Michael Leboff tabbed Mark Hubbard at 175/1 as a high-upside longshot. Hubbard is still chasing his first PGA Tour victory, but the 36-year-old has quietly posted nine top-15 finishes over the last two seasons, six of them in 2025, almost all on easy, birdie-fest layouts similar to Waialae. He owns plenty of Sony Open reps and recorded his best result here with a T21 last year. Given Waialae's history of producing shock winners (Nick Taylor 100/1, Grayson Murray 400/1) and the absence of most elite players, Leboff believes Hubbard's proven ability to spike on low-difficulty tracks offers massive upside at 175/1.

In the same Sony Open preview, Brady Kannon advised bettors to pass on Tony Finau at his +1700 odds. Kannon’s unpublished model—built around Strokes Gained: Approach and recent scrambling form at Waialae—shows Finau priced as an efficiency mismatch relative to Russell Henley and Hideki Matsuyama at the top of the board. Kannon, who went 19-13-4 on documented head-to-heads last season and cashed four outright tickets including Hideki Matsuyama (22-1), believes Finau’s number offers little value compared with similarly-priced peers, recommending fades in outrights and most placement props.

Brady Kannon told SportsLine subscribers he is fading Tom Hoge in both outright markets and ancillary prop bets for the Sony Open. While the free portion of the write-up does not publish his hole-by-hole shot-gain breakdown, Kannon noted that his week-long model—which leans heavily on Strokes Gained: Approach, Scrambling, and prior success on short par-70 tracks—pushes Hoge well below his listed +3500 price. Kannon’s track record (eight major winners since 2013 and a 19-13-4 head-to-head record at SportsLine) gives weight to the recommendation even without the full proprietary numbers, making the fade an actionable stance for outrights, DFS roster locks, and head-to-head matchups.

Kevin O'Brien is fading Ben Griffin not because of poor form—Griffin is 3-for-3 at Waialae—but because OAD strategy dictates saving high-volume players for bigger purses or weaker fields later in the season. Griffin tees it up often and usually pays off, so O'Brien will keep him holstered until a higher-dollar opportunity rather than settle for a mid-pack payday this week.

Lauren Jump warns that Adam Scott’s 2025 decline makes him a landmine at Waialae. The 45-year-old failed to record a top-10 in 18 starts last season and slid to 122nd in SG: Putting, 125th in driving accuracy and 155th in scrambling—three skills Waialae punishes if absent. Scott has only one Sony top-10 since 2014 and is making his first start here since 2023. Jump believes burning a big name for limited ceiling and plenty of downside is a mistake.

Bryce Danielson acknowledges Robert MacIntyre’s fall heater—an Alfred Dunhill win plus consecutive top-10s in Abu Dhabi and Dubai—but still fades him at Waialae. The Scot has finished outside the top-50 in both Sony appearances and will have plenty of tracks better suited to his power-draw profile. Danielson would rather pocket MacIntyre for a venue where driver is a bigger weapon and a signature-event purse sweetens the reward.

Len Hochberg is passing on Ben Griffin this week. Griffin’s life changed twice in quick succession—career-best 2025 play followed by a December wedding—and Hochberg thinks holidays plus newlywed life reduce practice time. Griffin is 3-for-3 making the cut here but has never cracked the top ten (best T12 in 2023). Hochberg prefers to watch rather than wager OAD capital on a player adjusting to so many off-course variables.

Ryan Pohle refuses to burn Robert MacIntyre in a non-signature event after Sony finishes of T52 and T53. The left-hander showed nothing at Waialae in two tries and just finished near the bottom at the Hero World Challenge while losing strokes tee-to-green. Pohle wants to deploy MacIntyre later when form and course fit align with a larger purse on the line.

Michael Leboff advised taking a swing on Haotong Li at 90/1, labeling him "one of the hottest players in the field." Li closed 2025 with a T8 at the DP World Tour Championship in November and a T10 at the NedBank Golf Challenge in December, adding to a season that already included a worldwide win and multiple top-five finishes, including at The Open. The Hunan native is 1-for-2 at Waialae with a 12th-place finish in 2022, so he brings some course comfort to go with elite recent form. Leboff noted that five of the past six Sony winners were 20/1 or longer—two at triple-digit prices—underscoring why 90/1 on a surging ball-striker makes sense in this shallow field.

Ryan Andrade advises fading Aaron Rai despite a theoretical fit. Rai’s Sony ledger reads MC-T61-T57, each outing fueled by significant strokes lost with the putter. That flatstick issue remains—he bled strokes on the greens in seven of his last nine starts and mustered only two top-10s all of 2025. Andrade will wait for a parkland layout where ball-striking can offset the short game, not a tournament where hot putting usually wins.

Greg Vara is steering clear of Billy Horschel despite social-media chatter about a 2026 resurgence. Horschel has missed the cut in three of eight Sony starts and posted only one top-10, numbers that do not justify spending him in week one. Vara admits Horschel could bounce back later but sees no reason to fight history on a track that clearly vexes him.

Kevin O'Brien narrowed his choice to Nick Taylor or Hideki Matsuyama and broke the tie with overall talent. Matsuyama historically comes out of the gates hot and sports a Waialae resume that matches Taylor’s without last year’s win already banked. With roughly 30 events on the OAD calendar, O'Brien prefers to deploy one of the undisputed top-30 players in the world while the field strength is modest, betting that Matsuyama’s all-around game cashes a big first-week check.

Lauren Jump is chasing pure scoring juice with Harry Hall. Hall ranked 3rd in SG: Putting, 10th in SG: Around-the-Green, 6th in scrambling and 3rd in Birdie or Better Percentage during his TOUR Championship season. He is 3-for-3 at Waialae with a T10 last year, thrives on Bermuda, and the winning score usually pushes −18. Jump thinks Hall’s flatstick can separate him on enormous greens and provide sleeper leverage for managers who refuse to burn bigger names this early.

Bryce Danielson wants to start the year with Si Woo Kim’s ceiling while OAD ownership is muted. Sportsbooks price Kim as short as 18-1, yet many poolsters remember only his volatility. Kim closed 2025 with a T4 at the RSM, capping six straight worldwide top-25s since the FedEx St. Jude, and he finished fifth on Tour in SG:Tee-to-Green last season. Danielson argues that elite ball-striking plus recent consistency outweigh the risk and gives managers a potential solo leader in week one.

Len Hochberg dismissed major-win talk but said Russell Henley is exactly the guy to pounce when a signature-free field opens the door. Henley’s last three Sony results are 10th, 4th and a playoff loss to Hideki Matsuyama, powered by precise driving and long-iron work that negate Waialae’s lack of length. With the four highest-ranked players sitting out, Hochberg thinks Henley’s steady tee-to-green excellence makes him the obvious OAD selection when you simply need a regular-tour trophy.

Ryan Pohle likes Corey Conners as a classic course-fit play. The Canadian has four top-15s in seven trips to Waialae but missed last year’s cut solely because he lost 5+ strokes with the putter. Conners just led the Hero World Challenge field in SG: Approach, reaffirming elite irons, and he ranks near the top of the Tour in driving accuracy. Pohle figures that if the putter is merely neutral, Conners will be back in contention by Sunday on greens that reward repeat reps.

Ryan Andrade expects Daniel Berger to fly under the radar after a lousy finish to 2025, yet he reminded gamers that the Floridian opened last season with nine top-25s in 12 starts while gaining strokes both on approach and around the green. Berger owns three top-15s in seven Sony appearances and took the off-season to rest the back that once cost him nearly two years. Andrade thinks a healthy Berger plus Waialae’s short, positional setup equals sneaky win equity and perfect OAD leverage.

Greg Vara called Nick Taylor the safest way to open One-and-Done leagues. Taylor has finished inside the top-12 at Waialae in four straight visits and cashed the winner’s check here last year. Vara is normally a course-history truther and thinks Taylor’s comfort on Waialae’s dog-legged fairways and gentle Bermuda greens outweighs any worries about unknown early-season form. With a standard 36-hole cut in play, Vara wants a reliable make-the-cut floor and a proven ceiling in a week where many managers will simply be hoping their pick survives Friday.

Ryan Noonan grabbed Keegan Bradley +275 for a Top-10, pointing out that Bradley’s 11 top-20 finishes last season were his most in over a decade despite juggling Ryder Cup captaincy duties. The Travelers champion has been in Sunday contention at Waialae three of the past four years, and Noonan trusts his reliable tee-to-green game on a layout that minimizes distance and spotlights precision iron play.

Pat Mayo laid ‑115 on Matt McCarty over Ryan Gerard in a head-to-head, citing McCarty’s perfect skill mix for Waialae: fairway accuracy, elite proximity from 150-200 yards and a putter that gains at least one stroke in 37 % of rounds (Tour average 27.5 %). Mayo concedes Gerard is the superior ball-striker tee-to-green but believes his weak short game and putting are fatal on a track that often becomes a Bermuda putting contest.

Ryan Noonan advised passing on Jordan Spieth at 33-1, noting there’s no evidence the Texan has shaken off 2025’s injury-marred campaign. Spieth returned at December’s Hero World Challenge and finished dead-last at even par, a full 22 shots behind winner Hideki Matsuyama. Noonan questions both form and confidence and sees no reason to invest real dollars until Spieth posts at least one encouraging start.

Keith Stewart is fading Collin Morikawa at 22-1, arguing the par-70 Waialae magnifies the weaknesses that plagued Morikawa’s 2025 season. Stewart pointed to Morikawa’s poor birdie-or-better rate on par-4s, persistent putting volatility and a left-to-right tee shot that conflicts with the course’s preferred shot shape. While expecting an overall rebound year, Stewart thinks the season opener is a bad fit and is happy to wait for better venues before buying back in.

Pat Mayo tagged Daniel Berger as a 66-1 dark horse, noting his 2025 fade was largely finger-injury related and isolated to chipping woes. Before the short-game collapse Berger rattled off nine top-25s in his first 12 starts, including podiums at the Masters and Players. He remains one of the tour’s most accurate drivers and solid iron players, profiles that historically thrive at Waialae. With wins at comp courses Pebble Beach and Colonial already on the resume, Mayo views 66-1 as a bargain if the short game reset over the winter.

Andy Lack recommended Corey Conners at 33-1, arguing Waialae is tailor-made for the Canadian’s precise ball-striking. Conners closed 2025 with a stellar approach display at the Hero World Challenge and owns four top-12 finishes in seven Sony starts. Lack sees his fairway-finder driver and laser-like mid-irons thriving on a wind-exposed par-70 that deemphasizes length while rewarding accuracy and GIR percentage.

Ryan Noonan backed Russell Henley at 11-1 despite the skimpy number because Waialae rewards exactly what Henley does best. The 2013 champion has finished T-11 or better in four of the last five editions and lost only when Hideki ran him down in 2022. Noonan highlighted Henley’s ability to control the ball off the tee, an elite wedge/short-iron game, and a Bermudagrass putting profile that has gained 0.55 strokes per round over the last three seasons. On a layout that turns into a wedge-and-putt contest, Noonan believes Henley’s skill set justifies near-favorite status.

Keith Stewart fired on Chris Kirk at 45-1, labeling the Georgia veteran the classic Waialae play. Kirk has already lifted a trophy in Hawaii at the Sentry and owns two top-3 finishes here in the past five years. Stewart emphasized Kirk’s right-to-left tee shot that fits Waialae’s doglegs, elite scoring-iron prowess and proven success on coastal Bermudagrass venues. With form intact after a strong 2025 finish, Stewart expects Kirk to “go low” and grab another island victory.

Pat Mayo said Aaron Rai is his favorite outright at 35-1 because the Englishman checks every Waialae box except proven putting. Rai enters 2026 23rd in the OWGR, sits 4th in this field in driving accuracy, 7th in strokes-gained approach and 19th in comp-course performance according to Fantasy National. He already owns wins at the 2024 Wyndham and last fall’s first stage of the DP World Tour Playoffs in Abu Dhabi, proving he can close on shorter, positional, Bermudagrass layouts. Mayo is confident enough to burn Rai in Week 1 of the huge season-long One-and-Done, noting you get “Henley-lite” ball-striking at quadruple the odds if the putter merely cooperates.

Michael Leboff recommended an outright bet on Brian Harman at 50/1 for the Sony Open, calling him the prototypical "horses-for-courses" play. Harman has teed it up at Waialae every year since 2012, missing only two cuts in 14 starts, highlighted by a T4 in 2018 and five additional top-25 finishes. Leboff added that Harman's 2025 campaign was sneakily elite—one win, two other top-fives and just four missed cuts across 24 events—so there's no concern about current form. With star names like Scheffler, McIlroy, Fleetwood and Schauffele skipping Hawaii, Russell Henley sits as a tepid 12/1 favorite, and five of the last six Sony champions have opened 20/1 or longer (Nick Taylor 100/1, Grayson Murray 400/1). Against that backdrop, Leboff views 50/1 as mispriced value on a dependable course specialist in a diluted field.

Chris Durell grabbed Nicolas Echavarria at +5000 outright and +390 for a top-10, highlighting a dramatic putting leap. Echavarria finished 2025 ranked 5th in SG: Putting after placing 79th and 137th his first two PGA seasons, a trend Durell believes is sustainable on Waialae’s pure Bermuda surfaces. The Colombian closed the fall with four straight made cuts, including two top-10s and a top-15, suggesting the flat stick is already carrying over. While he did not win in 2025 after capturing trophies each of his first two seasons, Durell sees the Sony Open’s emphasis on putting—nine of the top-12 putters finished top-10 last year—as the perfect spot for Echavarria to bounce back at long odds.

Chris Durell bet Harry Hall outright at +2800, pointing to an elite short-game profile tailor-made for Waialae’s Bermuda greens. In 2025 Hall ranked 10th in SG: Around-the-Green and 3rd in SG: Putting, parlaying those skills into five top-5s and 15 top-25s after earning his first career win in 2024. He has made the cut in all three prior Sony Open appearances with a career-best 10th last year. Durell noted that 26 of 29 players who gained 2+ strokes putting here in 2025 made the cut, including the winner and runner-up, underscoring Hall’s path to contend if he hits a merely average number of greens in regulation.

Chris Durell targeted Max McGreevy at +600 for a top-10 finish despite three prior missed cuts at Waialae. He is willing to overlook the poor course history because McGreevy finished the 2025 season 11th in driving accuracy and 16th in Good Drive %, metrics that historically correlate strongly with success at the Sony Open. Recent form is also trending up: a T3 at the Bermuda Championship and T11 at the Bank of Utah Championship to close 2025. On a layout where the top-22 in Fairways Gained all made the cut in 2024, Durell believes McGreevy’s improved tee-to-fairway game gives him his best shot yet to crack the top-10.

Chris Durell recommended Corey Conners at +3500 to win and +300 for a top-10 finish, leaning on the Canadian’s elite accuracy profile. Over the 2025 season Conners ranked 13th in driving accuracy, 21st in SG: Approach and 11th in SG: Ball-Striking. Durell reminded readers that Waialae is a positional layout: in 2025 seventeen of the top-18 players in Fairways Gained made the cut, an identical trend to 2024 and 2023. Conners posted four straight top-12 finishes here before a MC and 57th the last two years, and Durell thinks the underlying skill set is unchanged. If Conners puts to even field average on Bermuda, Durell sees clear top-10 equity with win upside at an attractive number.

Chris Durell labeled Hideki Matsuyama his favorite outright play at +1800, arguing the number is still cheap given both form and course fit. Matsuyama won the Sony Open in 2022, owns four top-20s in his last six starts at Waialae, and has made nine straight cuts here. He arrives off a victory at the Hero World Challenge and has six top-20s in his last seven worldwide starts (26th the lone miss). Statistically, Matsuyama ranks top-10 on Tour in SG: Tee-to-Green, SG: Approach and SG: Around-the-Green and sits top-3 in every proximity bucket from 150–200+ yards—distances that make up the bulk of approach shots at Waialae. On a track where driving accuracy trumps distance and mid-iron precision is paramount, Durell believes Matsuyama checks every box and should be closer to the +1200 range.

Chris Durell said Nick Taylor is the best outright value on his betting card at +3300. Waialae ranks top-5 on DataGolf’s course-history tool, and Taylor’s trajectory fits that narrative perfectly: T68, 74th, MC, MC, T32 in his first five visits followed by T11 (2021), back-to-back T7s (2023, 2024) and an outright win last year. Durell noted that Taylor almost always shows up with lukewarm form—his three most recent finishes are 33rd, 44th and MC—yet repeatedly spikes on the positional 7,044-yard par-70 because he understands its dog-legged fairways and Bermuda greens. With history so predictive at Waialae and scoring driven by accuracy over power, Durell sees +3300 as a mis-price worth pouncing on.

Iain MacMillan targeted Harry Hall at +3000 on Bet365, highlighting that Hall sits seventh in the field in true total strokes gained and an impressive second in true strokes-gained putting over the last six months—an important skill set at Waialae. Hall posted a top-10 finish at this tournament last season, giving course-history reassurance. MacMillan acknowledged the only risk is rust—Hall has not teed it up since October’s Alfred Dunhill Links Championship—but believes the statistical profile and prior success make him a worthwhile outright bet at 30-1.

Iain MacMillan backed Robert MacIntyre at +2400 on Bet365, arguing that a golfer sitting fourth in the field in true total strokes gained over the past six months should not be priced outside the top five on the odds board. MacIntyre’s recent run includes a win at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, a T9 at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, a T8 at the DP World Tour Championship, and solo 12th at the Hero World Challenge. MacMillan expects the upward trajectory to continue in 2026 and calls the 24-1 outright number a clear value play in a thin field.

Iain MacMillan said Ben Griffin should be the outright betting favorite at the Sony Open, yet FanDuel lists him at +1600 behind Russell Henley. MacMillan noted Griffin leads the entire field in true total strokes gained over the past six months and ranks fifth in true strokes-gained putting during that span—both key indicators at Waialae Country Club, where strong iron play and a hot putter historically separate winners. Given those metrics and the relatively soft field, MacMillan believes the 16-1 number is mispriced value and recommends an outright wager.

Robert MacIntyre shares the +2000 line, and Glasscott argued the Scot’s late-season surge warrants investment. MacIntyre nearly captured the U.S. Open at Oakmont, placed T7 at Royal Portrush, and finished solo second at the BMW Championship before winning the Alfred Dunhill Links. He then stacked two more DP World Tour top-10s to close the year. With Ryder Cup confidence still fresh, Glasscott believes MacIntyre’s ball-striking travels and that the left-hander arrives as one of the hottest players in the field.

Glasscott viewed Keegan Bradley (+2000) as a course-fit special. The 2025 Travelers champ finished runner-up by a stroke at Waialae in 2024 and followed with a T6 in 2025, shooting 30-under combined across those two starts. With his Ryder Cup captaincy duties behind him, Bradley can focus solely on playing—an angle Glasscott thinks the market is undervaluing. On a layout that rewards accuracy and hot putting streaks, Bradley’s recent Sony form makes him a legitimate outright ticket.

J.J. Spaun, priced at +2000, earned an emphatic endorsement from Glasscott. Spaun held last year’s 54-hole Sony lead before finishing one shot outside the playoff, a springboard to a career-best 2025 highlighted by his clutch putt to win the U.S. Open at Oakmont. He also logged runner-up finishes at the Cognizant Classic and THE PLAYERS, plus top-6 results in the Playoffs and Hero World Challenge. Given Spaun’s proven comfort at Waialae and a newfound major-championship pedigree, Glasscott expects him to threaten again and sees +2000 as fair value.

Glasscott highlighted Collin Morikawa at +2000 as a ceiling play for bettors seeking upside. The two-time major winner logged three top-10s in his first five starts of 2025 but faded down the stretch while juggling caddie changes. Morikawa hasn’t won since the 2023 Baycurrent Classic, yet Glasscott notes that Waialae rewards elite approach play—Morikawa’s calling card. In his lone previous trip here (2021) he shot 18-under for T7. If the putter cooperates on the pure Bermuda surfaces, Glasscott believes Morikawa can snap the victory drought.

At +2000, Hideki Matsuyama rates as Glasscott’s favorite mid-tier option. The 2022 Sony Open champion is fresh off winning the Hero World Challenge and posted five worldwide top-20s during an unusually busy fall schedule, including top-seven finishes in Korea and Japan. Matsuyama owns nine consecutive made cuts at Waialae with six T30 or better results (T16 last year), and Glasscott believes his dialed-in irons plus renewed putting confidence on Bermuda make him a strong value to lift a 12th TOUR trophy.

Glasscott listed Ben Griffin as the +1600 second choice and argued the number is still enticing given Griffin’s breakout 2025. The North Carolina native racked up three victories (World Wide Technology Championship, Zurich Classic, Charles Schwab Challenge) and twelve top-10s, second only to Scottie Scheffler. Griffin closed the season with a win in his 30th start and now makes his fourth Sony Open appearance with confidence sky-high. Glasscott likes that Griffin couples elite birdie production with comfort on Bermuda and expects him to contend immediately in the 120-man field.

Mike Glasscott called Russell Henley "the man to beat" at +1100 on FanDuel. Glasscott pointed to Henley’s combination of elite recent form and a pristine history at Waialae. The five-time TOUR winner is coming off a 2025 campaign that featured a victory at the Arnold Palmer Invitational plus T2 finishes at the Travelers and TOUR Championship, part of ten top-10 results (one of only three players to hit double digits). Henley famously opened his TOUR career by winning this event in 2013 at 24-under and has added a 2022 playoff loss, T4 in 2024, and T10 last year. Waialae’s 7,044-yard par-70 sets up perfectly for his precise iron game, and Glasscott believes that track record plus current confidence justifies backing Henley as the betting favorite.

Kevin Cunningham said Russell Henley’s opening +1200 number to win the Sony Open is fully justified. Henley is the highest-ranked golfer in the Waialae field (No. 5 OWGR) after a standout 2025 season that included a victory at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, two additional runner-up finishes, and 10 total top-10s. That résumé earned him a place on the 2025 U.S. Ryder Cup team, and Cunningham argued those results explain why oddsmakers have installed him as the early betting favorite in the PGA Tour’s season opener.

John Haslbauer listed Daniel Berger among the eight golfers who clear every statistical hurdle he set—SG: APP, Proximity 125-200, Par-4 scoring 400-500, Driving Accuracy, SG: OTT on courses under 7,200 yards, SG: Around-the-Green, and Bermuda putting. Berger also ranks inside the top-10 at Waialae in cumulative strokes gained since 2015 and sits sixth in Par-4 efficiency between 400-500 yards, a vital range with ten such holes on the card. After a quiet 2025 campaign plagued by minor injuries, Berger arrives healthy and with positive experience on positional coastal layouts like Harbour Town and Colonial, both cited as primary comps. Haslbauer expects oddsmakers to price Berger in the 40-50/1 window; if that holds, he recommends an outright sprinkle and heavy exposure in balanced DFS builds where his fairway-first style provides cut-making stability and upside.

Haslbauer plans to open his betting card with Robert MacIntyre if books hang a palatable number. MacIntyre is one of only four OWGR top-10 players in the field and sits third overall in SG: Short Game over the last 36 rounds, a metric the tout is weighting heavier than normal because Waialae’s rough was lengthened to three inches and scrambling historically separates contenders here. The left-hander has built his resume on wind-exposed coastal tracks—wins at Marco Simone and a playoff loss at Harbour Town—courses Haslbauer lists as top comps. With elite touch around the greens, above-average driving accuracy, and a competitive appetite to start his season fast, Haslbauer believes MacIntyre will close shorter than his Monday opener and suggests locking in any triple-digit odds immediately.

John Haslbauer spotlighted Matt McCarty as his favorite under-the-radar play and a name he will bet as soon as prices appear. McCarty checked every statistical box Haslbauer emphasized: top-10 in Approach 125-200, top-10 in SG: Short Game, and one of only nine players to grade out above average in all 15 correlated categories for Waialae. The analyst loves McCarty’s proven ability to win immediately on new turf—three Korn Ferry wins in 2024 followed by a PGA TOUR victory in just his second start at the 2024 Black Desert Championship. McCarty backed that up with top-20 debuts at THE PLAYERS and The Masters and closed 2025 with four top-15 finishes in his final five events. Because Waialae rewards precision more than power and young players often struggle with the Hawaii time change, Haslbauer is giving extra weight to McCarty’s T14 in Japan and overall globe-trotting success. He views the sophomore as a live outright longshot and a high-upside DFS pivot who could catch steam quickly.

John Haslbauer said Russell Henley is the first name he clicked in his model and expects him to be in the hunt at Waialae once more. Henley owns the most total strokes-gained at the course among players in the field, captured his first TOUR victory here 13 years ago, and has stacked four top-11 finishes at the Sony over the last five seasons. Over his last 36 measured rounds he ranks top-5 in Driving Accuracy, Comp-Course History and SG: Tee-to-Green, a perfect skill set for a layout that punishes missed fairways and leans on 125-200 yard approach play. Haslbauer noted that Henley also grades out above average in every key stat he weighted (SG: APP, Prox 125-200, Par-4 400-500, SG: OTT on courses <7,200 yards, SG: ARG, and Bermuda putting). The combination of elite course history and current statistical form makes Henley an automatic add to outright cards and DFS cores despite a short price.

Pat Mayo urged gamblers and DFS players to buy the dip on Daniel Berger, noting sportsbooks have discounted him after a disastrous late-2025 stretch caused by severe chipping yips. Mayo reminded readers that Berger opened last season with three Top-3 finishes and nine Top-25s in his first 12 starts—including strong results at The Masters and THE PLAYERS—before a finger injury coincided with him hemorrhaging almost one stroke per round Around-the-Green over his final ten events. Despite that slide, Berger’s core skills never left: he remained one of the tour’s most accurate drivers and a plus iron player. Waialae de-emphasizes scrambling (71% GIR, ATG grows less important the higher you climb the leaderboard), making it an ideal venue for a player whose weakness is solely short game. Berger also owns wins at two primary comp tracks, Pebble Beach and Colonial, underscoring his ceiling on short, positional layouts. Mayo advised sprinkling outright bets and using Berger as a leverage play in DFS builds while monitoring range reports early in the week to confirm the chipping issues are under control.