The American Express: Top PGA DFS Picks, Values, and Sleepers for Large-Field GPPs on DraftKings

After welcoming in the new season in Hawaii, the PGA TOUR is ready to get the West Coast swing rolling with this week’s edition of The American Express. With an extremely deep field and some big names at the top, it should be a great week of fantasy golf, so let’s dive into a few of the top options for tournament lineups, according to the FantasyLabs models

This week’s event is able to host such a deep field due to its unique structure with three courses utilized for the first three rounds. After playing one round on each course, the cut happens after Round 3, and the top 65 (and ties) will play the final round at the Pete Dye Stadium Course at PGA West. For more info on the courses, the field, and what to look for from a statistical perspective this week, check out this First Look from RotoGrinders.

Especially in large-field GPP tournaments, you’ll want to make sure to target players who have lower ownership projections than their potential performance. Finding high-leverage plays is critical for GPP success, so the picks here go against the grain, looking for under-owned options.

Usually, I rely heavily on the Strokes Gained Model in FantasyLabs, which is very predictive of results. I also tend to lean toward players who excel in Strokes Gained: Approach, which is more sustainable week to week than a hot putter.

Since these are GPP picks, we can accept more risk in exchange for getting a higher ceiling. High-risk, high-reward options with low ownership create the “boom-or-bust” style lineups that often lead to large-field success. To find guidance for all contest types, check out our full Daily Fantasy Golf coverage each week.

No matter what type of format you prefer, be sure to use the FantasyLabs PGA Models to help you make the best choices. These models use stats and simulations to highlight different players’ strengths and weaknesses. A few critical new stats for GPP play are Perfect% and SimLeverage, which are further explained here.

As you dig into the numbers, you can enjoy the many tools FantasyLabs offers, including the Lineup Optimizer, which effortlessly creates up to 300 lineups. Alternatively, you can use the Lineup Builder if you prefer a more hands-on approach.

Check out my top picks in each price range listed below.

Editor’s note: SimLeverage and Perfect% numbers may change after this piece is published. Be sure to check the PGA Models for any updates to the sims.

High-Priced PGA DFS Picks

Ben Griffin $10,200

Griffin has the second-highest median, ceiling and floor projections in our model this week, behind only Scheffler’s. Since he’s $4,000 more affordable than Scottie, he is much easier to build around. He has the second-highest Perfect% as well, just 3% behind Scheffler. Since Griffin’s ownership projection is about 12% behind Scheffler’s, he brings the second-highest SimLeverage in the field. For the second straight week, Griffin is a nice pivot off the most expensive option since his upside is only a little lower, and his ownership is so reduced.

Griffin picked up where he left off after a breakthrough 2025, finishing T19 at the Sony Open in Hawaii. He had two very strong rounds and two rounds over par, but if he can put four rounds together this week, he should be back near the top of the leaderboard.

Last year, he capped his 2025 season with a win at the World Wide Technology Championship in November, ending the year with a dozen top-10 finishes in his 30 events, including seven finishes in the top five and three victories. His first top-10 finish of 2025 came at The American Express, where he fired four rounds under 70 to finish T7.

Griffin has made the cut in each of the last three years at this event with improving finishes each season progressing from T32 to T9 to last year’s T7.

Griffin is second in this strong field in Total Strokes Gained per round over the last 12 months, while ranking No. 13 in Strokes Gained: Approach and No. 9 in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green.

His excellent form and course history make him a great pivot play if you pass on Scheffler this week, and he’s a strong place to start a contrarian GPP lineup.

Robert MacIntyre $9,400

Bobby Mac is in my picks for a second straight week since he continues to bring elite SimLeverage. He has the fourth-highest SimLeverage in the field and the second-highest of the players, over $8,000, behind only Griffin.

Last week in Hawaii, he was a great GPP option, ending up fourth after a 67-63 finish to the weekend. He is one of three golfers who lead the field by matching eight Pro Trends, and he will look to stay hot in the ealry part of 2026.

The 29-year-old from Scotland didn’t win on the PGA TOUR in 2025 but had six top-10 finishes in 23 tournaments, highlighted by runner-up finishes at the U.S. Open and the BMW Championship. He did win in Scotland at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and added two more top-10 finishes to wrap up the year on the DP World Tour.

MacIntyre has the fifth-highest ceiling projection and the seventh-highest Perfect%, but he’s barely in the top 10 in ownership projections. He has shown he can thrive in bad weather, but he also has the kind of well-balanced game that gives him the ability to go low in ideal scoring conditions, like those expected this week.

Now available: our PGA DFS SimLabs Lineup Generator that creates advanced DFS lineups using the power of simulation.

Mid-Priced PGA DFS Picks

Check out my top picks in each price range listed below.

Editor’s note: SimLeverage and Perfect% numbers may change after this piece is published. Be sure to check the PGA Models for any updates to the sims.