Dustin Johnson, U.S. Open. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Breaking down the DraftKings slate for the 2021 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines with picks from every pricing tier and our best PGA DFS lineups for the week.
The U.S. Open is always near the top for the most entertaining golf tournaments of the year and for good reason. So with the major championship returning to Torrey Pines in 2021, that is definitely in mind. Fans will be looking for some carnage produced by a difficult setup but also for the best player to emerge. And PGA DFS players on DraftKings will be trying to figure out which golfers fit into that hat as well.
Navigating the DraftKings slate for the 2021 U.S. Open can be a simultaneously difficult and easy. On one hand, we do have data from Torrey Pines due to years at the Farmers Insurance Open. On the other, that setup won’t be anything like what the USGA puts these golfers through. Moreover, the player pool for PGA DFS contests is super deep but also can get bare after a certain point.
That’s why we’re here to break down the entire slate and try to make sense of it all. So we’ll start with the $10,000 range on DraftKings and go through every golfer who could be worth playing at the 2021 U.S. Open before building some lineups that you could use depending on your strategy.
DraftKings U.S. Open Picks: $10,000 range
Jon Rahm ($11,200) – Rahm was set to run away with the Memorial before a positive COVID test forced him to withdraw after 54 holes. Now cleared for Torrey Pines, a place where he’s enjoyed immense success, he checks all of the boxes as the favorite. His tee-to-green game has never been better and, with his putter finally joining the party, he might be worth this high price.
Jordan Spieth ($10,900) – Some people are going to fade Spieth this week and it makes sense. His sometimes-errant driver doesn’t seem to play well for this course or a U.S. Open. But in a tournament in which grinding out scores whenever possible and short game are paramount, few are better in those departments than the still-hot Texan.
Dustin Johnson ($10,700) – After looking like he was lost in the wilderness, DJ showed signs of good form at the Palmetto Championship last week. However, he was still inconsistent over four rounds, which does raise some concern. It’s not a surprise that he’s priced this high on DraftKings but it may be too rich for my blood. Of course, with Johnson, he could pop up and win at any moment.
Bryson DeChambeau ($10,400) – Because he’s the defending U.S. Open champion and has the mystique around him, DeChambeau has to be mentioned. His length could be a huge advantage here but, then again, you have to capitalize after that. As of late, DeChambeau hasn’t been doing that with subpar iron and wedge play. His recent form puts him down as an expensive fade for me.
Brooks Koepka ($10,100) – It feels like every time we question Koepka’s ability to pop up and contend at a major championship, he simply does that. We saw that at Kiawah for the PGA Championship and we could see it at Torrey Pines. It wouldn’t be a pick I’d find full confidence in but there are worse ways to spend $10,100 when building your DraftKings lineup.