The Cheat Sheet provides DraftKings fantasy golf players with course info, player history, and the most noteworthy trends of the week to help them with their roster selections.
Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA Tour $150K Sand Trap [$50K to 1st]
The Field
The PGA Tour heads to Mexico this week for the 2026 VidantaWorld Mexico Open, taking place Oct. 29–Nov. 1 at Vidanta Vallarta. The event returns to the FedExCup Fall schedule after being played in February last season, featuring a 120-player field. The winner receives $1.08 million and 500 FedExCup points.
Wyndham Clark ($10,900) headlines the field and is the clear betting favorite at around +1300 odds at DraftKings Sportsbook. The three-time PGA Tour winner in 2026 is joined by Tom Kim ($10,100), Benjamin James ($10,200), Ben Griffin ($9,800), Marco Penge ($9,700), and Corey Conners ($9,300).
Clark enters as the most accomplished player in the field after winning the U.S. Open and BMW Championship this summer. Kim also brings strong credentials after winning the Genesis Scottish Open, while James has quickly established himself as one of the Tour’s more promising young players with solid recent results. Defending champion Brian Campbell returns after defeating Aldrich Potgieter in a playoff last season.
This is a standard 72-hole event, with the top 65 players and ties making the cut after Friday. The weaker field should create opportunities for lower-priced players to contend, but the top names will also attract plenty of DFS ownership.
Let’s dive into the course and player preview below.
The Course
Vidanta Vallarta — Nuevo Nayarit, Mexico
Par 71, 7,337 yards
Vidanta Vallarta returns as host for the fifth consecutive edition of the Mexico Open, although the course will look slightly different in 2026. The official tournament setup measures 7,337 yards, compared with the approximately 7,450-yard configuration used in previous editions.
The resort has also introduced a revised routing that brings holes 1, 9, 10 and 18 into a central area, while the 17th hole will feature a stadium-style setup. Several other holes have been adjusted, but the course’s underlying characteristics remain similar.
Vidanta is a relatively open resort layout with wide fairways, large greens and plenty of opportunities to attack off the tee. The course has four par 5s, all of which should offer scoring chances for longer hitters, while water and bunkers remain the main hazards.
The venue is situated around six man-made mini-lakes, and there are over 100 bunkers in play. From a design standpoint, Vidanta plays like a beefed-up version of Norman’s other Mexican course, El Camaleón, which hosts the Mayakoba Classic every season. However, it’s more open and features larger greens, making it comparable to other coastal venues such as Coco Beach in Puerto Rico and the Renaissance Club in Scotland.
From a mainland perspective, it also profiles well with courses like Detroit Golf Club and TPC Twin Cities, two courses 2023 winner Tony Finau has also won on.
The course has historically favored strong drivers and aggressive iron players. Three of the four previous winners ranked inside the top 12 in both driving distance and SG: Off-the-Tee, while each of the last three winners ranked inside the top eight in SG: Approach.
However, Brian Campbell’s victory last year did showcase that distance isn’t everything. Campbell is one of the shorter hitters on Tour but overcame that disadvantage with excellent approach play and scrambling (plus a little ‘tree-luck’ in the playoffs).
The paspalum greens are also an important quirk this week. They tend to run slower than many traditional PGA Tour putting surfaces, potentially allowing weaker putters to produce better results.
Key statistics I’m emphasizing this week:
- Strokes Gained: Approach: The strongest recurring statistical trend among recent winners.
- Driving Distance: Longer hitters can create shorter approaches and more eagle opportunities.
- Birdie or Better Percentage: Winning scores have ranged from 17-under to 24-under.
As a note, around the green play tends to be the least important factor of all the main skill categories at Vidanta, and good weather only means we’ll likely see very high GIR percentages once again, and less emphasis on ATG skill. The paspalum greens this week, a common grass in tropical climates, also tend to play slower and are more receptive to approaches. The slower greens also tend to benefit weaker putters, and in the last two or three seasons, we have seen players who typically struggle with putting on traditional PGA setups spike with that club.
2026 Weather Outlook
The early forecast for Nuevo Nayarit suggests another hot week, with daytime temperatures reaching approximately 89–94°F (32–34°C) throughout the tournament. Humidity will also be significant, creating demanding conditions for players over four rounds. Wind currently looks manageable, with most forecasts showing sustained speeds below 10 mph. That should allow players to attack the larger greens and produce plenty of birdies.
The biggest concern is Thursday, when some forecasts are calling for showers and possible disruption from tropical weather in the region. Friday through Sunday currently look considerably drier, with mostly sunny or partly cloudy conditions. For DFS, I wouldn’t force a tee-time wave stack based on the wind forecast alone, and the potential for Thursday delays could make wave-stacking impossible or hard to manage. However, with Thursday rain or delays in the forecast, it does make the opening-round weather worth monitoring before lineups lock. If conditions remain relatively calm, I’d expect another low-scoring tournament where driving distance, approach play and birdie production are rewarded.
What Last Year’s Winner Did at the Mexico Open
Brian Campbell (-20 under; 65, 65, 64, 70)
Brian Campbell entered the 2025 Mexico Open as a significant longshot, priced around +15000 to win, but produced the best performance of his PGA Tour career to claim his first victory.
His previous four starts included:
- Farmers Insurance Open: MC
- The American Express: T51
- Sony Open in Hawaii: WD
- Korn Ferry Tour Championship: T2
Campbell had shown some promise with his runner-up finish on the Korn Ferry Tour the year prior, but his PGA Tour results entering Mexico were uninspiring for the season.
He opened with consecutive 65s before shooting 64 in Round 3 and 70 on Sunday. His final score of 20-under (264) was enough to force a playoff with Aldrich Potgieter, which Campbell won.
Campbell’s key performance notes:
- Finished 1st in SG: Tee-to-Green.
- Ranked 4th in SG: Approach.
- Finished 1st in SG: Around-the-Green.
- Ranked 31st in SG: Off-the-Tee, showing that distance wasn’t essential to his victory.
- Finished 32nd in SG: Putting, relying more heavily on ball-striking and short-game execution.
The biggest takeaway is that excellent approach play remains the most important ingredient at Vidanta. Campbell didn’t overpower the course like previous winners Tony Finau and Jake Knapp, but his irons and scrambling allowed him to generate enough opportunities to compete.
Last 4 Winners
- 2025 — Brian Campbell: -20, defeated Aldrich Potgieter in a playoff
- 2024 — Jake Knapp: -19, two shots over Sami Välimäki
- 2023 — Tony Finau: -24, three shots over Jon Rahm
- 2022 — Jon Rahm: -17, one shot over Tony Finau, Brandon Wu and Kurt Kitayama
Winning Trends
- Approach play remains the clearest trend. Campbell ranked fourth in SG: Approach in 2025, Knapp led the field in 2024, and Finau ranked eighth in 2023.
- Driving distance is useful. Finau, Knapp, Potgieter and Rahm all benefited from strong driving, while Campbell won despite ranking near the bottom of Tour in distance.
- The winning score has reached at least 17-under in every edition. Birdie production and par-5 scoring remain important.
- The course has produced both favorites and longshots. Rahm and Finau won as leading contenders, while Knapp and Campbell were longer prices.
- Short-game performance can matter (but remains less important). Campbell led the field around the greens in 2025, showing that players don’t necessarily need a pure power profile to excel at this easier venue.
- The paspalum greens can create putting variance. Players who struggle on faster surfaces may have an opportunity to outperform their usual putting numbers.
Finding Value at DraftKings Sportsbook
Odds to win are one factor to think about when picking players, but they shouldn’t be the only consideration. This section highlights golfers whose DraftKings DFS salaries look appealing compared with their current outright odds on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Corey Conners +2500 and $9,300
Comparables:
- Marco Penge (+3000 and $9,700)
- Johnny Keefer (+2700 and $9,500)
Conners offers a similar winning profile to players priced several hundred dollars higher, making him an appealing option for balanced builds.
Keita Nakajima (+4200 and $7,700)
Comparables:
- Mac Meissner (+4500 and $8,200)
- Trace Crowe (+5200 and $7,800)
- Pierceson Coody (+4500 and $7,800)
Other salary/odds combinations worth considering include Tony Finau (+7200, $7,300) and Aldrich Potgieter (+9600, $7,000), both of whom have strong course-history arguments.
All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook as of Oct. 26, 2026, and available at the time of writing.
Recent Form
1. Doug Ghim ($9,400)
Ghim has been one of the most consistent players in the field, recording five consecutive top-20 finishes, including a runner-up at the Bank of Utah Championship. He’s averaging +1.787 strokes gained over his last five starts, including +0.656 on approach and +0.659 off the tee. He also finished T8 at Vidanta in 2024, giving him an excellent combination of recent form and course history.
2. Alvaro Ortiz ($7,000)
Ortiz enters his home-country event playing some of the best golf of his season on the Korn Ferry Tour. He won the Simmons Bank Open in September at 26-under, shooting 65-61-65-63, and has since added T14, T24, and T9 finishes in the Korn Ferry Tour Finals. He also won the UNC Health Championship earlier this season. His recent scoring ability and T13 finish at Vidanta in 2024 make him particularly interesting at just $7,000.
3. Johnny Keefer ($9,500)
Keefer has produced back-to-back top-10 finishes during the fall, finishing T7 at the Biltmore Championship and T10 at the Bank of Utah Championship before a T33 in Japan. He also finished T3 at the Genesis Scottish Open earlier this summer. The 25-year-old ranks 12th on Tour in SG: Off-the-Tee and fifth in Greens in Regulation (71.53%), making his current ball-striking especially appealing for Vidanta.
4. Kihei Akina ($7,100)
Akina has made the most of his recent PGA Tour opportunities, finishing ninth at the Bank of Utah Championship and T17 at last week’s Butterfield Bermuda Championship. He shot consecutive 65s in Utah to finish 20-under, showing plenty of scoring upside. The BYU standout has now recorded three top-20 finishes in his last four PGA Tour starts, and his $7,100 salary makes him an interesting lower-priced option.
5. Corey Conners ($9,300)
Conners enters Mexico following his best finish of the season, a T3 finish at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship. He also finished T14 at The Open Championship and T7 at the Travelers Championship earlier this summer. While his overall recent results haven’t been as consistent as Ghim’s, his ball-striking has been improving, averaging +0.536 strokes gained Off-the-Tee over his last five starts. His recent top-three finish makes him worth watching as he looks to build momentum.
Draftkings DFS Strategy
Cash Games: Corey Conners and Doug Ghim
Corey Conners ($9,300) should be a solid anchor play this week. On top of carrying great form, his $9,300 salary looks more than reasonable considering he’s the fifth choice in the outright market. He had a strong tee-to-green performance in Bermuda, where he led through three rounds.
Doug Ghim ($9,400) is another player I’d feel comfortable leaning on heavily. Five consecutive top-20 finishes show how consistently he’s been performing, and his T8 at Vidanta in 2024 adds some course-history appeal. He’s not overly cheap, but the attractive combination of recent form, strong iron play, and course history makes him great for balanced builds.
GPP Targets
Gordon Sargent ($7,200) is another player whose power should translate well to Vidanta. The former amateur standout has exceptional driving distance and can string together birdies when his irons cooperate. His overall results have been inconsistent, but this is a course where he can lean heavily on his greatest strength. At $7,200, he’s worth considering in larger-field GPPs.
Chan Kim ($7,000) offers an excellent combination of recent form and course history at a very affordable salary. He finished T6 at last week’s Butterfield Bermuda Championship, shooting two rounds of 64, and has now made 16 of his last 20 cuts across the PGA Tour and Korn Ferry Tour. He’s also finished T8 and T17 in his two previous appearances at Vidanta, shooting in the 60s in six of eight rounds.
Isaiah Salinda ($6,900) is another strong tournament option whose recent ball-striking and course history suggest significant upside. He finished T13 at Bermuda last week, leading the field in SG: Off-the-Tee, and has made eight of his last 10 cuts across the PGA Tour and Korn Ferry Tour, with six top-25 finishes. More importantly, he finished solo third at Vidanta last season.
GPP Differentiator: Marco Penge ($9,700)
Marco Penge is the kind of high-upside player I want to consider at Vidanta. His biggest strength is driving distance, and the wider fairways should allow him to attack aggressively without worrying as much about accuracy. He finished T10 at the Biltmore Championship and has made five consecutive worldwide cuts, but his putting remains inconsistent. That volatility makes him more attractive for tournaments (where I’d expect reasonable, if not lower, ownership) than cash games.
Best Bet: Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen ($7,700)
Both Danes in the field this week make for interesting targets, but Neergaard-Petersen is my favorite target as his combination of driving ability, international experience, and improving ball-striking makes him an excellent fit for Vidanta Vallarta. The Dane has already shown he can compete on exposed, coastal layouts, finishing runner-up at the 2025 Puerto Rico Open, where he shot 23-under and closed with a bogey-free 63. That performance is particularly encouraging for Mexico, where wider fairways, receptive greens and four par 5s should create similar scoring opportunities.
Neergaard-Petersen has an impressive international resume as well. He won three times on the HotelPlanner Tour in 2024 before earning his first DP World Tour victory at the 2025 Australian Open last fall. He also recorded eight DP World Tour top-10 finishes in 2025 alone, including a runner-up at the Qatar Masters and T3 at the DP World Tour Championship against quality fields. More recently, Neergaard-Petersen finished T9 at The Open Championship in July, and followed with a T20 at the 3M Open. His recent T23 at the Baycurrent Classic was also encouraging after recovering from an opening 74 with rounds of 68-67-67.
Statistically, Neergaard-Petersen also has the driving profile I’m looking for at Vidanta. He’s averaging 308.2 yards off the tee and ranks 17th on Tour in SG: Off-the-Tee (+0.477). His approach play has also improved recently, gaining +0.183 strokes per round over his last five starts.
At just $7,700 at DraftKings Sportsbook, Neergaard-Petersen also stands out as one of the better midrange values in the field. He offers the kind of top-five upside normally associated with more expensive DFS options, while leaving plenty of salary available to roster elite players.
Sleeper: Alvaro Ortiz ($7,000)
Ortiz ($7,000) brings excellent recent form into this week, and with this week’s event taking place in his home country, he’s a hard name to ignore. The Guadalajara native won the Mexican Open in 2021 (played at the Estrella del Mar Resort in Mazatlán), before it became a PGA Tour event, and his older brother Carlos Ortiz is also a former PGA Tour winner, a run which also included a win in his home country in 2014 on the Korn Ferry Tour. Alvaro also finished T13 at Vidanta in 2024, giving him some proven success on this layout.
Even with the home country narrative, the best part for DFS this week – besides the cheap salary – is that his recent results are the biggest attraction. Ortiz won twice on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2026, including a dominant four-shot victory at the Simmons Bank Open in September, where he shot 26-under. He followed that performance with T14, T24, and T9 finishes at the year-end Korn Ferry Championship, showing remarkable consistency heading into Mexico. He also ranked third in SG: Putting on the Korn Ferry Tour this season, a useful strength for a potentially low-scoring event.
At just $7,000 on DraftKings, Ortiz offers excellent value considering his winning experience, recent momentum, and familiarity with competing in Mexico. He’s not a long hitter, but Brian Campbell’s victory here last season showed distance isn’t essential, and Ortiz has the scoring ability and putting upside to outperform his salary in a weaker field, making him a preferred GPP target in the 7k range.