U.S. Open 2025 DFS Picks: Predictions, Values & Projections
Published: Jun 11, 2025
The season's third major is upon us. After a fun playoff between Ryan Fox and Sam Burns, we head over to what many consider to be the toughest test a player will get as a professional, the U.S. Open. This year’s iteration is being hosted at Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, Pennsylvania. Oakmont has a storied history, and is an extremely difficult course, regardless of skill.
Let’s dive in!
U.S. Open 2025: Daily Fantasy Golf Picks & Projections
Established in 1895, the U.S. Open is the annual national open for the United States of America. While originally a 36 hole competition, it has been played as 72 holes of stroke play since 1898. Often played at courses that are set up for difficult scoring, the struggles for the players can pay off, as this major holds the largest purse of all 4 major championships at a total of $21,500,000 as of 2024. Bryson DeChambeau secured his 2nd U.S. Open victory last year in 2024, and looks to defend his title this year. Players of all ages have won, with the oldest winner and youngest winner being nearly 36 years apart in age. Oakmont Country Club will be hosting this year, it's 10th such year as the host course.
Oakmont Country Club: Course Breakdown This Week
Oakmont Country Club is not a new venue for us. Given this will be Oakmont’s tenth hosting of this event, as well as its 15th total major between men’s and women’s professional golf, we have a long course history to consider here. Oakmont historically has produced low scoring, with the winning scores here ranging between just 5 under par, and as high as 11 over par. After hearing that, it should be no surprise that less than 2 percent of players have finished even par or better in the history of this event.
Playing at a par 70 at just under 7,400 yards, you will see a distinct style of play at this event. With no water at the venue, the defense will lie with the rough and bunkers at this event. As is standard with U.S. Open venues, the rough will be brutal as is will be grown out to 5 inches deep, with truly no transition between fairway into the rough. Accuracy will be at a premium this week, especially when you consider there are roughly 170 to 200 bunkers on the course. The greens will be lightning fast poa annua grass, as they have always been, and are reported to be playing at a 15 or 16 on the Stimpmeter. Sam Snead once joked that he put a ball marker down and the marker slid down the green.
The layout of this event is as follows: four par 3s ranging between 180 and nearly 300 yards, twelve par 4s ranging between 310 and 510 yards, and 2 par 5s playing over 600 yards. The par 4s consist of some of the hardest on tour and on the course, with holes 1, 7, 9, 11, and 15 representing the 5 hardest holes on the course. There is no easy hole on the course, but the par 5 4th hole represents one of the two easiest on the course, with the other par 5 hole 12 sitting at 10th.
Having most recently been the host of the 2016 U.S. Open, let’s take a look at our performances from that season to get an idea of where our focus should lie this week. During the 2016 iteration of the event, only 4 players finished with scores below par, with Dustin Johnson ultimately taking home the win with a score of -4. I’m expecting Oakmont to play even harder this year, as everything that has come out of the USGA has indicated that will be the case. With lower scoring events, we will put an emphasis on Bogey Avoidance, as well as 3 putt-avoidance to help identify players who are least likely to make mistakes. Additionally, when looking at the relative importance of different parts of the game, every major category plays an important role. Driving Distance, Accuracy, and Approach all project to play above relative importance, with putting and around the green game playing slightly under. As a result Good Drives Gained will take center stage this week as one of our premium stats. Putting on Poa Annua, distance approach, sand save percentage, and bounce back percentage will round out our key stats for our model this week.
U.S. Open 2025 Field: Golf DFS
Unsurprisingly, the top players in the world will be in attendance this week, with every playing in the OWGR top 25 will be teeing it up this week at Oakmont. 2024 and 2020-2021 Champion Bryson Dechambeau will be attempting to defend his title, as other previous winners such as Wyndham Clark, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Jon Rahm, Gary Woodland, Lucas Glover, Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose, and Rory McIlroy will attempt to secure another major title. Data Golf agrees with the strength of this field, as 29 of their top 30 players will be in attendance this week as well. We will also see 16 amateurs in the field, showing the range of players in attendance this week. As always, a large number of players qualified for this event through the Open Qualifiers. Some notable names from these venues include Chris Gotterup, Jackson Koivun, Marc Leishman, Erik van Rooyen, Bud Cauley, Lanto Griffin, Justin Lower, Cameron Young, Matt Wallace, Emiliano Grillo, and Mason Howell.
This Week’s PGA DFS Optimizer & Lineup Generator
To enhance your daily fantasy golf selections and secure optimal PGA DFS values, it's advisable to utilize our PGA DFS optimizer and lineup generator. This optimizer serves as a valuable resource for daily fantasy golf enthusiasts aiming to develop effective lineups!
It provides projections, updates on player injuries, and a range of analytical insights to facilitate the lineup-building process. Essentially, it functions as a strategic advantage for participants in daily fantasy golf and makes their own PGA DFS picks!
GOLF DFS PICKS THIS WEEK: Top Tier
Bryson DeChambeau ($11,000 DraftKings/$12,500 FanDuel)
With Scottie as the only player with better opening odds to win this week, it should be no surprise to see Bryson’s name here. He’s finish T5th and 2nd in the two majors in 2025, and has not finished worse than 10th in an event he’s started since LIV Hong Kong back in March. One of the longest players on tour, he’s bounced back well with the irons after a poor showing with them at the Masters, but he’s certainly going to be a force this week as he looks to defend his title from 2024.
Jon Rahm ($10,200 DraftKings/$11,900 FanDuel)
Much like Bryson, Rahm has been a strong contender thus far in 2025. While he does not have a win under his belt this year, he only has one event where he has finished outside the top 10 in 2024, and that was at the Masters where he finished T14th. His putter has been the weakest part of his game thus far this year, but the driver, irons, and wedge have absolutely been a strength. He’s going to find his way into contention this week, much like he did here in 2016 where he finished T23 but played to a score of just +1 after an opening round +6.
Xander Schauffele ($10,400 DraftKings/$11,800 FanDuel)
Xander is still clearly trying to find the form he previously had, but is getting very close. With 6 straight finishes inside the top 30, Xander just needs to put all parts of his game together for 4 days. The U.S. Open is an event he has historically done this in, as he has made 8 U.S. Open starts and has never finished worse that T14th. He’s recorded 3 top 5 finishes in this event, and while we did not see him play here in 2016, I feel Xander is a solid play this week given his history on tough courses.
GOLF DFS PICKS THIS WEEK: MID-TIER
Joaquin Niemann ($8,600 DraftKings/$10,900 FanDuel)
Joaquin Niemann has been playing some great golf in 2025. Over on LIV, he’s recorded 4 wins in 8 starts, finished T8th at the PGA Championship, and has multiple top 5 finishes between the DP World Tour and Asian Tour. The putter struggled last week for him, but gained nearly 3 true strokes on approach, continues to be dangerous with the driver and has plenty of length, and has been solid around the green at times as well. He’s going to be a popular play this week, especially coming off two strong performances in majors in 2025.
Justin Thomas ($9,000 DraftKings/$11,000 FanDuel)
JT is not in his best form right now. He missed the cut at the PGA, and finished just T31st at the Memorial, but after taking a week off, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him get right. For most of 2025, he’s been a very strong player as he currently ranks 9th in SG: Tee-to-Green, 8th in SG: Approach-to-Green, 15th in SG: Putting, 1st in Putting Average, 3rd in Putts Per Round, and 6th in One-putt percentage. He’s also played well above field average in sand save percentage, and leads the PGA Tour in Birdie or Better Percentage. He’s struggled at times to avoid bogeys, but I think he’s going to be a force this week.
Jordan Spieth ($7,500 DraftKings/$10,500 FanDuel)
The Jordan Spieth experience has been in full effect in 2025, and I don’t expect that to change this week. In his last start at the Memorial, he recorded his only his 3rd event of 2025 where he gained strokes in all 4 major categories. What makes me like him more this week are his ranks in the top 15 of our field in SG: Total, Par 4 scoring, putting average, and bounce back percentage. He’s a risky play without a doubt, but the upside here can’t be ignored if he’s on.
Ben Griffin ($7,200 DraftKings/$10,400 FanDuel)
Pretty crazy that this guy was doing mortgages just four years ago. In 2025, he’s recorded his first two wins on tour, and his last 3 starts have been an absolute master class. He finished T8th at the PGA, won the Charles Schwab, and then was the runner up at the Memorial. He’s been strong with all clubs, and was one of the longest players at Memorial. He’s a great value this week even with this being his U.S. Open debut.
GOLF DFS PICKS THIS WEEK: VALUE TIER
Corey Conners ($7,300 DraftKings/$9,800 FanDuel)
Conners feels like the most boring play I’m writing about this week. He has 5 top 10s on tour this year, but is without a win. That said, he’s been consistent most of the year, and though he has struggled around the green of late, he’s been strong at all other aspects of the game. He seems like a solid enough bet to make the cut this week and will be a fine addition on the lower end of the pricing spectrum.
Akshay Bhatia ($6,700 DraftKings/$9,200 FanDuel)
Akshay seems a lot like a younger version of Jordan Spieth. He’s had high highs, and low lows in 2025, with as many top 10’s as missed cuts since the Genesis Invitational. He’s a boom bust play as a result this week, but he’s given me reasons to believe of late. He’s been deadly on approach at times in 2025, ranking 21st in SG: Approach-to-Green. He ranks top 12 in SG: Putting and top 10 in Putting Average. He’s scored at an elite rate (7th in BoB Percentage) but has been terrible at avoiding Bogeys (ranking 129th). If you can stomach the risk, plug him in, if not don’t feel bad.
Ryan Fox ($6,800 DraftKings/$8,700 FanDuel)
Foxy has 2 wins in the last 4 events he’s played. It should be no surprise that he’s here. He’s a long driver of the golf ball, who consistently has been strong on approach in 2024. The putter and wedges have been plus clubs as well, though they do lay closer to neutral rather than a true strength. Most importantly, he’s been a top 20 player in 2025, especially when it comes to bounce back scoring, as he ranks 2nd among all PGA Tour players here. He’s going to be fun to watch if he maintains his current form.
Player Pool
| $ Tier | G |
|---|---|
| High |  Scottie Scheffler  $14,400 |
| Rory McIlroy $12,400 | |
| Bryson DeChambeau $11,000 | |
| Xander Schauffele $10,400 | |
| Jon Rahm $10,200 | |
| Medium | Ludvig Aberg $9,600 |
| Patrick Cantlay $9,300 | |
| Justin Thomas $9,000 | |
| Joaquin Niemann $8,600 | |
| Low | Jordan Spieth $7,500 |
| Keegan Bradley $7,400 | |
| Corey Conners $7,300 | |
| Ben Griffin $7,200 | |
| Ryan Fox $6,800 | |
| Akshay Bhatia $6,700 |
