March 24, 2026
Kurt Kitayama missed the cut at THE PLAYERS Championship. The American golfer took the following week off to focus on the Houston Open. This is a course that sets up well as Kitayama has played well in 2026. He has one runner-up and three Top 25 results. Kitayama drives the ball pretty well (307.8 yards - 47th). His accuracy rate is 60.86% which ranks 59th. Putting has been a little more hit and miss at 29.16 putts per round (120th). Do not look at THE PLAYERS where Kitayama lost 2.57 strokes. While the golfer may be a fade for betting, he could be a reasonable DFS choice this week.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: PGATour.com
March 24, 2026
Jake Knapp had five straight top-25 results to start 2026. The American golfer missed the cut at The Players Championship but is poised to rebound at the Memorial Park Golf Course in Houston. This course rewards long drives and scoring well on par-fives. Knapp ranks eighth in driving distance at 317 yards and second in strokes gained to putting at 1.291. He carries a one-putt percentage of 45.71%, which also ranks eighth. From a DFS and betting standpoint, Knapp becomes a really good bet, especially for first-round lead wagers. One final reason why is his scoring average of 68.23, which leads the entire PGA Tour.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: PGATour.com
March 24, 2026
Tony Finau finished tied for 18th at last week's Valspar Championship, and that was followed by a tied for 70th finish at the PLAYERS Championship. Finau will now turn his focus to preparing for this week's Texas Children's Houston Open held at Memorial Park Golf Course in Houston, Texas. Finau has rebounded nicely from his disappointing 2025 season. He has three top-25 finishes in eight starts this season, but has also missed the cut three times. Over the past 12 months, Finau ranks in the 74th percentile in proximity to the hole on approach shots from 150-200 yards in the fairway. This is worth pointing out because at last year's Texas Children's Houston Open over 36% of approach shots came from this distance.
--Ian Christenson - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
March 24, 2026
Scottie Scheffler finished tied for 22nd at the PLAYERS Championship two weeks ago, following a tied for 24th finish at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Scheffler will now turn his focus to preparing for this week's Texas Children's Houston Open held at Memorial Park Golf Course in Houston, Texas. Scheffler has secured six straight top-25 finishes in six starts this season. He finished tied for second at last year's Texas Children's Houston Open. Over the past 12 months, Scheffler ranks in the 98th percentile in proximity to the hole on approach shots from 150-200 yards in the fairway. This is important because at last year's Texas Children's Houston Open over 36% of approach shots came from this distance.
--Ian Christenson - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
March 24, 2026
After back-to-back missed cuts in his two prior events, Sam Burns bounced back in a big way at THE PLAYERS, finishing T13. He looks to build on that performance at the Texas Children's Houston Open, where he has recorded two T7 finishes, a missed cut, and a withdrawal in four appearances. Success here does not require precision off the tee, which benefits Burns, who ranks 116th in driving accuracy and 26th in distance. His biggest issue this season has been ball striking, sitting 105th on approach (-0.138 strokes per round) and 102nd tee to green (-0.260). Burns' putter had not been up to his usual standard to start the year, but gaining over 7.6 strokes with the flat stick at TPC Sawgrass catapulted him into 14th on Tour. This type of course, where power is rewarded over accuracy and contenders are often separated by elite putting, sets up well for him. He can be confidently started at $9,700 on DraftKings.
--Dakota Legg - RotoBallerSource: PGA Tour
March 23, 2026
It was an off week for Sahith Theegala at Innisbrook, and it seemed to negate everything we thought about where his game was after a handful of inspiring events. The 28-year-old lost over three strokes on approach, and over two strokes around the greens and putting to miss the cut by a healthy margin. It feels like a fluke with so many good weeks already under his belt. There has to be some burnout lingering, given he's only taken one week off this entire season, because the talent for big-time golf is certainly there. He also ranked inside the top-35 for the season in the three metrics before last week. Theegala is elite from 150 yards and out, which is what he'll see all week long. Putting has been a strength through most of his starts, also. As frustrating as it was for those who committed to him at Valspar, jumping ship now is ill-advised.
--Todd McGillSource: PGA Tour
March 23, 2026
It has been a tougher road in 2026 than it was a year ago at this point in the year for Stephan Jaeger, but he'll have another chance or two at getting things in shape before the year's first major. This week in Houston has been a beloved spot for the 36-year-old, winning here in 2024 along with T9 and T11 finishes sandwiched on either side. The bomb-and-gouge strategy has been successful for him. Superior length off the tee and the ability to consistently make putts will work this week. The German is also coming off a T7 last week at Innisbrook, averaging 0.59 strokes gained on approach and 0.44 putting. It's time to jump on the Jaeger train before everyone tries to, if it isn't too late already.
--Todd McGillSource: Data Golf
March 23, 2026
It was a bit surprising to see Adam Scott struggle at TPC Sawgrass after how he's played to start the year. He was the third-best player on tour in strokes gained off the tee through his first four events, and has since fallen to 50th (0.272) through last week. The Australian has still been dialed with his iron play, ranking second in all of professional golf in strokes gained in approach shots from 150-200. This will come into play a ton at Memorial Park this week, as 36.5% of predicted approach shots will come from this area. Scott has played in this event numerous times, but he hasn't been to this particular venue during its spring timing. The former Masters champion should be able to do enough from tee to green to give him a chance, even with the driving slump. It will be the ever-streaky performance on and around the greens that will determine how useful he is for fantasy purposes, but the upside is there.
--Todd McGillSource: PGA Tour
March 23, 2026
It has been a while since Sungjae Im was in a position to capture a win on the PGA Tour. He finally found another opportunity last week at Innisbrook, after shooting rounds of 64-69-69 over the first three days to be the outright leader going into Sunday. However, an all-too-familiar day transpired for the 27-year-old in the final round, as he bogeyed four of his opening nine holes to take himself out of any real contention down the stretch. It was still a successful week in the grand scheme of things for the South Korean, having posted his best finish in over a year. He'll tee it up in the Lone Star State this week for the Texas Children's Houston Open. It's his fourth appearance in this event, with a T19 in 2022, when this event was held in the fall. After showing some signs of life, Im may start to become one of the elite DFS plays again. However, this isn't the most intriguing place for him to shine, given the lack of length and inability to make putts at times.
--Todd McGillSource: Data Golf
March 23, 2026
With finishes of T27 and T55 in his last four events, Nicolai Hojgaard has undeniably cooled off from the hot run he had put together to begin the season. It is also back-to-back weeks of incredibly tough venues. Memorial Park isn't a piece of cake by any stretch, but it lacks the quirkiness to get the ball in play that they had. Teeing it high and letting it fly is the strategy of choice for players like this 25-year-old. His 14th-ranked driving distance (315.2) should give him a big advantage over the field. He's also one of the best iron players from more than 150 yards. If the hot putter (averaging 0.506) finds its way to Houston, Hojgaard should be in line for a solid bounce-back performance.
--Todd McGillSource: PGA Tour
March 23, 2026
Things have cooled off for Chris Gotterup since his two wins in his first three starts of this season, as his best finish since is a T18 at the API. Things have fallen off across the board in strokes gained metrics since the win in Phoenix. This is most notable in driving accuracy, where he only hit 21 of 56 fairways in his latest start at The Players a few weeks ago. Memorial Park is more distance-heavy than anything relating to accuracy, and playing shots out of the rough isn't as penalizing as what we've seen the last few weeks. The main concern is getting his putter to cooperate for four days. His strength from tee to green is plenty of reason to take on the other lingering issues.
--Todd McGillSource: Data Golf
March 23, 2026
It wasn't surprising to see Min Woo Lee have success at Memorial Park in his debut appearance last season, but going on to win was unexpected. However, looking at what is needed around this layout really fits everything that makes the Australian a great player. He's one of the longest players on the PGA Tour, and tends to putt extremely well. His route to victory saw him pick up over eight strokes putting over the course of these four days last year. Both are in fine form heading into Thursday, but the improved accuracy he's shown throughout the bag in 2026 keeps the thought of going back-to-back thriving. Play him with confidence this week.
--Todd McGillSource: Data Golf
March 18, 2026
Akshay Bhatia has withdrawn from the upcoming Valspar Championship. No official reason has been given at this time. The rising star had been one of the hottest players on the PGA Tour, already making seven starts in 2026, highlighted by a recent win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, and a T13 result at last week's PLAYERS Championship. His absence from the Valspar field is notable, especially for DFS players and golf bettors, as Bhatia was projected to be one of the top contenders at the Copperhead Course.
--Joe Nicely - RotoBallerSource: PGA Tour Communications
March 18, 2026
After a slow start to the year, J.J. Spaun finally posted his first top-25 result of the season at The Players, finishing T24. He looks to carry that momentum into the Valspar Championship, where he has played four times, missing the cut in three of those appearances. Success at Innisbrook typically hinges on accuracy over raw power, along with strong approach play and putting. Spaun ranks 96th in total strokes gained (-0.236 per round), 58th on approach (+0.246), and 34th in driving accuracy. He also sits in the 88th percentile in proximity from 150-200 yards, a range that accounted for 41.2% of approach shots here last year. TPC Sawgrass was the first event where he gained strokes with the putter (+1.8), as he still sits 151st overall in putting. Spaun may have finally broken free from what held him back earlier in the season, and despite poor course history, he presents as a decent (though likely popular) play at $8,700 on DraftKings.
--Dakota Legg - RotoBallerSource: PGA Tour
March 18, 2026
Aaron Rai missed his first cut of the year at THE PLAYERS, though he had recorded T28 and T23 finishes in his two prior events. He looks to get back on track at the Valspar Championship, where he missed the cut in his only start here in 2024. Success at Innisbrook typically hinges on accuracy over raw power, along with strong approach play and putting. Rai sits 105th in total strokes gained (-0.421 per round), 73rd on approach (+0.100), and 12th in driving accuracy. He hasn't been as strong with the flat stick, losing strokes putting in three of five events, including over 6.4 strokes at Pebble, and sits 90th on tour. While he has not shown the elite ball-striking that we saw from him last year, the weaker field at the Valspar presents a bounce-back opportunity. At $7,900 on DraftKings, Rai offers a solid floor with his accuracy and iron play, though upside remains limited until he starts rolling the rock more consistently.
--Dakota Legg - RotoBallerSource: PGA Tour
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