The final major of the year has arrived. The best players in the world have all descended upon Southport, England and Royal Birkdale to try to win the historic championship.
This is a look at the best first-round leader bets to make for the event on DraftKings Sportsbook.
The Open Championship: First Round Leader Picks
The Open Championship is the final major of the year in golf. This is the final chance for the world’s best players to claim a major championship. Rory McIlroy, Aaron Rai and Wyndham Clark. The defending Open champion, Scottie Scheffler, would love to make it back-to-back titles and avoid letting a year pass without winning a major. Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm, Ludvig Aberg and Xander Schauffele also have a great chance of competing for the title this week.
Royal Birkdale Golf Club is a par-70 course that ranges 7,223 yards. Royal Birkdale is a moderately long course with a variety of hole styles. However, it is much more of a mental test than a physical test. It is all about choosing when to be aggressive, when to attack pins, and when to be conservative. Royal Birkdale currently has approximately 110 bunkers, and the sand will be a massive test for all of these players. Still, the biggest challenge of all is the weather. If the wind is calm, this course can be attacked. However, if the wind is blowing hard, scoring conditions will be very difficult.
Tommy Fleetwood FRL (+3400)
This is a massive week for Tommy Fleetwood. This time last year, Fleetwood was considered one of the best players in the history of the sport to never win on the PGA TOUR. He finally got that monkey off his back by winning the TOUR Championship to end 2025. However, the pressure is now on Fleetwood to get it done at a major championship. No story would be more magical than Fleetwood winning his first major title in his hometown. Fleetwood grew up in Southport, Merseyside, where Birkdale resides. The crowd will fully be at Fleetwood’s back, and he will be comfortable at this course.
Fleetwood has been playing great golf lately. He has finished T14 or better in each of his past five starts. That includes a strong T11 finish at the U.S. Open. Fleetwood has also been a great Open Championship player. He has finished inside the top 20 in five of the past seven Opens. That includes a runner-up finish in 2019 and a T4 finish in 2022. Fleetwood is one of the best players in the world, ranking fourth on the PGA TOUR in Strokes Gained: Total. He keeps the ball straight off the tee, can scramble better than anyone in the world, and has the course knowledge required to succeed here.
Collin Morikawa FRL (+4800)
Collin Morikawa is one of the most underpriced players on the board this week. Morikawa has dealt with injuries in 2026, but he has been great whenever he plays. He won at Pebble Beach, finished T7 at the Masters, finished T17 at the U.S. Open, and most recently, finished third at the Travelers Championship. Overall, he has six top-10 finishes in 13 events played. Morikawa was the 2021 Open champion, winning at his first-ever Open Championship start. He has not been as strong in recent trips to The Open, but he is playing some of his best golf in years. This could be his chance to turn in another great Open Championship performance.
Morikawa ranks sixth on the PGA TOUR in Strokes Gained: Total and second in Strokes Gained: Approach to Green. He is one of the best iron players in the world and has all of the tools to succeed at Royal Birkdale. Morikawa is also capable of getting red-hot and rolling putts in. He has everything one would want in a player to get hot and lead after the opening round at Royal Birkdale.
