This article is part of our Yahoo PGA DFS Picks series.
The Masters
Augusta, Georgia
Augusta National Golf Club - Par 72 - 7,555 yards
Field - 89 entrants
Purse - $18M
The Preview
A Sunday afternoon duel between Akshay Bhatia and Denny McCarthy provided quite a bit of drama this past weekend as the 22-year-old Bhatia battled through a shoulder dislocation to ultimately emerge victorious from a playoff in San Antonio, securing the 89th and final spot in the 88th edition of the Masters Tournament this week. Most folks are already familiar with the second-shot importance around Augusta National, but the layout has been lengthened even farther to 7,555 yards, and rain is expected to soften conditions throughout Thursday's opening round while placing even more of an emphasis on the bombers' advantages. Regardless of any precipitation, these sloping bentgrass greens should still remain capable of retaining slick speeds, however, as putting embodies half the battle when it comes to scrambling and converting par-breaker opportunities. Per usual, SG: Approach reigns supreme as nine of Augusta's 10 par-4s measure between 440 and 520 yards, while it's the par-5s that invite scoring chances and back-nine drama. Nonetheless, the heightened difficulty level at the year's first major championship allows the grinders to flash their short-game skills as well.
Recent Champions
2023 - Jon Rahm
2022 - Scottie Scheffler
2021 - Hideki Matsuyama
2020 - Dustin Johnson
2019 - Tiger Woods
2018 - Patrick Reed
2017 - Sergio Garcia
2016 - Danny Willett
2015 - Jordan Spieth
2014 - Bubba Watson
Key Stats to Victory
SG: Approach
Driving Distance
Par-4: 450-500 and Par-5 Efficiency
Scrambling
Yahoo Value Picks
Based on $200 salary cap
Cream of the Crop
Scottie Scheffler - $45
As has been the case all season, Yahoo provides one of the more cost-friendly ways to stack up on your Scheffler exposure across the entire betting and DFS market due to their decision to cap his salary at $45, rather than somewhere in the more deserving $50-plus range. The best tee-to-green player in the world's outright odds can be found as short as 4/1 this week, and he's even gained six strokes putting throughout his past three starts dating to the Arnold Palmer Invitational, a run that's resulted in finishes of T2-Win-Win. Scheffler's ownership will be astronomical, especially in cash games where most gamers will consider this a free square up top.
Xander Schauffele - $43
Landing one spot below Scheffler at No. 2 in my 24-round custom model this week, Schauffele ranks top-5 in each of SG: Off-the-Tee, SG: Around-the-Green, P4: 450-500 Efficiency, Prox: 200-plus and Bogey Avoidance within this frame. The course fit and recent form combination accompanies four finishes of T17 or better in his last five visits to Augusta National, most notably posting a pair of top-3s here in 2019 and 2021. He's coming off back-to-back top-5s to close out the Florida Swing, and Schauffele has gained at least 6.6 strokes from tee to green in five of seven measured events to begin the season.
Hideki Matsuyama - $39
The 2021 Masters champion pairs long-iron prowess with an elite short game to position himself for a run at another green jacket, as he sits No. 1 in SG: Around-the-Green, third in P4: 450-500 Efficiency, third in Bogey Avoidance and fifth in strokes gained on par-5s over his last 24 rounds. Following his win at The Genesis Invitational in February, Matsuyama placed T12-T6-T7 from the Arnold Palmer Invitational to the Valero Texas Open while gaining a collective 29.1 strokes from tee to green throughout these three outings. If Matsuyama fails to return value, it'd likely be due to his flat stick as he ranks outside the top-140 on Tour in both SG: Putting and putting from inside 10 feet this season, although I'm comfortable leaning into his variance on the greens.
Glue Guys
Brooks Koepka - $32
Koepka didn't play well in Miami last week, but there's still quite a discrepancy between the five-time major champion's $32 salary and his 18/1 odds to win the Masters, where he's earned runner-up honors in two of the last five years. He's 13th or better on LIV in each of GIR percentage, driving distance and birdie average this season, but we know he typically finds another gear on the biggest stages.
Will Zalatoris - $32
If it weren't for a couple lousy results due to a faulty putter in his last two starts at THE PLAYERS and the Texas Children's Houston Open, Zalatoris would've been even chalkier than he already might be at just $32 for his third career Masters Tournament after finishing T6-2 in his first two Augusta National showings. Zalatoris is sixth in both SG: Par-5s and Prox: 175-200 over his last 24 rounds, a stretch that included back-to-back top-4s at the API and The Genesis Invitational. On the season, he's also eighth in SG: APP and Going for the Green - Hit Green Percentage.
Corey Conners - $28
Conners rattled off three straight top-10s here at Augusta from 2020 to 2022, and his ball striking has been stellar this season while averaging nearly 4.5 strokes gained from tee to green per tournament through his first nine starts of the 2024 campaign, remaining without a single missed cut since last June's U.S. Open. The Canadian has gained no less than three strokes with his irons in five consecutive events, and over his last 24 rounds, he's second in SG: APP, second in Prox: 200-plus and sixth in Eagles Gained. He's a bad putter, but Conners doesn't need to be anywhere close to perfect on the greens in order to justify a $28 salary.
Bargain Bin
Dustin Johnson - $24
Yahoo's pricing didn't respect LIV golfers at the majors last year, and that theme remains evident, as you'll see throughout this section of the article. Johnson set the tournament scoring record during the 2020 fall edition of the Masters with a 20-under-par performance, which came after stringing together four consecutive top-10s here from 2015 to 2019. He opened the LIV season with a T5 in Mayakoba before winning the Las Vegas event, guiding him to his current position of sixth in the standings. Additionally, he's top-10 among his LIV peers in GIR percentage, driving distance, putting average and birdie average.
Joaquin Niemann - $21
A disappointing track record at the major championships leaves a cloud of doubt surrounding Niemann's prospects, but this salary is preposterously low given the exceptional way he's played on LIV this season. The 25-year-old Chilean won in both Mayakoba and Jeddah before adding a T4 in Hong Kong and another top-10 this past week in Miami. He is pacing the 2024 individual standings by a significant margin.
Patrick Reed - $20
Since Reed's Masters victory in 2018, he's added three more top-10s here, including a T4 last year when he ranked third among the field in SG: Around-the-Green. Despite being unable to overpower tracks from a distance perspective off the tee, Reed tends to play longer courses like Augusta well, and his superior scrambling abilities often make up for minor ball-striking deficiencies. Another noteworthy target at the $20 minimum is Bryson DeChambeau, who's third in SG: Total through the first 15 rounds of the season among the LIV contingent that's in attendance this week.
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