The 45th edition of the Ryder Cup will be taking place this week at Bethpage Black (par 70, 7,352 yards, POA/Bentgrass greens) in Farmingdale, New York. The Ryder Cup is a team formatted match play tournament between Team USA and Team Europe, with Team Europe being the defending champs after winning the 2023 Ryder Cup. Each team consists of 12 players, with six being auto qualified and six being captains’ picks. There are 28 possible points to be scored with each match win being worth a point and each match tied being worth a half point. The first team to 14.5 points will win and if the teams finish in a 14-14 tie, Team Europe will retain the Ryder Cup as the defending champs.
The Ryder Cup is a three-day event that begins Friday and for the first two days of the event, teammates will compete in pairs in foursome and four-ball matches. Foursome is an alternate shot format, when teammates alternate shots until they finish the hole and four-ball is when each player plays their own ball and the team takes the best score between the pairing on each hole. Then, for the final day of the event, there will be 12 single matches. The pairings won’t be announced until Thursday night and some players will see more matches than others, based on how the captains want to use their players throughout the event, so targeting players who will play the most matches is wise.
For DFS this week, DraftKings is Showdown format only, with each lineup consisting of six golfers, including one captain, who will accrue 1.5x FPTS. Also, instead of golfers being rewarded for birdies, eagles, etc, golfers will be accrue or lose FPTS based on matches won, lost or halved.
As for the course, Bethpage Black is regarded as one of the most challenging public courses in the United States. This lengthy par 70 features penalizing rough, tiny greens and 78 bunkers. Bethpage Black most recently hosted the 2016 Barclays, won by Patrick Reed and the 2019 PGA Championship won by Brooks Koepka. Both of these players finished top-six in SG APP during their victories at Bethpage Black, putting a heavy emphasis on approach play and with this venue being a very long par 70, elite drivers of the golf ball will have an advantage this week. When Koepka won the Wanamaker trophy at Bethpage Black in 2019, he finished second in SG OTT and 10th in driving distance. Lastly, with Bethpage Black being a traditional par 70 with 12 par fours, being a strong par four scorer will be a must at this venue, as both Koepka and Reed finished top-six in par four efficiency when they won at Bethpage Black.
Below, I have featured two of my favorite DraftKings bargain plays for the Ryder Cup, which all cost less than $7.5K.
Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $400K Summer Sand Trap [$100K to 1st]
Top DraftKings PGA TOUR DFS Bargain Plays for the Ryder Cup
Cameron Young (CPT $10,800, FLEX $7,200) – While a Ryder Cup debutant, Young’s game is in top notch form right now and he has been solid at team events in the past, with a 7-4 singles match record and a 1-1-1 team match record. On his own, Young has finished inside the top-11 at five events in a row, including a win at the Wyndham Championship in August to start this run. Young has shot under par in 15 of these 20 rounds – including two rounds of 62 – and he ranks third in total strokes gained when we compare this field’s last 24 rounds.
In addition to Young’s outstanding form, he will be extremely motivated this week, as competing in the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black is a dream come true for the New York native. Young grew up just about two hours north of Bethpage Black in Scarborough and he won the Metropolitan PGA’s New York State Open at Bethpage Black as an amateur in 2017. That week, Young posted a final round 6-under 64 at Bethpage Black, which at the time tied the course record at the venue until Koepka shot a 7-under 63 at Bethpage Black during his PGA Championship win in 2019. In front of his friends and family, Young shouldn’t disappoint in his return to Bethpage Black this week and he is arguably the best value on the board.
Robert MacIntyre (CPT $9,000, FLEX $6,000) – MacIntyre had a strong Ryder Cup debut in 2023, with a 2-0-1 overall record and ranking sixth in points for Team Europe in their win. Now, the Scot heads into the 2025 Ryder Cup as the No.9 ranked player in the world, after a terrific season on the PGA TOUR. MacIntyre made 21-of-23 cuts and he carded six top-10 finishes, including runner-up finishes at the U.S. Open in June and at the BMW Championship in August.
Both these events were played at challenging courses, especially the U.S. Open, which was held at the brutal Oakmont CC, and these are just a few of MacIntyre’s many high finishes at difficult designs. While this is his first attempt at Bethpage Black, the 29-year-old should handle the demanding conditions at the par 70 well and win a few matches for Team Europe.
