The PGA TOUR travels to La Quinta, California, for the American Express. This is a rare event that features three courses. Each player of this 156-man field will play one round at the Pete Dye Stadium Course (par 72, 7,210 yards, POA overseed greens), the Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course (par 72, 7,147 yards, POA overseed greens) and La Quinta Country Club (par 72, 7,060 yards, POA trivialis/ryegrass overseed greens). Following the third round, there will be a top-65 and ties cut and those players who advance will return to the Dye Stadium Course for the final round, making this the host venue of the American Express.
Below, I have featured two of my favorite long shot outright bets to win the American Express on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Patrick Rodgers (+8000)
Rodgers is playing far better than these long odds suggest. The veteran has been awesome, finishing inside the top-seven in three of his last four starts. Most recently, Rodgers just finished T3rd at the Sony Open last week, while gaining strokes in every major category at Waialae CC. The Stanford product carded 5-under 65 in the final round and this T3rd finish was a very encouraging result, as before this, Rodgers had missed 3-of-5 cuts at the Sony Open.
The 33-year-old has shot under par in eight consecutive rounds, including a 10-under 62 at the RSM Classic in November, which was one-stroke shy of his career-low. Like the American Express, the RSM Classic features multiple courses, so seeing him thrive at that event bodes well for this week.
Rodgers has moved himself up 35 spots in the world golf rankings to No.87 since the start of October and while he has never finished higher than T40 at the American Express, he has made 3-of-5 cuts at this tournament since the Dye Stadium Course became the host in 2016. Rodgers parlaying his awesome form into his first PGA TOUR win this week isn’t the craziest thought and he is worth a flier at this +8000 price.
Nick Dunlap (+15000)
Dunlap has won twice on the PGA TOUR, with his first victory coming at the 2024 American Express when he was just an amateur. During the third-round of this win, Dunlap caught fire at La Quinta Country Club and shot a 12-under 60, which is tied for the lowest round ever on the PGA TOUR by an amateur. The Alabama graduate turned professional shortly after and then he won the Barracuda Championship in July just a few months later.
Following his impressive campaign in 2024, Dunlap was inconsistent in 2025, making just 13-of-25 cuts, but he did finish T34th at last year’s American Express and now, a year later, his game appears to be trending in the right direction to begin the 2026 season. Dunlap has made three of his last four cuts, including a T8 at the World Wide Technology Championship in November.
The 22-year-old is coming off a mediocre T61 at the Sony Open last week, but he showed some very positive signs during this finish, as Dunlap finished the tournament second in SG APP. He conversely finished T62nd in SGP, which held Dunlap back from a high finish. This marked the fourth straight event he has gained strokes on approach at and if his putter can be resurrected at the American Express, which is possible given his track record here, Dunlap could contend. The 22-year-old has gained at least 1.4 strokes putting in both of his starts at the American Express and Dunlap is worth a dart throw at these very long +15000 odds.
