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Should golf’s "fifth major” be an actual major? The PGA Tour seems to be making a push, but I’ll leave that debate to another time! What THE PLAYERS Championship already is, is the Tour’s flagship event, the largest purse and one of the best tournaments of the year with an iconic closing stretch.
This year’s edition of THE PLAYERS, which is the seventh since the tournament moved from May to March, feels slightly more open than last year. A massively struggling Scottie Scheffler enters the week with only one win, three top 5s and five top 25s in his five starts on the season (kidding, of course). But he does seem to be slightly less invincible than he was towards the end of last year, which makes me a big fan of his this week.
Other than Scottie at +475, the only other competitor with odds lower than 20-1 is Rory McIlroy coming off a WD at Bay Hill. A potentially lingering back issue is enough to scare me away from the defending champion this week. Here are a few of the plays that I do like this week at the 2026 PLAYERS Championship.
All odds listed are the best odds available at time of publishing via oddschecker. And, as a reminder, I am a casual bettor who likes to look at the data to make educated bets each week. I'm certainly not a pro. You’ve been advised!
Scottie Scheffler +450 ($10 bet wins $45)
Scottie is the only player in the world that I can see miss a 2-foot, 1-inch par putt on 16 and then dump a wedge into the water on 18, which he did Sunday at Bay Hill, and my first thought is “yeah he’s going to win next week.” But that’s what happened, and I can’t explain it.
Scheffler has had a fairly normal season if you just look at his tournament results page, but it’s felt strange watching his round-to-round and shot-to-shot performance. He's had the odd first-round issues and has looked visibly frustrated a handful of times. But he has yet to finish outside the top 25, and he's still recorded a win.
His analytics are obviously great, and he has won two of the last three at TPC Sawgrass. With Scottie, it comes down to picking your spots because his lines are so short, and this is one of those weeks for me.
Si Woo Kim 25-1 ($10 bet wins $250)
Rarely does course fit, history and recent form mesh as perfectly as it does for Si Woo Kim at Sawgrass this week. His elite accuracy off the tee buoys him to the top of the Data Golf course fit list every year at the Players. Add to that his form this year, where he has finished in the top 13 in five of seven events and made every cut. He has a chance to become the ninth man to win the championship twice.
Corey Conners 100-1
Conners’ recent form is lacking, which is why his number has inflated out to 100-1. When going back the past 5 years, with a minimum of 10 rounds competed, Conners is third in true strokes gained at TPC Sawgrass, according to Data Golf. His elite accuracy and iron play makes him a perfect fit for the course. He only has one top 25 this year but is coming off his best tournament both off the tee and on approach since the Sony Open. The fit and price makes the Canadian worth a flier this week.
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