DFS Dish: Find THE CJ CUP roster options that don’t include Scottie Scheffler

When the PGA TOUR arrives in Texas for the third time this season, the only question for DFS investors is whether to hook their wagon to the No. 1 player in the world, Scottie Scheffler ($13,300), or build a team without him. This week, the Official World Golf Rankings top 50 is represented by only seven players. I would expect the 13-time TOUR winner, even at that steep price, to be the anchor of plenty of six-man rosters.

The contrarian point of view is that the Dallas man owns 13 titles, but none this season, and none of the previous have been at TPC Craig Ranch. He’s made 52 cuts in a row, second to only Xander Schauffele’s mark of 62 and counting, and he and the rest of the field will need to post 4- or 5-under to see the weekend this week. Since moving to the suburbs of McKinney, Texas, the winning total is 24.25 shots under par, a stunning average. Remember, shootouts bring more players into the mix than difficult scoring conditions.

I’m spreading the salary out this week and will be looking in the direction of Sungjae Im ($10,000) and Byeong-Hun An ($9,700) to shoulder the load. TPC Craig Ranch demands scoring, scoring and more scoring. Making his debut, Im will look to join 2024 winner Taylor Pendrith ($9,600) and K.H. Lee (not entered) as the third debut champion in five events. An, another scoring machine, is searching for his first TOUR victory and would also join Pendrith and Lee in that category. I’m not here to talk anyone out of rostering Jordan Spieth ($10,500), but the next time he contends on Sunday will be the first time this season. Money can be spent elsewhere.

In a shootout, I need guys to make a ton of birdies, and Si Woo Kim ($9,400) currently ranks T6 in Birdie Average (4.50 per round). The home game for the Korean racked up 39-under in the last two editions, including T2 in 2023. Sam Burns ($9,800) ran second in the inaugural event and sits T12 in Birdie Average currently.

Dallas fan favorite, Tom Kim ($8,700), will demand big galleries, but has just one top-10 payday this season. The Højgaard twins, Rasmus ($8,900) and his twin brother Nicolai ($8,200), almost won the Zurich Classic last week. Falling one shot short of a playoff to Ben Griffin ($9,200) and Andrew Novak (not entered), the Danish duo should be full of confidence playing their own ball this week. Stephan Jaeger ($9,300) owns finishes of T11 and T20 over the last two seasons.

Lost in the shuffle in this range is Ryan Gerard ($8,600). On his last two visits to Texas, he signed for ninth in Houston and solo second at the wind-swept Valero Texas Open in San Antonio. Cashing 11 times in 12 events, the 25-year-old ranks 14th in SG: Total and is sixth in Adjusted Scoring Average. More great putters to rack up birdies on the Bentgrass greens include Eric Cole ($8,100), who owns four straight paydays of T26 or better on TOUR.

A hot putter is a requirement in a shootout, but I also need a few guys who pepper GIR. Rico Hoey ($7,700) hits almost 71 percent of Greens in Regulation and is the highest-ranked player in that category entered this week. After falling short of the weekend in two of his last four starts, he produced T11 in Houston and T12 in Puntacana. With Lee Hodges ($7,500), I get 26th GIR plus 19th SG: Putting and three T11 or better paydays.

Before missing the cut at the Zurich Classic last week, Chan Kim ($7,400) signed for T5 at the Valero Texas Open and was in contention before a final round of 74 dropped him to T7 at Corales Puntacana. If you need a hotter player, Alejandro Tosti ($7,300) is on a run of T2 Corales Puntacana, T12 Valero Texas Open, and T5 Texas Children’s Houston Open.

Ben Kohles ($6,600) bogeyed the final hole last year to miss a playoff by a shot. He also circled 23 birdies and one eagle against just three bogeys. Veteran course horses Patton Kizzire ($6,400) and Ryan Palmer ($6,000) can potentially fill in top-heavy rosters. Over the last two events at TPC Craig Ranch, Kizzire cashed T24-T30 and is 29-under. He also shared third in 2021. Palmer, the Texas native, shot 62 in 2022, settled for T5 and followed with T8 in 2023 before missing the weekend last year.

Here's how I would devise a six-man lineup this week at the Valero Texas Open, staying within the $50,000 salary cap for DraftKings contests:

• Byeong Hun An ($9,700)
• Si Woo Kim ($9,400)
• Ryan Gerard ($8,600)
• Lee Hodges ($7,500)
• Chan Kim ($7,400)
• Alejandro Tosti ($7,300)