We had a massively successful slate at the Mexico Open last week. Champion Jake Knapp and runner-up Sami Välimäki were two of the highest-volume players in the pool and vaulted lineups into the very top of the contests where they were in the same build. I’ll take a quick bow and dive right into grind mode. It’s no time to get cocky, but rather lock into the beginning of the Florida Swing.
For nearly a half century, The Honda Classic posed a real challenge to the world’s best golfers who descended upon PGA National each March. Trouble was it was squeezed in between a hellacious stretch of top events and was often skipped by the world’s best. No sooner did Honda pull its title sponsorship did the PGA Tour remedy the scheduling conflict by moving the Cognizant Classic up a couple of weeks earlier.
PGA DFS: The Cognizant Classic (2024)
(Salary Prices Courtesy of DraftKings)
Oh golf gods, grant my players the accuracy they need to stay in play and the grit to stand firm when they inevitably stray on a wayward path. PGA National is one of the toughest tests in golf. Water is everywhere. The line between risk and reward is as blurry as beer goggles. The Bear Trap is imposing enough, but big numbers lurk around every corner of this Jack Nicklaus design.
Key metrics are weighted heaviest on accuracy from tee to green, with emphasis on scrambling and bogey avoidance for when things will inevitably go awry. This event is a real grind, where saving par gains strokes on the field more often than not.
It is usually challenging enough to build lineups, but the new salary price ranges on DraftKings make leverage all the more important. No need to run out there heavily exposed to a chalky favorite, only for a less-than-perfect weekend to crush any chance of winning. Play the best plays, they say. What if those have never been less obvious? The Cognizant Classic beckons for a wider net. What is normally a 20 to 25-player pool is expanded to 33 this week. Let’s push for the big prizes, shall we?
High-Priced ($9,000 & Above)
- Chalk Plays: Russell Henley, Eric Cole, Chris Kirk, Shane Lowry
- Chalk Fades: Rory McIlroy, Ben An, Daniel Berger, Keith Mitchell
- Leverage Plays: Matthew Fitzpatrick, Tom Kim, Sungjae Im
Mid-Priced ($7,600 to $8,900)
- Chalk Plays: Matthieu Pavon, Sepp Straka, Adam Svensson
- Chalk Fades: Stephan Jaeger, Alex Noren, Tom Hoge, Christiaan Bezuidenhout
- Leverage Plays: Denny McCarthy, Rasmus Hojgaard, Jake Knapp, Thorbjorn Olesen, Brendan Todd
Value-Priced ($7,500 & Below)
- Chalk Plays: Lucas Glover, Maverick McNealy, Akshay Bhatia
- Chalk Fades: Mark Hubbard, Billy Horschel, Doug Ghim, Carson Young
- Leverage Plays: Adam Schenk, Justin Suh, Austin Eckroat, Gary Woodland, Alexander Bjork, Alex Smalley, Bud Cauley
