Deere Classic). Since then, the golfer has dropped outside the Top 100 again in the world rankings. Overall strokes lost to putting in 2026 is now -1.104 (162nd). The end of 2025 looked pretty bright for Thompson after four Top 25 results over his final five events. Heading to Florida, that hope seems to have been dashed as Thompson has been a DFS albatross.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: PGATour.com
February 24, 2026
Tom Kim has made all five cuts in 2026. The South Korean golfer seems to have one or two rounds that go awry in every tournament so far this year. Kim did climb up the leaderboard at The Genesis Invitational with a Saturday 67 only to follow it up with a 71. That placed the golfer outside the Top 25 yet again. One of the main culprits was putting. He lost 0.92 strokes and his putts per round is 29.6 over the first two rounds. That is troubling. Kim has not won in three seasons now and with periodic putting issues, he may have troubles this week in Florida. The Cognizant Classic at Palm Beaches often features challenging pin placements. Kim's lack of birdies suggests avoiding him in DFS formats.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: PGATour.com
February 24, 2026
Nicolai Hojgaard believed he could win the WM Phoenix Open. The Danish golfer finished T-3 on the Scottsdale course and was a mere stroke from forcing a way into the playoff. Hojgaard has played well in the two PGA Tour events this 2026 season. He finished inside the Top 25 at the Farmers Insurance Open (T-22). Hojgaard leads the PGA early on in strokes gained off the tee at 0.877. Again, this is a small sample size. However, his green approach last year ranked 11th at 0.6 and off the tee was close to the Top 50. Hojgaard could be one to watch at the Cognizant Classic. He ended up T-18 last year and shot all four rounds in the 60's. From a DFS viewpoint, the Dane is also a good option.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: PGATour.com
February 24, 2026
Christiaan Bezuidenhout took some time off after the WM Phoenix Open. The South African golfer missed the cut on the easier Scottsdale course. After a few weeks off, he takes aim at the Cognizant Classic. Going into Scottsdale, Bezuidenhout had been putting well, gaining more than three strokes combined to putting. A lot of things malfunctioned in early February. Bezuidenhout has not gotten into contention so far in 2026 and this Florida event does not bode well. He has finished 25th or worse in his last four appearances including a missed cut in 2024. From a betting perspective, the golfer from South Africa might be one to fade this week.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: PGATour.com
February 23, 2026
Will Zalatoris has made just two starts to begin 2026, finishing T18 at The American Express and missing the cut at the Farmers Insurance Open. He looks to build some momentum as he makes his tournament debut at the Cognizant Classic this week. Through those two events, he ranks 12th in total strokes gained (+1.388 per round), 29th off the tee (+0.508), and 25th on approach (+0.602). Accuracy is likely to play a major role at PGA National, and he sits 72nd in driving and 17th in proximity from 150-175 yards (23'5"), a range that accounted for the most approach shots here last season. His putting has teetered early in the year, gaining over 2.1 strokes at the AMEX, but losing more than 2.2 at Torrey. Even with a small sample size, Zalatoris looks like a solid fantasy option at $8,400 on DraftKings if he has a decent week with the flat stick.
--Dakota Legg - RotoBallerSource: PGA Tour
February 23, 2026
Rasmus Hojgaard is off to a solid start to 2026, with progressively better finishes of T44, T30, and most recently, T24 at the WM Phoenix Open. He'll look to continue that trend at the Cognizant Classic, where he missed the cut in his only appearance in 2024. Hojgaard ranks 23rd in total strokes gained (+1.234 per round), including 23rd off the tee (+0.564) and 21st in putting (+0.776). The only issue comes with precision, as he sits just 160th in driving accuracy and 152nd in proximity from 150-175 yards (33'3"), a range that accounted for 21.7% of approach shots here last year. Despite the precision concerns, Hojgaard still profiles as a strong fantasy option in a weaker field than we've seen recently.
--Dakota Legg - RotoBallerSource: PGA Tour
February 23, 2026
Max McGreevy missed the cut at last week's The Genesis Invitational following a tied-for-29th finish at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. McGreevy has had a solid start to 2026, but has lost strokes, putting in four of his six appearances. If he can improve his putting, he could give himself a chance to be near the top of the leaderboard on Sunday at this week's Cognizant Classic. McGreevy finished tied for fourth at last year's Cognizant Classic. Over the past 12 months, McGreevy ranks in the 17th percentile in greens in regulation percentage on approach shots from 150-200 yards in the fairway. This is worth mentioning because at last year's Cognizant Classic over 40% of approach shots came from this distance.
--Ian Christenson - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
February 23, 2026
Rico Hoey missed the cut at last week's The Genesis Invitational following a tied-for-67th finish at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. This was Hoey's first missed cut in six starts this season. His best finish came at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, where he finished tied for 24th. Hoey will need to improve almost every facet of his game to have a chance to compete this week. He lost strokes across the board last week, except on the putting green, gaining 0.98 strokes there. Hoey finished tied for 25th at last year's Cognizant Classic. Over the past 12 months, Hoey ranks in the 69th percentile in greens in regulation percentage on approach shots from 150-200 yards in the fairway. This is worth pointing out because at last year's Cognizant Classic over 40% of approach shots came from this distance.
--Ian Christenson - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
February 23, 2026
Austin Eckroat returns to action this week after missing the cut at the Waste Management Phoenix Open two weeks ago. Eckroat has had a rough start to the 2026 season, missing the cut in three of his four starts. His best finish was tied for 49th at the Farmers Insurance Open. Eckroat has had mixed results at the Cognizant Classic, missing the cut in 2025 but winning the tournament in 2024. Over the past 12 months, Eckroat ranks in the 79th percentile in greens in regulation percentage on approach shots from 150-200 yards in the fairway. This is important because at last year's Cognizant Classic over 40% of approach shots came from this distance.
--Ian Christenson - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
February 23, 2026
Aaron Rai finished tied for 28th at last week's The Genesis Invitational, followed by a tied for 73rd finish at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. This was a welcome sign for Rai as he gained strokes across the board except off the tee. Rai gained over 0.50 strokes on approach and 0.39 strokes putting last week. He'll need to continue to flash his strong approach play to have a chance to compete this week. Over the past 12 months, Rai ranks in the 99th percentile in greens in regulation percentage on approach shots from 150-200 yards in the fairway. This is important because at last year's Cognizant Classic over 40% of approach shots came from this distance.
--Ian Christenson - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
February 23, 2026
Shane Lowry finished tied for 24th at last week's The Genesis Invitational, and this was followed by a tied for eighth finish at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Lowry has three top-25 finishes in four starts so far this season. Lowry has played well at the Cognizant Classic, finishing tied for 11th in 2025 and tied for fourth in 2024. Over the past 12 months, Lowry ranks in the 93rd percentile in greens in regulation percentage on approach shots from 150-200 yards in the fairway. This is worth mentioning because at last year's Cognizant Classic over 40% of approach shots came from this distance.
--Ian Christenson - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
February 23, 2026
Max Homa finished tied for 37th at last week's The Genesis Invitational and is set to play in this week's Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches. This will mark Homa's first appearance at the Cognizant Classic. Homa has started strongly this season but has yet to crack a top-25 finish. Over the past 12 months, Homa ranks in the 29th percentile in greens in regulation percentage on approach shots from 150-200 yards in the fairway. This is important because at last year's Cognizant Classic over 40% of approach shots came from this distance.
--Ian Christenson - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
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