A star-studded PGA Tour field is in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, this week for the Players Championship. TPC Sawgrass once again plays host to the Tour’s unofficial fifth major. Below, we look at the fantasy golf power rankings and odds for the 2021 Players Championship, with PGA Tour picks and predictions.
Brooks Koepka withdrew Sunday afternoon due to a knee injury. He’s this week’s most notable omission as Rory McIlroy tries to defend his 2019 Players Championship title. Just two of the top-40 golfers in the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings aren’t in attendance.
Last year’s tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic after just one round.
Odds provided by BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Odds last updated Tuesday at 1:05 p.m. ET.
Fantasy golf power rankings
30. Abraham Ancer (+7000)
Tied for 12th in his debut at this event in 2019 while gaining 2.02 strokes per round from tee-to-green. He’s an excellent fit for this course but his 2021 form has been largely unimpressive.
29. Jordan Spieth (+3000)
Continues to move back up the world rankings with a T-4 finish last week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. It was his third top-5 finish in five events this year, but it required a Saturday ace and a hole-out from a bunker.
28. Louis Oosthuizen (+6600)
A risky fantasy play or bet this week following a Thursday morning withdrawal last week, Oosthuizen was a co-runner-up here in 2017 and is putting extremely well early in 2021.
27. Lee Westwood (+10000)
Last week’s runner-up was third in the field with 1.57 Strokes Gained: Approach and led the field with 3.30 SG: Tee-to-Green at Bay Hill Club & Lodge. Those same facets of his game will translate well to TPC Sawgrass.
26. Will Zalatoris (+7000)
The Korn Ferry Tour graduate is up to No. 46 in the Official World Golf Ranking. He has four top-20 finishes and no missed cuts in six events this year.
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25. Harris English (+9000)
Ignore his poor course history of 0.61 strokes lost to the field per round at TPC Sawgrass and make English a contrarian pick. His game is above average across the board, and he has 21 rounds played at this venue.
24. Jason Kokrak (+7000)
Tied for eighth last week despite losing 0.46 strokes per round on the greens. He’s a Bermudagrass expert and should bounce back quickly with the flat stick.
23. Scottie Scheffler (+4500)
Missed the cut in his first two events of 2021 on the mainland but since has two top-10 finishes, including a fifth-place showing against an elite field at the WGC-Workday Championship.
22. Sungjae Im (+5000)
Struggled with the short game last week but gained 1.90 strokes per round with his putter. He can lean on the flat stick once again while remaining on the same surface.
21. Jason Day (+5000)
Finished T-31 at Bay Hill last week and will again be playing an event he has won before. He hasn’t truly been in contention this season, but he has made three straight cuts and is staying healthy after long battling injuries.
20. Joaquin Niemann (+6600)
Posted back-to-back runner-up finishes in Hawaii to start 2021 and safely made the cut in two events on the mainland. He qualified for this event for the first time last year but only got to play one round. His iron play should translate well.
19. Matthew Fitzpatrick (+5000)
Three straight finishes of T-11 or better to start his 2021 PGA Tour schedule following mixed results in two European Tour events. His T-41 finish in 2019 was his best finish in four appearances in this event.
18. Paul Casey (+5000)
The veteran Englishman returned to play following a two-week break to tie for 10th last week. He was sharp with the irons while gaining 1.26 strokes per round on approach to the green.
17. Patrick Reed (+4000)
Has oddly struggled at TPC Sawgrass over his career but seems a natural fit for the course. He has a strong short game and is an accurate driver. He bested many of this week’s top contenders to win the Farmers Insurance Open in late January.
16. Hideki Matsuyama (+4000)
Held the first-round lead last year when play was called off. He’s coming off top-20 showings at the WGC-Workday Championship and Arnold Palmer Invitational and is starting to find a better putting stroke.
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15. Cameron Smith (+6000)
Shares the PGA Tour lead in par 5 scoring average with Bryson DeChambeau at 4.38. He’ll need to do his scoring there with just two of 10 par 4s at TPC Sawgrass playing below par in 2019.
14. Tommy Fleetwood (+4500)
Finished inside the top 10 in back-to-back years in 2018 and 2019 in this event. He tied for 10th last week at Bay Hill despite a Sunday round of plus-5, 77.
13. Daniel Berger (+4000)
Tied for 35th in a strong field at the WGC event in his follow-up to winning the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. He has gained 1.07 strokes on the field per round over 19 laps of TPC Sawgrass.
12. Tyrrell Hatton (+4000)
Hatton was a combined 11-under par Friday and Saturday at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, but he was 5-over both Thursday and Sunday. His putter betrayed him, but it has been a strength in the 2020-21 season.
11. Tony Finau (+2500)
Those playing fantasy golf don’t need Finau to win, and he has been as consistent as anyone on Tour in securing top finishes. He has gained 3.03 strokes per round on the average Tour pro over his last 20 rounds, according to Data Golf.
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10. Patrick Cantlay (+2200)
Returns to play after withdrawing from the WGC-Workday Championship due to illness. There shouldn’t be any lingering concerns for Golfweek’s fourth-ranked golfer.
9. Collin Morikawa (+2200)
Took last week off following his victory at the WGC event. Will make his official debut in this event, but unfamiliarity with courses hasn’t been a concern.
8. Viktor Hovland (+2500)
Like Morikawa, he has played only one competitive round at TPC Sawgrass but has also been immune to first-time jitters at many of the Tour’s biggest events. He was 11-over par last weekend after opening with a 69-68.
7. Rory McIlroy (+1600)
Continues to struggle in crunch time and finished just 3-under par at Bay Hill after opening with a minus-6, 66. He still tied for 10th and remains a better fantasy pick than a bet.
6. Bryson DeChambeau (+1600)
Added distance isn’t expected to carry the same advantage at the shorter and more intricate TPC Sawgrass. If he has a weakness, it continues to be his iron play.
5. Justin Thomas (+2000)
Tied for third here in 2016 but finished just T-35 in 2019. He’s averaging 1.13 SG: Approach per round this season, but he’s one of the riskier selections in this top tier with shaky history at TPC Sawgrass.
4. Xander Schauffele (+2200)
Golfweek’s top-ranked golfer was a co-runner-up in 2018 but missed the cut in 2019. Like Finau, he has struggled to close, but he has two T-2 finishes in five events this year.
3. Webb Simpson (+2200)
The 2018 Players champion followed it up with a T-16 finish in 2019. He’s fourth on Tour in driving accuracy, T-9 in par 5 scoring and third in bogey avoidance.
2. Dustin Johnson (+1200)
No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking, The Players has been one of the few marquee tournaments to evade Johnson’s trophy case. He has averaged 1.04 strokes gained per round over 39 rounds played here and should be motivated.
1. Jon Rahm (+1500)
Has a top finish of T-12 in 2019 in three appearances at this event but won last year’s Memorial Tournament at the comparable Muirfield Village Golf Club. His putter has been his lone weakness this season.
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