Jim Sannes will roster Sam Burns at $9,400, preferring him to Ben Griffin in the same price neighborhood. Although Burns lost strokes on approach last week, Sannes pointed out that his irons had been trending upward beforehand while his off-the-tee game remains a weapon. Pair that with Burns’ ability to catch fire with the putter and Sannes sees a higher ceiling than Griffin offers. He is willing to live with the occasional short-game blow-up because Burns’ spike weeks include the ball-striking profile required to contend at Portrush. In GPPs, Burns provides volatile upside without the ownership of the more talked-about Griffin.

Sam Burns checks form boxes but Gannon is out because the $9,100 price tag will attract heavy ownership. With Burns projected as one of the week’s most popular plays, Gannon prefers differentiating elsewhere rather than riding a chalky third-highest-priced golfer in volatile links conditions.

Drew Stoltz pivoted from Ryan Fox to Sam Burns and locked in Burns top 20 at +190 on Fanatics Sportsbook. Stoltz highlighted that Burns has logged five consecutive top-20 finishes and seven in his last eight starts, nearly stealing the U.S. Open and losing a playoff in Canada during that span. With Burns pushing to secure a Ryder Cup berth and showing week-in, week-out contention, Stoltz believes another top-20 cash at The Renaissance Club is highly probable.

Brady Kannon recommended wagering on Sam Burns at 37-1, highlighting that Burns has finished outside the top-20 just once in his last eight starts. Over the past 24 rounds, Burns ranks No. 1 in this field on par-4s measuring 450-500 yards, a key hole length at The Renaissance Club. Kannon praised Burns’ birdie-making ability, elite scrambling, and consistently hot putter—attributes that should shine if the forecast turns the week into a putting contest. Those metrics, coupled with steady recent form, led Kannon to call the 37-1 price “too good to pass up.”

Pat Mayo encouraged one-and-done players who are chasing to pivot onto Sam Burns at the Scottish Open. Burns is still available to 43 % of the overall pool, meaning his maximum ownership is capped well below chalk options like Robert MacIntyre (82 % available) or Matt Fitzpatrick. Mayo noted that the Renaissance Club rewards Burns’ driver-plus-putter profile and that Sia Nejad’s simulator still shows meaningful win equity for Burns despite the recent Sunday stumbles. Because first prize is $1.7 million this week and many entrants will hold Burns for the richer St. Jude event, Mayo thinks grabbing him now provides immediate leverage: if Burns wins, managers leapfrog Rory-heavy and Fitzpatrick-heavy cards that split the pot. Mayo framed the play as a classic risk-reward decision—perfect for entrants sitting outside the big-money spots who need a low-owned spike week.

Sia Nejad said he is splitting his Sam Burns action between the standard outright (around 40-1) and the “without Scheffler, Rory, Morikawa and Fleetwood” market where Burns sits near 30-1. Nejad likes that approach because it keeps his exposure the same while trimming the four biggest win-equity threats off one ticket. He argued Burns is "playing so well" tee-to-green, and the Renaissance Club rewards his driver-plus-putter profile. Recent Sunday stumbles don’t bother him—Nejad thinks those were mostly situational rather than skill-based. Because the course lets players chase with aggressive driving and doesn’t over-penalize imperfect iron play, he believes Burns’ current form makes him live to cash either ticket.

McBrayer is adding Sam Burns to his outright card despite the relatively short 35-1 price because Burns’ scrambling numbers check every Renaissance-Club box he highlighted earlier. Burns owns a top-20 finish in each of his last five starts (seven of his last eight) and posted a T-19 here in 2023. Bo framed Burns as one of the few players whose short game is good enough to survive the tightly-mown run-offs if iron play wobbles, making him a high-ceiling pivot if you want a number longer than Rory or Xander but shorter than the true longshots.

Patrick McDonald ruled Sam Burns out of outright contention, citing lingering baggage from a viral clip where Burns slammed a shot into a bunker lip at Renaissance two years ago. McDonald believes that mishap is still in Burns’s head and could be exacerbated on a course featuring five par-3s and numerous penal bunkers. With no noteworthy links results to offset the mental hurdle, McDonald is comfortable striking Burns from outright cards this week.

After Mike Carver floated Sam Burns as a sleeper, Smylie Kaufman backed the idea, explaining why Burns profiles as a strong outright or each-way play this week. Kaufman emphasized Burns’ two biggest weapons—elite driving and a hot putter—both of which are amplified on the firm Renaissance Club turf that yields plenty of wedge approaches. Burns has flashed form with several high finishes over the past six weeks and owns positive history at this event. Kaufman added that firm fairways should help Burns’ penetrating driver find extra rollout and set up scoring irons, giving him realistic win equity in a field loaded with stars.

Bydlon punched Sam Burns tickets outright (40-1), top-5 and top-20, calling the LSU product a sneaky perfect fit. Burns ranks 3rd in his 16-round model thanks to elite irons and his trademark top-5 putter. Recent finishes—2nd Canadian Open, 7th U.S. Open, 17th Travelers—confirm the trajectory. While Burns is only 306 yards off the tee, Bydlon noted that ranks 55th in the field but is just six yards shy of 20th, so distance is more than adequate. Past Scottish results (T19 2023, T18 2021) prove he can handle the fescue, and birdie-heavy scoring mitigates his occasionally wild driver.

Farnsworth recommended Sam Burns based on five straight top-20 finishes worldwide, including multiple top-20s at this event. Burns brings a well-rounded stat profile, gaining across all four strokes-gained categories, and his strong putting should pay off with expected 75-80% GIR rates. At a mid-$9K salary he fits balanced roster construction while still offering upside in calmer scoring conditions.

Kirschner’s prop is Sam Burns Top 20 at +160. Burns lost in a playoff in Canada, led the U.S. Open after 54 holes, and landed a Top-20 at the Travelers. He owns two previous Top-20s at the Scottish Open and even fired the low round of the day at Royal Troon last year, giving Kirschner confidence in another strong links showing.

When asked about the 45-1 range, Martin Matthews passed on Sam Burns. He acknowledged Burns’ recent form surge and Ryder Cup buzz but emphasized that the Louisianan has yet to prove he can close overseas. Burns’ best Open finish featured a Saturday 65 followed by an implosive Sunday 80, and his résumé is still dominated by ‘Bermuda Burns’ results in the Southeast U.S. Matthews does not trust Burns’ short-game creativity or wind management at Renaissance and sees better value on Europeans with links track records. He is fading Burns in outrights and matchups, expecting the American to finish outside the top-20.

Polzin called Sam Burns a reliable mid-range roster piece. Burns owns the second-best recent form in the field after a T17 at the Travelers and has never missed a cut at the Scottish Open. Although his full-season stat profile is only mid-pack for this layout, he still rates 11th in specialist data and sits 41-to-1 in the outright market. Polzin does not expect him to win but views him as a high-probability cut maker with Sunday upside, making Burns ideal for DFS line-ups that pay up elsewhere.

Gehman thinks it’s finally a Sam Burns week. Early-season pricing baked in 2023 form, but the recent stat profile looks like vintage Burns: two ‘complete gains’ in his last four starts, positive strokes in both approach and putting, improved around-the-green play (gaining in four of five), and steadier driving. At the Renaissance Club he owns finishes of 18-66-19 and has never lost strokes putting on its fescue greens. With ownership gravitating toward local hero Robert MacIntyre, Gehman sees Burns as a well-rounded $8K option capable of contending while others chase nationality narratives.

Sia Nejad tabbed Sam Burns as a mid-tier outright and DFS leverage play. Burns finished T19 here last year and T66 in 2022, but Nejad emphasized that the Louisianan’s current form is peaking—highlighting a run of top-20 ball-striking weeks before a late collapse in his most recent start. With bettors likely gravitating to bigger European names, Nejad expects Burns to come in at modest ownership in DFS and a bettable outright price. He noted Burns’ hot putter blends with Renaissance’s emphasis on long-range putting and de-emphasized around-the-green play, making Burns a strong course-fit sleeper.

Pat Mayo highlighted Sam Burns as a buy-low candidate whose game is quietly rounding into peak form. Burns owns five consecutive PGA Tour top-20s and, per Mayo, ranks top-10 in this field in both par-4 scoring and putting over his last 36 rounds. Although Burns has only a T22 as his best Scottish Open finish, Mayo argued the Louisiana native’s bump-and-run short-game and 315-yard carry distance profile map perfectly to Renaissance’s wide fairways and giant slow fescue greens. Burns also sits 6th in long-par-3 scoring (200+ yards), a hole type Mayo weighted heavily this week. With sportsbooks hanging 45–50-1 outrights and DraftKings pricing him below the elite tier, Mayo is adding Burns to his betting card, sprinkling a top-10, and using him as a leverage play in DFS builds that stack bombers.

David Barnett advised fading Sam Burns in majors that feature weather-driven carnage, pointing to Burns’ emotional meltdown after officials denied him temporary-water relief on Sunday at Oakmont. Barnett said Burns let the ruling "clearly rattle him," rushed two greenside chips and walked away with a double bogey that took him out of contention. He contrasted Burns’ reaction with eventual champion J.J. Spaun’s calm comeback from +5 through six holes, arguing that Oakmont-style setups reward mental resilience as much as ball-striking. Until Burns proves he can handle bad breaks and sloppy conditions, Barnett believes bettors should avoid outright tickets and DFS exposure when rain or thick rough are in play.

Mike Carver said Sam Burns is a straight fade at TPC River Highlands. Burns just lost a playoff at the Canadian Open and then coughed up Sunday’s lead at the U.S. Open, leaving him mentally fried. Carver thinks the last place Burns wants to be is Cromwell, CT and expects him to struggle with motivation in a non-major the very next week. Because this is a Signature Event with only a small cut, Carver believes Burns could still be among those few players to miss it and suggests betting Burns to miss the cut or passing on any outright/placement exposure entirely.

While Hennessey is buying Burns, the on-site coach is fading him at 28-1, arguing it’s historically profitable to oppose players immediately after a gut-wrenching major loss. The coach expects the mental and physical toll from leading most of the U.S. Open to make bouncing back in 72 hours extremely difficult.

Stephen Hennessey is bucking the consensus with Sam Burns at 35-1. He praised how Burns handled the controversial 14th-hole ruling Sunday at Oakmont and highlighted his scorching form: nearly winning in Canada, then leading most of the U.S. Open. Burns’ irons and putter are both firing, and Hennessey calls TPC River Highlands a kinder, less grueling venue that should reward that combo immediately.

Kenny Kim advised fading Sam Burns at the Travelers after consecutive gut-punch Sundays. Burns lost the U.S. Open late for the second straight major, and Kenny argued that back-to-back heartbreaks make it tough to recharge mentally on a short turnaround. With no cut and a deep signature-event field, Kenny prefers shorting Burns in head-to-head matchups and avoiding him in high-stakes DFS builds until the LSU product shows his confidence is intact.

Byron Lindeque said bettors should actively fade Sam Burns any time the LSU product enters a major championship Sunday in contention. Byron pulled the numbers: Burns has now started the final round within three shots of the lead at a major on three occasions and lost strokes to the field every time—-4.8 at this year’s U.S. Open, ‑6.9 at last season’s Open Championship, and ‑4.0 at the 2022 U.S. Open. Byron views that trend as a mental-toughness red flag, noting that while Burns owns five regular PGA Tour wins, he “crumbles on Sundays” under major-championship pressure. His advice: avoid outright tickets on Burns until he proves otherwise and look to short him in live finishing-position props or final-round head-to-head markets versus steadier closers.

Gannon is fading Sam Burns at $9,100. He argued the salary is ‘pretty high for a golfer who’s been bad objectively’ outside of two recent weeks, and he prefers either dropping down or pivoting to lower-owned alternatives instead of chasing a fragile uptick in form.

Despite liking Sam Burns long-term, Gehman is off him at the Travelers. Burns "probably should have won" at Oakmont and was deep in the mix for 72 holes, which Gehman believes creates mental and physical fatigue on a quick turnaround. Statistical profile backs the concern: Burns lost −2.8 on approach Sunday and ranks outside the top-90 in fairways gained, a crucial metric at TPC River Highlands. Gehman prefers to wait for a more driver-friendly venue and will have near-zero DFS exposure or betting interest this week.

Andy Lack called Sam Burns a glaring buy for wedge-heavy setups after watching him torch Oakmont with the two skills that matter most inside 150 yards: short-iron proximity and a scorching flatstick. Burns ranks inside the top three on Tour in strokes-gained putting this season, and Lack highlighted a slew of up-and-downs from 60–100 yards that separated him from the field. Even when the LSU product leaked a drive, he salvaged par thanks to that lethal combination. Lack’s takeaway: on courses like TPC River Highlands where a high percentage of approaches fall in the 75-to-150-yard window and birdies are set up by precise wedges rather than long irons, Burns should be a core DFS play and an outright consideration despite his volatile driver.

Rouslin is riding Sam Burns to defeat Nicolas Echavarria and Denny McCarthy. Burns lost a playoff to Ryan Fox last week and notched his first career major top-10 in a major a few weeks, signaling a sharp uptick in form. With confidence ranked in his top 4 bets, Rouslin expects that momentum to carry through Round-1 at Oakmont.

Guy Boston Sports labeled Sam Burns a "cozy" top-40 bet, with the option to push to top-30 if the price is right. Burns ranks first in the field in 5-15 foot putting and has logged encouraging ball-striking lately: +2 SG off the tee at the Canadian Open, +1 at the Memorial, and a massive +8 at the PGA. His last three U.S. Opens read T10, T32, T27, proof he can handle major-champ conditions. The caveat is an occasionally wild driver—if Burns finds too much of Oakmont’s gnarly rough, the putter may not save him. Nonetheless, the tout likes the recent tee-to-green uptick and believes the short stick can carry him inside the top-40 at roughly even money.

Dom Cintorino argued Sam Burns remains a value around 90-1 despite last week’s playoff heartbreak. Burns just logged his best iron performance since August 2023 and still did not see his odds balloon, which Dom views as a market inefficiency. Cintorino dismissed the five-footer Burns missed in regulation as the only true blemish and instead emphasized the putter upside Burns always carries. On Oakmont’s perilous greens, that spike-putting potential plus newly-found iron form makes Burns a live placement and outright candidate.

Byron Lindeque proposed a PlayProfitX matchup fading Sam Burns and backing Justin Rose, noting that Burns owns just one top-10 finish in his last 21 major starts—hardly the profile you want at Oakmont. Lindeque reminded listeners that Burns’ lone bright spot came at last year’s very different Pinehurst setup; Oakmont’s narrow corridors and church-pew bunkers punish Burns’ inconsistent driving far more severely. With Rose trending in approach play and historically thriving on firm Poa surfaces, Byron expects Rose to out-grind Burns over 72 holes and has already queued the Rose side of the matchup before the price shortens. He is also slashing Burns exposure in DFS builds, calling the LSU product “all ceiling, no floor” in this particular major.

Kenny Kim is slotting Sam Burns into both cash and GPP line-ups at $7,100 despite models screaming fade. Burns owns five top finishes in his last six starts and should have won the week prior. Kim said the LSU product can "putt his ass off," a premium skill when birdie chances are scarce. While Burns’ long-term stats lag in driving accuracy and long-iron play, Kim is leaning on eye-test momentum, banking on Burns’ red-hot putter and renewed confidence to outperform his baseline on Oakmont’s glassy Poa greens.

Jim Sannes moved Sam Burns squarely onto his DFS radar at $9,200 after noticing a quiet but meaningful turnaround with the irons. Burns has gained strokes on approach in back-to-back starts for the first time since early spring, a huge development because his driver (317-yard average carry) and elite Bermuda putting have never been in doubt. Sannes argued that if the improved approach play holds for four rounds, Burns’ distance will help him advance shots from Oakmont’s five-inch rough while the hot putter can mask around-the-green blemishes. At a mid-9k salary, Burns fits perfectly as an upside second golfer in stars-and-scrubs builds anchored by Scottie Scheffler or Bryson DeChambeau, providing tournament-winning ceiling without the five-figure price tag.

Eric Polzin is baffled by how cheap Sam Burns is and has elevated him to core-play No. 3 while eyeing outright bets if markets drift to 80-100-1. Burns owns seven straight made cuts with finishes of 13th (RBC), 5th (CJ Cup), 30th (Truist), T20 (PGA), 12th (Memorial) and 2nd last week, a run that has his 9-5 specialist metric slotting him 4th overall. He ranks top-20 in every unique Oakmont course characteristic aside from green-speed, where he is 54th – Polzin’s lone worry, along with any mental scar tissue from the playoff lip-out. Statistically Burns is a perfect fit: strong total driver, low error rate and historically elite putter. Add positive U.S. Open history and Polzin believes "if he improves even one more notch off that runner-up, he wins." He recommends double-digit DFS exposure and a sprinkle on outright and top-10 markets.

Jessica Marksbury pegged Sam Burns at +7,500, reasoning that Oakmont’s greens could hit 14+ on the Stimpmeter. She expects a putting contest and Burns ranks among the Tour’s premier putters. Supporting her case, Burns has quietly posted solid U.S. Open results—T27, T32, and T9—in his last three starts, showing he can handle the championship grind. If slick greens decide the trophy, Marksbury wants the elite flat stick of Burns in her betting portfolio.

Rick Gehman said Sam Burns is peaking at exactly the right time and is a smash play at $7,100. Burns is the PGA Tour’s No. 1 putter this season, but the big change is ball-striking: he has gained in all four strokes-gained categories in back-to-back starts (Memorial and Canadian Open) and averaged 315 yards carry off the tee. Gehman noted Burns’ U.S. Open pedigree—T9 at Pinehurst last year—and argued that the all-around gains are one of the strongest leading indicators of a looming win. Burns narrowly lost a playoff in Canada after missing a five-foot putt, which Gehman framed as a learning experience rather than a red flag. At a bomber-heavy Oakmont where par is golden, Burns’ distance plus elite putting makes him a high-leverage GPP anchor and a live outright ticket at 55-1.

Alex Blickle said Sam Burns tops his one-and-done list for the Canadian Open because the LSU bomber brings the exact distance-plus-short-game combo TPC Toronto rewards while not being a name you feel forced to save for a future signature event. Burns ranks 21st on TOUR in driving distance, has gained strokes around the green in six consecutive starts, and finally snapped a five-month approach slump by gaining with his irons last week. Add a bent-grass putter that historically runs +0.4 SG per round and you have a complete profile in a field missing most of the elite. Forecasts call for overnight rain and rumors of 2.5-inch rough; Blickle argued that favors power players who can muscle mid-irons from the cabbage, a category where Burns clearly lives. With Taylor Pendrith expected to soak up ownership, deploying Burns in one-and-done or at 20-1 outright captures a $1M purse boost while carving leverage on the chalky Canadian.

Shane Bacon made Sam Burns one of his three outright selections, pointing out that Burns has quietly stacked four top-20 finishes in five starts since Augusta, capped by a T12 at Muirfield Village where the rough measured almost identical to TPC Toronto’s four inches. Burns gained 5.1 strokes putting on bentgrass-dominant greens last week, and the North Course will likewise feature quick, pure surfaces. Bacon also highlighted Burns’ balanced profile—top-35 this season in both SG: Approach and SG: Putting—which typically plays up on vanilla TPC designs that do not force specialists into uncomfortable shots. With the favorite tier dominated by Scheffler and McIlroy, Bacon thinks the LSU product provides mid-tier value in both outright tickets and DFS lineups.

Brian Giuffra endorsed Sam Burns outright at +3000, pointing to a quietly excellent six-event run: four Top-20s since April capped by last week’s T12 at Muirfield Village. Burns still ranks among the tour’s longest drivers—key for a 7,400-yard par-70—and he leads the entire PGA Tour in SG: Putting. Giuffra highlighted that Burns finally gained strokes both on approach and around the green at Memorial after bleeding in those categories early in 2024. Add in last year’s T10 at this same venue and Giuffra sees a player rounding into form at the perfect time, with extra incentive to impress Ryder Cup captains.

Sam Burns caught Polzin’s eye as an upside betting target. After a sluggish spring, Burns has gained strokes across the bag in three consecutive starts, signaling the putter-centric spike weeks that have produced his five career wins may be incoming. Hamilton’s bent-poa greens mirror the surfaces of Burns’ Valspar and Sanderson victories, further boosting comfort. Polzin noted Burns’ driving accuracy ranks in the 75th percentile over the last month—a crucial improvement for this setup. At mid-tier outright prices and moderate DFS ownership, Burns offers tournament-winning upside without the Rory tax.

Andy Lack pushed back on Burns enthusiasm, saying he is "not as high on Burns" and would rather bet Robert MacIntyre in the same price range. Lack acknowledged Burns finally gained with the irons at Colonial but doubts one week erases a season-long ball-striking slump. He worries Burns’ recent form—losing strokes on approach in six of his last eight starts—won’t hold up on a 7,400-yard par-70 that still demands precise mid-irons into large yet elevated greens. Lack believes MacIntyre’s current tee-to-green trajectory and left-handed shot-shape suit TPC Toronto better, so he will fade Burns in outrights and look to short him in head-to-heads.

Geoff Fienberg grabbed Sam Burns at 35-to-1, arguing that last week’s positive strokes-gained approach number could be a turning point for a player who used to ‘steal lunch money’ in C- and B-tier PGA Tour events. Fienberg pointed out that Burns ranks top-20 in both driving distance and putting over his last 50 rounds, the exact profile that dominated courses like this from 2021-2023. With TPC Toronto expected to mirror Valhalla—wide fairways, moderate rough and receptive greens—he projects Burns to generate plenty of wedge looks and roll in birdies. Fienberg plans to pair the outright with matchup bets against shorter hitters, believing the market is over-reacting to Burns’ quiet spring and ignoring how quickly an elite driver/putter can spike in a diluted field.

Kenny Kim added Sam Burns to his outright card at 28-1 (eight places) after noting a familiar hot-streak pattern. Burns has posted four Top-20 finishes in his last five starts—three in majors or signature events—and gained strokes in every category at the Memorial. The last two times he produced a clean strokes-gained sweep, he finished 5th and 12th the very next week. Kim echoed Andy Lack’s course-preview comp to TPC Craig Ranch, where Burns finished 5th, and highlighted Burns’ tendency to bunch elite results together: five of his PGA wins came within twelve starts of one another. With distance and spike putting both rewarded at TPC Toronto, Kim believes the 28-1 number underrates Burns’ win equity compared to shorter-priced names who lack his current form.

Pat Mayo said the RBC Canadian Open layout is perfectly tailored for Sam Burns and is placing an outright ticket on him in the mid-30s. Burns finally flashed his peak form at Memorial by gaining strokes on approach for the first time in four months, a critical signal for Mayo because the elite driver-plus-putter profile is lethal only when the irons cooperate. Mayo reminded listeners that Burns used to "bully" mid-tier fields by leaning on that combo and sees a similar opportunity here: wide corridors invite driver on virtually every hole and receptive greens reward confident putting. Mayo acknowledged a small concern that Burns is on a four-week grind (Memorial, Canadian, U.S. Open, Travelers) due to his RBC commitment, but thinks the confidence jolt from Memorial outweighs fatigue risk. He is betting Burns outright and building DFS cores around him, expecting Burns’ high-birdie upside to pay off in both markets.

Gehman believes Sam Burns’ long-awaited rebound is here. After 10 consecutive tournaments losing strokes on approach, Burns picked up +1.2 at the Memorial and parlayed that into a T12 while gaining across the board. The LSU product has remained a top-10 putter all season, so any return of iron play could spark ceiling weeks. Wide 40-yard fairways let Burns lean on his 310-yard carry distance, and TPC Toronto’s ‘hit it far, take dead aim, roll in putts’ recipe perfectly matches his skill set. At 30-to-1 outright and likely mid-$9K on DraftKings, Gehman is upping his exposure for the first time in months, calling this the ideal low-ownership inflection point before pricing catches up.

Patrick McDonald said Sam Burns should be on bettors’ short lists for TPC Toronto. McDonald noted that the new 7,400-yard par-70 has almost four-inch rough and ranks third-fewest in bunkers on Tour, making total-driving paramount. Burns, who already ranked top-20 last season in both driving distance and strokes-gained off-the-tee, showed signs of heating up with a low Friday round at Colonial and a week of clean ball-striking. McDonald expects the beefy setup to accentuate Burns’ biggest edge—long, accurate tee shots—and thinks early prices will be attractive before the market fully bakes in the course fit.

Jim Sannes recommended fading Sam Burns in both DFS and betting markets because Burns’ recent success is almost entirely putter-driven—a trait Sannes wants no part of at Muirfield Village. With the course demanding elite approach play, stout around-the-green work, and accurate driving on 24-yard-wide fairways, Sannes warns that hot putting can’t mask ball-striking deficiencies here. Burns currently ranks near the field average in strokes-gained approach and around the green, and his off-the-tee numbers lack the accuracy bump Sannes prioritizes. Given the venue’s historically tough scoring (cut line +3 or worse the last five years) and the premium on tee-to-green skill, Sannes is steering clear of Burns’ mid-range outright odds and will leave him off his DFS player pool.

Polzin doubled down on Sam Burns as the safest sub-$8K option and sweetened the pot by recommending a 45-to-1 outright. Burns is trending nicely—T-13 at RBC Heritage, T-11 at Wells Fargo and T-5 at the CJ Cup—while gaining 1.1 strokes per round tee-to-green across that span. He has finished 15th in each of his last two Memorial starts and grades 30th in Polzin’s stat model, highlighted by 6th-best Bentgrass putting and 18th in birdie-or-better percentage over the last 36 rounds. With a DraftKings salary of $7,900, Burns slides perfectly into fair-and-balanced constructions alongside Fleetwood, Conners and Si Woo Kim. Polzin projects a top-20 median finish with legitimate Sunday contention chances, making Burns a core DFS piece and a must-click at 45-1 before books adjust.

Burns has quietly made five consecutive cuts and ranks sixth in Polzin’s recent-form index over the last five tournaments, highlighted by a 5th at the CJ Cup and T-13 at RBC Heritage. Two straight T-15 finishes at Muirfield show he can handle Muirfield Village’s demanding tee-to-green test. At a depressed salary in the low-$7K range, Polzin labels Burns the safest click in the lower tier, especially useful for Scheffler builds that still need cut-making stability and scoring upside.

After initially trying to ‘talk himself out of it,’ Gehman decided Sam Burns is worth a tournament sprinkle because results are improving even while he’s lost strokes on approach in 10 straight starts. Burns has compensated by driving it better (gaining or neutral in six straight) and remains an elite putter, fueling finishes of 5th at Byron Nelson, 13th at Harbour Town, and T19 at the PGA. He’s also quietly 15th and 16th in two Memorial appearances. With ownership likely suppressed by the ugly iron trend, Gehman likes Burns as a 5-10% GPP exposure play whose ceiling re-emerges if the irons simply reach field average. He recommended pairing Burns with chalky ball-strikers to create unique roster constructions.