The PGA TOUR has reached the first major of the season, and it’s also the biggest tournament of the year in many ways. Augusta National Golf Club is the most well-known course in the world and has so many iconic memories attached to it, and as the only non-rotation major championship host, the Masters always feels extremely special, with the potential to witness history every year.
Last year, we got the Rory McIlroy drama as he completed the career grand slam with a playoff win, but this year, he has been dealing with an injury, two-time Masters champion Scottie Scheffler hasn’t been quite as dominant, and a host of young golfers are ready to establish themselves as “next” on the PGA TOUR. With so many potential storylines and plenty of drama on the horizon, it’s a great week for fantasy golf with the best players in the world all driving up Magnolia Lane and ready to take on Augusta. For more info on the field, the format, and the unique challenge of Texas-style golf in San Antonio, 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 suggests. 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
Ludvig Aberg $9,800
The top of the salary structure is packed with star power, but one player who seems on the verge of a breakthrough win at Augusta is getting less attention than our model indicates he deserves. Ludvig Aberg has the seventh-highest median, ceiling, and floor projection in the field, with the fourth-highest Perfect% and one of the best SimLeverage marks in the field. His ownership projection is barely in the top 10, since many fantasy golf managers apparently don’t trust him after he struggled down the stretch at TPC Sawgrass at THE PLAYERS Championship just a few weeks ago.
Aberg was in a great position on his way to a huge win at THE PLAYERS when it all fell apart for the 26-year-old from Sweden. He still finished T5, but his four-over final round was a huge disappointment. After taking a few weeks off, he returned to action last week in San Antonio, where he had another close call, finishing T5 at the Valero Texas Open. The two top-five finishes came right after a T20 at The Genesis Invitational and a T3 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
Even though he hasn’t closed out a win, he ranks fifth in the field in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green and sixth in Total Strokes Gained over his last 20 rounds.
Aberg has proven he has what it takes to contend at Augusta, with a runner-up finish in 2024 and a seventh-place finish last year. He was in contention both years but couldn’t quite close the deal. While that has been a recurring theme, the fact that he’s consistently near the top of the leaderboard gives him a very high ceiling, and his consistent tee-to-green game, with plenty of distance off the tee, is a great fit for Augusta National.
If his ownership projection continues to lag behind so many of the other big names, he’ll be a great leverage play to make your lineup stand out in tournaments. Besides the injury risks of Rory McIlroy and Collin Morikawa, he has the highest SimLeverage of players over $9,000.
Tommy Fleetwood $9,300
The reigning FedExCup champion is also coming in a little under the radar, and Tommy Fleetwood is still searching for his first major championship after finally claiming his first PGA TOUR win at the TOUR Championship last year.
Fleetwood has an ownership projection under 13%, making him a strong pivot option over $9,000, where players like Cameron Young, Xander Schauffele, and Patrick Reed are getting a little more hype. Those players are strong options, too, but Fleetwood can help differentiate your lineup while bringing a very high ceiling.
In the past at Augusta, Fleetwood has made the cut in eight straight tournaments since missing the cut in his debut all the way back in 2017. He has five top-25 finishes, including four in the last five years. He finished T3 in 2024 behind only Aberg and Scottie Scheffler, and last year, he finished T21.
He comes back to the Masters this year with a strong run of consistent form. He won on the DP World Tour in October after his TOUR Championship and added a runner-up in Abu Dhabi and a T3 at the DP World Tour Championship before the end of 2025. In 2026, he posted four top-10 finishes in his five PGA TOUR events, including a T10 in San Antonio last week.
Over the last 50 rounds, he ranks ninth in the field in Total Strokes Gained and 10th in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green. Over the last three months, he ranks 11th in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green and seventh in Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green, showing his short game is in top form.
Fleetwood and Aberg both have a good chance to win this week if a player from this price range claims the green jacket. With their ownership projections so much lower than the alternatives, they make strong pivot plays for GPP lineups, especially given their success on the course in the past.
Now available: our PGA DFS SimLabs Lineup Generator that creates advanced DFS lineups using the power of simulation.
