Zach Thompson gets you set for the PGA Championship with his top fantasy golf pivot plays and targets at Aronimink Golf Club.
The PGA TOUR has reached the second major championship of the 2026 season. This week’s PGA Championship will take place at Aronimink Golf Club just outside Philadelphia. The elite field of the top golfers from the PGA TOUR and the DP World TOUR will take on this Donald Ross design, which is a par-70 that features plenty of elevation changes and interesting twists and turns. DraftKings is ready to tee off with some huge GPP contests with large top prizes. My top three pivot plays for this week’s GPP contests are Ludvig Aberg ($9,800), Patrick Cantlay ($8,900) and David Puig ($6,200).
Let’s define what we’re searching for in this post, to be sure we’re all aiming at the same target. A fantasy golf pivot play is a golfer with low expected ownership in tournament formats but high upside. These picks go against the grain and typically come with more risk compared to popular options with similar salaries. In large-field tournaments, it’s important to differentiate your lineup with low-ownership plays like these, even though they are NOT the safest options.
These are “grip it and rip it,” boom-or-bust style options that could go off or flame out. Getting players at low ownership is critical for success in GPP tournament-style events with many entries, so making yours stand out is critical. Be sure to check out my companion post to this one that highlights my picks for cash lineups if you’re looking for safer options that raise the floor.
Let’s break down why I like each of my top three pivot plays this week!
Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $2.5M Millionaire [$1M to 1st]
Ludvig Aberg ($9,800)
With so many stars at the top of the salary structure, there is the potential to grab some good value just behind them. Scottie Scheffler ($13,900), Rory McIlroy ($12,400) and Cameron Young ($10,200) have been playing extremely well on the PGA TOUR, while Bryson DeChambeau ($10,900) and Jon Rahm ($10,400) join the mix from LIV Golf as well. Just behind those options with salaries at $10,000 or more, Collin Morikawa ($9,900) and Ludvig Aberg ($9,800) can both be good sources of leverage while also saving some salary.
Aberg hasn’t been able to close out a win on the PGA TOUR this season, and he missed the cut in both of his previous PGA Championship appearances. However, he has been playing extremely well over the last few months and has all the tools to win at any venue in any field.
He is coming off five top-10 finishes in his last six events, and his only time outside the top 10 was his T21 at Augusta in the first major of the season. Over the last three months, he ranks sixth in the field in both Total Strokes Gained and Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green, while also ranking fifth in Strokes Gained: Approach. His elite iron play can vault him high on the leaderboard when he is at his best.
While he hasn’t played well at the PGA, Aberg has played well in other majors with five top-25 finishes in nine career majors. He has the upside to win and a low enough ownership expectation that he’s a solid pivot play this week.
Patrick Cantlay ($8,900)
With so many stars on the board, proven options like Cantlay are going a little overlooked. Chris Gotterup ($8,800), Jordan Spieth ($8,600) and Tyrrell Hatton ($9,100) are getting more of the hype at their price points, but Cantlay comes in with good form and has proven he can turn into “Patty Ice” down the stretch to secure victories.
Cantlay hasn’t won on the PGA TOUR since the 2022 BMW Championship, but he is a proven option showing excellent form lately as he rolls into Aronimink. Last year’s PGA Championship was a disappointment for Cantlay since he missed the cut at Quail Hollow, but he made the cut in six of the seven previous years, highlighted by a T3 in 2019 and a T9 in 2023. Those near-misses show he can contend when at his best.
He has posted a solid but still somehow quiet six top-15 finishes in his 10 events this season, including four straight coming into this week. He was T12 at Augusta, T8 at the RBC Heritage, and T10 last week at the Truist Championship. Furthermore, he withdrew from the Cadillac in the middle of that run due to an illness, but he looked past any lingering effects last week.
Over his last 20 rounds, Cantlay ranks 10th in the field in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green and fourth in Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green. His touch around the greens and par-3 scoring will play well at this venue, and his upside under $9,000 gives him the potential to get his first major championship victory.
David Puig ($6,200)
I highlighted Puig in my top sleeper plays for this week’s King of the Course promotion on DraftKings SportsBook. The 24-year-old from Spain starred at Arizona State before joining LIV Golf in 2022. While he has played for Fireballs GC, he has also continued to play on the Asian Tour and the DP World Tour, giving us a little clearer picture of his potential upside this week.
He’s one of the longest drivers in the field, and he could take a huge step towards the PGA TOUR with a strong finish this week. He joined LIV in 2022 straight out of college, and he got his first win in October of 2023 at the International Series Singapore. He grabbed another win at the Australian PGA Championship last November and has posted strong results on both the DP World Tour and LIV Golf since then. In his 11 events between the two circuits, he has six top-10 finishes, highlighted by a second-place finish in Mexico City, a T18 at the Turkish Airlines Open, and a T12 at LIV Golf Virginia last week.
He made the cut at last year’s PGA Championship and the 2023 and 2024 U.S. Open. He has the potential to make the weekend and put together a strong showing, especially if distance is a key factor this week. Puig is packed with potential upside, and he is a powerful pivot option that can save significant salary.