The world’s top players are teeing it up this week at the iconic TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, for the 2026 Players Championship. It’s one of the biggest events of the year, with a purse of $25 million and $4.5 million going to the winner. The first round from the Stadium Course begins on Thursday morning.
Below, we search for the best value prop bets for the Players Championship from BetMGM Sportsbook’s odds and make our PGA Tour picks and predictions.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler is the favorite to win his third Players Championship this week, coming in at +450 on the outright odds board. The defending champion, Rory McIlroy, has the second-shortest odds at +1400, followed by AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am champion Collin Morikawa (+1800).
The Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass is a par 72 and plays at 7,352 yards long, but by no means is it a course that long hitters can overpower. It requires accuracy and shot-shaping off the tee, positioning yourself on the proper side of the fairway to avoid interference from trees on approach shots. The winning score has been between 10-under and 20-under par every year since 2010, with McIlroy winning at 12-under in 2025.
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Players Championship – Top-5 picks
Odds provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Tuesday at 5:22 p.m. ET.
Collin Morikawa (+350)
Morikawa is red hot right now and it’s worth riding that wave for at least another week at a course where he has a 13th and 10th in his last 3 trips here. He’s finished top 7 in each of his last 3 starts this season, including that win at Pebble.
Players Championship: Outright winner bets
Si Woo Kim (+500)
Kim won the Players in 2017 and more recently finished sixth in 2024. In the last 3 months, his 2.38 strokes gained from tee to green ranks first among all players in the field this week, showing just how well he’s striking the ball.
Rory McIlroy (+250)
McIlroy’s status for this week will be determined by how he feels Wednesday after he withdrew due to a back injury Saturday at Bay Hill. That’s not exactly encouraging, and he may not even play a practice round, so monitor his status before placing this bet. Still, he’s someone who could fly blind into Sawgrass and still play well, given his experience here (2-time champ).
Players Championship – Top-10 picks
Sepp Straka (+375)
Straka continues to play well, especially in signature events. Despite a final-round 76 on Sunday at Bay Hill, he still managed to finish 13th at the Arnold Palmer Invitational – and that was with an unsightly triple-bogey on Thursday. He’s come in ninth, 65th, 16th and 14th in his last 4 starts at Sawgrass, showing he can navigate this challenging course, even when the wind picks up.
Akshay Bhatia (+350)
Bhatia chased down Daniel Berger last week at Bay Hill with a stellar back 9 Sunday, and he’ll try to carry that momentum into Sawgrass where he finished third last year. If he can keep his driver in the fairway, or at least close to it, he’ll put himself in position to contend again.
Ludvig Aberg (+225)
Aberg is only making his third start at the Players, finishing eighth in his debut in 2024 and missing the cut last year. He was hardly the only big name to miss it last year, along with Viktor Hovland, Matt Fitzpatrick and Hideki Matsuyama, but his game is tailor-made for Sawgrass. He hits it high and straight, allowing him to hold the greens and find the fairways.
Players Championship – Top-20 picks
Sahith Theegala (+250)
Theegala has 4 top-22 finishes in his last 5 starts this season, getting back on track after a rocky 2025 season. He’s still losing strokes off the tee in the last 3 months but he’s gaining shots everywhere else, which is important.
Aaron Rai (+275)
Rai has had back-to-back top-30 finishes in his last 2 starts after a slow open to the year. He’s quietly had a great track record at the Players, too, coming in 19th, 35th and 14th in his 3 career starts since 2023.
Ricky Castillo (+333)
Castillo claimed the crown at the Puerto Rico Open Sunday after also coming in fifth at the Cognizant Classic. It’s only his second start at the Players, but his game is in strong form.
Players Championship – Matchups
Suggested play is golfer in bold.
Ludvig Aberg (-105) vs. Xander Schauffele (-118)
Like a lot of players, Schauffele has had his share of struggles at Sawgrass, perhaps more than most elite players. He missed the cut 3 straight years from 2019-22, and finished 72nd last year after making. the cut. He was the runner-up in 2024 and 2018, but in terms of recent form, Aberg may have a better shot than X-Man.
Jake Knapp (-105) vs. Robert MacIntyre (-118)
MacIntyre missed the cut in 2021 and 2024 before finishing ninth last year. Knapp has gone 45-12 in his 2 starts at the Players, and his recent form is outstanding; he’s finished 11th or better in 5 straight starts this season.
Players Championship – Top Asian
Si Woo Kim (+188)
Hideki Matsuyama (+300) is the biggest competition to Kim in this market, because Ryo Hisatsune (+800) is inexperienced at Sawgrass and Sungjae Im (+1100) is only making his second start of the season. Take Kim, who’s a past champion and is one of the best ball strikers in the world right now.
Players Championship – Top Australasian
Adam Scott (+260)
Scott is playing exceptionally well, making a run at the Genesis Invitational and performing at a high level again at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Min Woo Lee (+160) is in great form, too, but Scott is worth a shot as an underdog.
Players Championship – First-round leader
Akshay Bhatia (+4500)
Bhatia is riding some momentum after his Arnold Palmer Invitational win and after contending at Sawgrass last year, he could be in for another good week. He was just 1 shot off the lead on Thursday last year after shooting 67 in the opening round.
For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.
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