For the first of two straight events in Texas, the PGA TOUR is hosting the Texas Children’s Houston Open at Memorial Park (par 70, 7,475 yards, Poa trivialis greens) in Houston. This will be the sixth consecutive Houston Open played at Memorial Park. Min Woo Lee (-20) is the defending champion of the Texas Children’s Houston Open. There will be 133 golfers competing this week, and the top 65 and ties will be cut after the first two rounds.
The PGA DFS Breakdown offers data-driven analysis for each week’s slate, using the FantasyLabs Tools and metrics to highlight notable golfers.
I’ll be highlighting the best cash game/single-entry plays on the DraftKings main slate, but these players are often great options in any contest.
My analysis will frequently reference Strokes Gained, a set of proprietary metrics generated by the PGA TOUR using millions of data points to calculate how many shots, on average, it takes a player to get the ball in the hole from every distance and situation.
Strokes Gained is now available in the FantasyLabs PGA Models.
There are a variety of Strokes Gained-related metrics, but the six main categories you need to know include:
- Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee (SG: Off-the-Tee)
- Strokes Gained: Approach (SG: Approach)
- Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green (SG: Around-the-Green)
- Strokes Gained: Putting (SG: Putting)
- Strokes Gained: Ball-Striking (SG: Ball-Striking), which is SG: Off-the-Tee + SG: Approach
- Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green (SG: Tee-to-Green), which is SG: Ball-Striking + SG: Around-the-Green
Don’t forget to check out two key metrics in our models — Perfect% and SimLeverage. You can find an explainer on those metrics here.
The Cliffs Notes version is that you can use SimLeverage to quickly find leverage plays in tournaments, while Perfect% is great for finding the best price-considered plays for cash games.
And don’t forget to utilize our various PGA DFS tools like our Lineup Optimizer, Lineup Builder, PGA Correlation Dashboard, and our Trends tool.
The following players listed are based on DraftKings scoring and pricing.
PGA DFS Cash Game Thoughts
DraftKings $9,000 Range
Min Woo Lee ($9,800)
As usual, Scottie Scheffler is the clear favorite this week. However, with an astronomical price of $14,800 and back-to-back finishes outside the top 20, opting to fade Scheffler in cash games makes sense. Instead, I prefer building more balanced lineups that start with the defending champion, Lee. The 27-year-old carded a 7-under 63 in the second round of his victory at Memorial Park last season, and he enters this week in great form to defend his title, having produced eight top 15 finishes in his last 13 starts worldwide. Lee finished runner-up at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am last month and T6 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational earlier this month—both of which were Signature Events. Lee ranks 10th in Total Strokes Gained this season, and his driving has been elite, ranking top 15 in both Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee and driving distance. With thin rough and minimal hazards off the tee, Memorial Park is a driver-heavy course where three of the last five winners have finished the event in the top 16 in driving distance.
Editor’s note: Scheffler was a WD after this was written.
Chris Gotterup ($9,800)
Gotterup is a big hitter who has finished T57 and T18 in his two starts at Memorial Park. That second finish came last season; since then, Gotterup has won three times and moved up 218 spots in the world golf rankings to No. 10. Two of those wins have come this season, making Gotterup the only player to win multiple events in 2026. The Rutgers product has made 6 of 7 cuts with four top-20 finishes and ranks top-10 in both Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green and driving distance this season.
Brooks Koepka ($9,600)
After missing the cut at the Phoenix Open, Brooks Koepka has been rock solid, finishing T9, T13, and T18 in his last three starts. The five-time major champion’s irons have been magnificent, leading the PGA TOUR in Strokes Gained: Approach. Koepka’s putter has also been coming around, as he has gained strokes on the greens in two of his last three starts. With the majors approaching, Koepka’s game is trending up at the right time, and he should produce another high finish this week. Koepka missed the cut at Memorial Park in 2021, but he finished T5 at the track the year prior, including back-to-back 5-under 65s to finish the week.
Now available: our PGA DFS SimLabs Lineup Generator that creates advanced DFS lineups using the power of simulation.
DraftKings $8,000 Range
Michael Thorbjorsen ($8,600)
Michael Thorbjorsen finished a solid T39 in his debut at Memorial Park last season, but he should tally a much better finish this week. Thorbjorsen sits 142 spots higher in the world golf rankings this time around. The 24-year-old has only missed two cuts in his last 14 starts, producing six top-25 finishes over this time. Thorbjorsen finished T22 at THE PLAYERS Championship his last time out; at TPC Sawgrass, he gained strokes across the board and posted a 7-under 65 in the second round.
Ryan Gerard ($8,400)
This is a very reasonable price for Ryan Gerard. The 26-year-old has only missed one cut in his last nine starts worldwide, and he began this stretch with three straight runner-up finishes. Gerard has cooled off since, but he has still finished inside the top 30 in three of his last four starts. Gerard ranks sixth in Strokes Gained: Approach this season and finished ninth in his first start at Memorial Park last season when he was just the No. 173 ranked player in the world. Now, Gerard returns to Houston sitting at No. 27 in the rankings.
Updated on 3/24/26
DraftKings $7,000 Range
Stephen Jaeger ($7,800)
Stephen Jaeger has been excellent at Memorial Park, finishing T35, T9, first, and T11 in his four starts at the venue. Jaeger ranks fourth in Total Strokes Gained per round at Memorial Park among the players in this field who have competed here more than once. The veteran returns to Memorial Park this week having made five of his last six cuts, including a T7 at the Valspar Championship last week. Jaeger closed that event with a 5-under 66 and gained strokes in every major category at the Copperhead Course. Jaeger ranks first in par-3 performance this season, which bodes well for Memorial Park. This is a rare par 70 that features five par 3s, and two of the last four winners at Memorial Park have led their fields in par-3 efficiency, including Jaeger during his win here in 2024.
Sungjae Im ($7,500)
Sungjae Im blowing his two-shot lead at the Valspar Championship was unfortunate, but he still finished T4, which was a very encouraging sign as Im had missed back-to-back cuts leading up to this. Im opened that event with a 7-under 64 and ranked sixth in Strokes Gained: Putting for the week. Im is a two-time winner on the PGA TOUR and a former top-20 ranked player in the world. This salary is far too low for Im coming off a strong performance, especially with Memorial Park up next. The 27-year-old is 3-for-3 in made cuts at this par 70, including a T19 in 2022.
Ryan Fox ($7,400)
Ryan Fox should be ready to go for the Houston Open after withdrawing from THE PLAYERS Championship two weeks ago due to kidney stones, and he is a great bargain at only $7,400. Fox finished T78 in his debut at Memorial Park in 2024 but finished T15 at the track last year. That week, Fox gained strokes across the board and carded a pair of 5-under 65s. Fox has made 12 straight cuts worldwide and has finished inside the top 25 at four consecutive tournaments. Just like Jaeger, Fox is a par-3 specialist who ranks sixth in par-3 performance this season.
Gary Woodland ($7,400)
Gary Woodland came alive at the Valspar Championship last week, finishing T14 while gaining strokes in every major category except around the greens. The former U.S. Open champion’s driver has been his best club this season, leading the PGA TOUR in driving distance and ranking fourth in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee. These are great signs for the lengthy Memorial Park, a venue where Woodland has flourished. In his last three starts at Memorial Park, Woodland has finished T9, T21, and runner-up. That near win came last season, and Woodland concluded the event with a course-record 8-under 62. At Memorial Park, Woodland has shot under par in 10 of his 14 rounds.
DraftKings $6,000 and Below Range
S.H. Kim ($6,900)
S.H. Kim has finished T47 and T45 in his two starts at Memorial Park and is on the heels of a T7 at the Valspar Championship. Kim gained strokes on approach and with his putter at the Copperhead Course, and he shot under par in each of his final three rounds of the event. Kim has only missed two cuts in his last nine starts, with four top-20 finishes during this span.
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Pictured: Min Woo Lee
Photo credit: Imagn
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