The PGA TOUR is hosting THE PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass (par 72, 7,352 yards, Bermuda/POA greens) in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, this week. This is the largest purse of the season at $25 million and there will be 144 golfers competing. After the first two rounds, there will be a top-65 and ties cut.
With THE PLAYERS Championship regarded as the fifth major of the season by many golf fans, DraftKings is offering a $2.25M Fantasy Golf Millionaire Contest. It is just $25 to enter and first place will take home a whopping $1 million. You will need to find some low-owned plays that perform well to contend in the Fantasy Golf Millionaire and below, I have featured some of my favorite contrarian DFS options from each price range for THE PLAYERS Championship.
Xander Schauffele ($11,100)
Given he has only played two events this season, Schauffele is naturally going to be the lowest-owned option above $10K and he could be a real game changer in GPPs if can find his form at TPC Sawgrass. Schauffele has finished runner-up at this par 72 twice in six starts, including just last season, when he finished one stroke back of Scottie Scheffler. Among the players in this week’s field that competed at TPC Sawgrass more than once, Schauffele ranks fifth in strokes gained per round at the venue.
Schauffele made his return from a two-month hiatus due to a rib injury last week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and while his T-40 finish was a letdown by his standards, Schauffele showed some encouraging signs at the end of this event. The two-time major champion posted a 3-under 69 on Sunday while gaining strokes in every major category at Bay Hill. This felt like a sign of more things to come for Schauffele and if he can carry this momentum over to TPC Sawgrass, it wouldn’t be a surprise in any way to see the No. 3 ranked player in the world contend.
Russell Henley ($9,500)
With the $9K filled with appealing options and big names, Henley should get overlooked in this price range. After winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational last week, Henley has finished inside the top-10 in four of his six starts this season.
Ranking top-25 in both SG APP and SGP this season, Henley is playing the best golf of his career and his victory last week is his second win in the state of Florida. Henley has finished inside the top-20 at two of the past three PLAYERS Championships and he should card another high finish this weekend.
Will Zalatoris ($8,700)
Zalatoris has quietly been playing great golf. Coming off a T-22 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, he has made nine cuts in a row and carded six top-25 finishes during this span. Zalatoris finished sixth in SG APP among the world-class field at Bay Hill last week, which is the fourth consecutive event he has gained strokes on approach at. However, Zalatoris ranked second-to-last in SGP at Bay Hill, which was what held him back from contending.
If Zalatoris can bounce back in any way with his putter at TPC Sawgrass, he has the potential to post a high finish, which is something we have seen him do many times in stacked fields. Zalatoris has finished T-26 or better in two of his four starts at TPC Sawgrass and he should get overlooked with Sepp Straka ($8,600) soaking up most of the ownership in this price range.
Adam Scott ($7,800)
Scott was only owned by 8.3% of the field in DraftKings’ main GPP for the Arnold Palmer Invitational last week and that number should be even lower for THE PLAYERS Championship, with this event presenting a stronger field. Off the 144 players teeing it up this week, no player has competed at TPC Sawgrass more than Scott. The 44-year-old has advanced to the weekend in 18 of his 22 starts at the Pete Dye design and 10 of these finishes have been top-20 results, including a win in 2004. Scott knows TPC Sawgrass like the back of his hand and he heads to the par 72 in compelling form.
Scott has only missed two cuts in his last 20 starts and he has finished T-36 or better in all four of his starts in 2025. Furthermore, Scott ranks 18th in total strokes gained when we compare this field’s last 50 rounds. With TPC Sawgrass being such a volatile venue, trusting Scott and his extensive resume at the course makes a ton of sense at this affordable $7,800 salary.
J.T. Poston ($6,900)
Poston has made 3-of-5 cuts at TPC Sawgrass, including two top-25 finishes, and he has made five consecutive cuts coming into this week. Poston has tallied a pair of top-20 finishes during this cut streak and he has gained strokes on approach at all five of these tournaments.
Conversely, Poston has lost strokes putting at all these events, but there is hope his putter can come alive at TPC Sawgrass, as he has gained strokes with his flat stick in three of his five appearances at the Florida venue. Poston just recently won the Shriners Open this past October and he has top-25 upside this weekend if he can have even an average week with his putter.
Sam Ryder ($5,400)
Ryder is one of the best bets to make the cut in the $5K range. The veteran has been very reliable, advancing to the weekend in nine of his past 11 starts. Four of these finishes have come inside the top-30 and Ryder has been excellent on the greens this season, ranking 17th in SGP.
The 35-year-old is a Florida native who went to college at Stetson University, which is located in DeLand and only about an hour and 45 minutes south of TPC Sawgrass. Ryder knows this track very well and he has made the cut at each of the past three PLAYERS Championships, most notably with a T-16 just last season. Ryder has made eight of his last 10 cuts in Florida and is guaranteed to come with minimal ownership.
