DFS Golf: 10 Major Contenders and 5 Value Picks for The Open Championship

It’s a bittersweet week this week as it’s already the last major of the year, so golf fans will be surely soaking this up before waiting until April 2020 when The Masters blows back around. The past few weeks have seen some pretty weak fields on the PGA Tour, so this week is a real treat. It’s extra exciting this week because it’s a sold-out venue for the first time in the Open’s long history, it’s the 148th edition of the historic tournament, and it’s at a course that few players have played competitively in their careers. The Open Championship is being played at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland, and most of the world’s best players are of course in the field to compete.

The course is 7,344 yards in length, is a par 71, and has 62 bunkers that are sure to eat up lots of golf balls this week. Be sure to pay attention to how the wind is blowing because some players will have weather advantages over others – this is normally the case on any given week, but especially for this particular event. The tournament will have 156 players in it this year as normal and the top 70 plus ties will get to play Saturday and Sunday with no MDF coming into effect. The key stats to examine this week are Strokes Gained: Ball Striking, Par 4s Gained, Strokes Gained: Short Game, and Par 5s Gained.

Let’s get to the good stuff, you can find my selections below for The Open Championship – my 10 favorite contenders and 5 value picks (in no particular order), and I include player salaries for both DraftKings and FanDuel as well.

10 Contending Players To Get In Your Lineups

Rory McIlroy (Salaries: DraftKings – $11,600, FanDuel – $12,000) – Ireland’s own will have all eyes on him this week, not just because he’s a native to the country but also because he holds the course record here with a 61 that remarkably came when he was just 16 years old! Since 2014 he has a 1st, 2nd, 4th, and a 5th in four starts so his game and motivation is clearly high when it comes to The Open Championship. Has two wins this season, 10 top 10’s, and will be hungry to win his first major in 5 years.

Brooks Koepka (Salaries: DraftKings – $11,400, FanDuel – $12,200) – Since his victory at the PGA Championship, he has just one top 10 since but he has only played in four events since and the top 10 was a 2nd. His majors’ record this year is absolutely ridiculous – a win, 2nd, and 2nd. His game shines the brightest during majors and he will surely be ready to put in another spectacular finish again this week. His caddie is a native of the area and learned the game at Royal Portrush so that’s an added benefit for Koepka to take advantage of as well. Has two top 10’s in his previous four starts at this event.

Adam Scott (Salaries: DraftKings – $8,800, FanDuel – $10,500) – Really like Scott’s pricing this week as he has a 7th, 2nd, and an 8th in his last three starts and is a big contending player when it comes to majors. He has one major win to his name which came at the 2013 Masters, had an Open Championship runner up finish in 2012, and is in fine form to win this week.

Matt Kuchar (Salaries: DraftKings – $8,700, FanDuel – $10,000) – Has had an incredible career but has yet to win a major tournament. Earned two wins this season already, has 7 top 10’s, and his worst finish in a major this year is 16th. Was 9th last year at The Open Championship, runner up in 2017, and his record overall at this event is spectacular – bet the current FedEx Cup leader with confidence.

Jon Rahm (Salaries: DraftKings – $10,600, FanDuel – $11,300) – Is the hottest player in the world right now with a win, 2nd, and 3rd in his past three starts after missing back to back cut lines. In three Open Championship starts his best finish is a 44th but is poised to better that by a landslide this week. He won in Ireland two weeks ago at the Irish Open, and could very well win there again this week.

Patrick Cantlay (Salaries: DraftKings – $9,000, FanDuel – $10,800) – You can’t count this elite golfer out this week as he has a 3rd, 9th, and a 21st in the three previous majors this year, and has all of the talent in the world to win a major championship. Won at the Memorial Tournament just three starts ago, and he might only need to wait a few more days to add his second win of the season to his resume and the biggest of his career. 9 top 10’s in just 15 starts this season, and in his only Open Championship start last year he locked up a 12th place finish.

Henrik Stenson (Salaries: DraftKings – $8,400, FanDuel – $10,100) – Mister three wood won the 2016 edition of The Open Championship and is firing on all cylinders right now with a 4th, 9th, and 8th over his last three starts with the 4th coming just last week at the Scottish Open in a star-studded field. Started his season off slowly but his game is in perfect shape right now to win another major.

Hideki Matsuyama (Salaries: DraftKings – $8,500, FanDuel – $10,300) – Is a perfect 18 for 18 this season and was 7th in his most recent start at the 3M Open – mind you the field was weak for that event. Has a 16th, 21st, and 32nd in the other three majors this year, and his solid tee to green game should play well in Northern Ireland as he tries to nail down his first major win.

Xander Schauffele (Salaries: DraftKings – $9,500, FanDuel – $11,000) – Really steps up his game in majors with a 3rd, 2nd, and a 16th this year, and his last start was at the U.S. Open where he was 3rd. Earned a runner up finish last year at The Open Championship, and was 20th in 2017 at the overseas major in his only two appearances. Has two wins this season and is looking for the hat trick on Sunday.

Webb Simpson (Salaries: DraftKings – $7,600, FanDuel – $9,400) – 2012’s U.S. Open winner has had a solid season with a 5th at The Masters and had a runner up finish last month at the Canadian Open – both represent half of his 4 top 10’s this season for Simpson. His worst major finish this year is a 29th at the PGA Championship and was 12th last year at The Open Championship. If you see a drunk man near him making bird sounds on Sunday evening then there’s a good chance that he won.

5 Value Pick Players That Support the Contenders In Lineups

Mike Lorenzo-Vera (Salaries: DraftKings – $7,000, FanDuel – $8,300) – Very underpriced in my opinion for what he has brought to the table this season with three top 9’s in his last five starts and during that stretch his worst finish is 28th which came last week at the Scottish Open. Plays mostly on the Euro Tour but did have a 16th at the PGA Championship in his only PGA Tour start this season.

Rafa Cabrera Bello (Salaries: DraftKings – $7,500, FanDuel – $9,300) – His last trio of finishes on the Euro Tour have warranted a 9th, 4th, and 3rd. Has only missed two cuts in 21 starts this season, and was 4th two years ago at The Open Championship.

Billy Horschel (Salaries: DraftKings – $6,900, FanDuel – $8,200) – Only one missed cut in 19 starts this season, and was 9th at the Memorial Tournament not too long ago. The former FedEx Cup champion doesn’t have a great track record at Open Championship events, but something tells me that he should have a decent showing this year.

Emiliano Grillo (Salaries: DraftKings – $7,100, FanDuel – $8,800) – Only one blemish on his tournament record this season with a single missed cut at The Honda Classic. Only has 2 top 10’s this season but just three starts ago he had a 9th at the Memorial Tournament which had a solid field like usual. Was 12th at The Open Championship in 2016.

Bernd Wiesberger (Salaries: DraftKings – $7,100, FanDuel – $9,600) – Won the Scottish Open last week and won in May at the Made In Denmark tournament. Before his win last week he had a runner up finish at the Irish Open just two weeks ago, and three starts ago he had a 16th at the BMW International Open. Has made 8 cuts in a row.

Open up your mind and build some superb lineups in the year’s last major tournament. Good luck and may your player’s scores be low and your DFS winnings be high!