The Zurich Classic is the PGA TOUR’s only team-based event of the season. This tournament is played at TPC Louisiana (par 72, 7,425 yards, POA Trivialis greens), which has been the home of the Zurich Classic since 2005. The Zurich Classic became a team event in 2017 but was a standard stroke-play tournament before this. Ben Griffin and Andrew Novak (-28) are the defending champions after winning by a shot a year ago. There will be 74 two-man teams competing, where the top 33 and ties will be cut after the first two rounds this week. The first and third rounds will be best ball format, and the second and fourth rounds will be alternate shot.
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 $10,000 Range
Shane Lowry/Brooks Koepka ($10,000)
Lowry and Koepka have never competed as a team before, but these two previous major champions should gel well and contend this week. At the team-based Zurich Classic, Lowry has made 4-of-5 cuts, including three top-15 finishes, most notably with a win with Rory McIlroy as his partner two years ago. Meanwhile, Koepka has made 2 of 3 cuts at the Zurich Classic, with his best being a T5 in 2017 with his brother, Chase, as his teammate. As for current form, Lowry and Koepka both rank inside the top 13 in Total Strokes Gained when we compare this field’s last 24 rounds. Koepka ranks second in Strokes Gained: Approach this season, and he has finished inside the top-15 in four of his last five starts. Lowry, conversely, ranks 31st in Strokes Gained: Putting, so pairing his flat stick with Koepka’s ball striking should be a recipe for success.
DraftKings $9,000 Range
Ben Griffin/Andrew Novak ($9,700)
Ben Griffin has finished inside the top 35 at three straight tournaments, and Andrew Novak has finished T16 or better in two of his last three starts. At the RBC Heritage last week, Novak carded two 6-under 65s, and he ranked third among the star-studded field in Strokes Gained: Approach. If Novak can maintain the elite ball striking, he and Griffin should have a strong title defense this week.
Aaron Rai/Sahith Theegala ($9,200)
Aaron Rai has never finished worse than T23 in his four starts at the Zurich Classic, including a T18 with Sahith Theegala as his partner a year ago. Rai has made three of his last five cuts, with two top-30 finishes entering this week, while Theegala is fresh off a T25 finish at the RBC Heritage last week, marking his fourth top-25 finish in his last six starts. Theegala ranks seventh in Total Strokes Gained when we compare this field’s last 24 rounds, and he and Rai should best their T18 finish from a year ago in their second attempt as a team this week.
Now available: our PGA DFS SimLabs Lineup Generator that creates advanced DFS lineups using the power of simulation.
DraftKings $8,000 Range
Wyndham Clark/Taylor Moore ($8,900)
After missing the cut at last year’s Zurich Classic, Wyndham Clark and Taylor Moore should redeem themselves with a quality finish this week. Albeit with different teammates, Moore has two top-five finishes, and Clark has two top-10 finishes at the Zurich Classic. Moore has been solid, making six of his last seven cuts, but Clark’s form is the main selling point here. The former U.S. Open champion has finished T21 at the Masters and T16 at the RBC Heritage in his last two starts. At Harbour Town last week, Clark shot under par in all four of his rounds, and he finished fourth in Strokes Gained: Putting.
Kevin Yu/Tom Kim ($8,000)
Kevin Yu and Tom Kim both have a top-30 finish under their belt at the Zurich Classic, and they should perform well in their first attempt together this week. Kim is coming off a missed cut at the Valero Texas Open, but he had made 11 straight cuts prior to this, with five top-40 finishes during this stretch, and he ranks 10th in Strokes Gained: Approach when we compare this field’s last 24 rounds. Yu has finished T30, MC, and T7 in his last three starts. That final finish came at the Valero Texas Open, and Yu gained strokes in every major category at TPC San Antonio that week.
Updated on 4/21/26
DraftKings $7,000 Range
David Lipsky/Rico Hoey ($7,600)
David Lipsky has been excellent at the Zurich Classic, finishing T4, T13, T23, and T4 at the team event. This will be his first time playing with Rico Hoey, who has missed the cut in both his attempts at the Zurich Classic, but both these players are in solid form, and Lipsky’s prowess at TPC Louisiana should guide this squad to a strong finish. Lipsky has made five of his last seven cuts, with two top-20 finishes, and Hoey has made four cuts in a row, with two top-30 finishes. In each of his last three starts, Hoey has gained strokes on approach.
William Mouw/Takumi Kanaya ($7,200)
While with different partners, William Mouw and Takumi Kanaya both finished T18 in their Zurich Classic debuts last season. The two will now compete together and have solid upside as a pairing. Kanaya has only missed one cut in his last seven starts, and Mouw has made four of his last five cuts. The 25-year-old gained strokes on approach in all four of these made cuts, and two of these finishes were top-25 results.
Billy Horschel/Tom Hoge ($7,100)
Billy Horschel and Tom Hoge both have played well at the Zurich Classic in the past, and they will join forces for the first time this week. Horschel won the 2013 Zurich Classic as an individual, and he won the 2018 Zurich Classic with Scott Piercy as his teammate. Horschel has made 5 of 7 cuts at the Zurich Classic since it became a team event, and all five of these finishes have been top-15 results. Hoge has made 5 of 8 cuts at the team-based Zurich Classic, and three of these finishes have come inside the top 25. Horschel and Hoge have made eight and six cuts this season, respectively, and they are a standout value at this low salary.
DraftKings $6,000 and Below Range
Danny Walker/Jimmy Stanger ($6,600)
Danny Walker and Jimmy Stanger are viable for cash games at this low price tag. Both players made their Zurich Classic debuts last season, and while Stanger missed the cut, Walker finished T12 with Ryan Gerard as his partner. Walker returns to TPC Louisiana this week riding a six-made-cut streak, while Stanger looks primed for a successful second attempt at the Zurich Classic, making four of his last five cuts, with three top-35 finishes during this time.
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Pictured: Ben Griffin and Andrew Novak
Photo credit: Imagn
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