Tour Championship DFS picks 2025: Why I’m fading Captain Keegan at East Lake

The PGA Tour season finale is upon us at East Lake for the Tour Championship, where our FedEx Cup champion will be crowned. As is tradition, there will be some formatting changes this year, and starting strokes will no longer be part of the equation. Every player will begin the event at the same score, so position in the FedEx Cup heading into this week was largely irrelevant. East Lake, originally designed by Tom Bendelow then Donald Ross, remains the host venue for the Tour Championship, but it received a major facelift prior to last year’s event. Andrew Green, who has also completed successful restorations of Oak Hill and Congressional, was brought on to restore East Lake to Ross’ original intent, and his work was met with rave reviews.

Fresh off a victory at the BMW Championship, Scottie Scheffler will return to East Lake to defend his FedEx Cup title. The four-time major winner looks as invincible as ever and is still playing some of the best golf of his career. Rory McIlroy will lead the pack of challengers, which also includes Russell Henley, Tommy Fleetwood, Viktor Hovland, Ludvig Aberg and Collin Morikawa, among others. The best on the PGA Tour will gather in Atlanta for one final showdown. Let’s dive into the DraftKings slate.

$10,000 range

Play: Scottie Scheffler, $13,900:

I certainly understand the game theory argument for fading Scottie Scheffler, but I have been on the wrong side of this one too many times this year where I’m tired of thinking I can outsmart this decision. The reality of the situation is that we are dealing with a generational talent who is competing more against history than he is against his PGA Tour peers.

RELATED: Here’s how much Scottie Scheffler and everybody else on the PGA Tour has earned so far in FedEx Cup bonus money

Fade: Ludvig Aberg, $10,100:

I was heavily invested in Ludvig Aberg last week at Caves Valley, and I walked away even more uncertain than I previously was on the young Swede. Aberg, on the surface, is playing some great golf, and he has now recorded four top-25 finishes in a row. While his struggles over the weekend can only be described as growing pains, his third career PGA Tour victory continues to allude him.

$9,000 range

Play: Viktor Hovland, $9,400:

Viktor Hovland was a key piece of my DFS core last week, and I was incredibly impressed with what I saw at Caves Valley. Hovland ranked third in the field in approach play, and his driver looked a lot better. Hovland ranked top-15 in both strokes gained off the tee and driving accuracy, which has been a struggle for him all season.

Fade: Justin Thomas, $9,100:

I have been fading Justin Thomas pretty consistently over the past couple of months and have failed to regret it. Thomas has shown flashes of brilliance, but his game always still feels a few minor details off from contending to win golf tournaments. While his course history at East Lake is quite solid, I expect his lack of driving accuracy off the tee to be a problem this week.

$8,000 range

Play: Sam Burns, $8,500:

Sam Burns continues to play some excellent golf, and he now returns to Bermudagrass greens, which historically have been his best surface. Burns is coming off a fourth at the BMW Championship where he gained over two strokes in both ball-striking categories, and of course, the putter was cooperating as well. I expect Burns to continue to his strong play now that he is back in the Southeast.

Fade: J.J. Spaun, $8,100:

J.J. Spaun has been playing great golf in 2025, but this is his first appearance at East Lake. There are more players in the $8,000 range with far more prior experience, and his ball-striking is heading in the wrong direction.

$7,000 range

Play: Corey Conners, $7,100:

Corey Conners’ game has been all over the place, but I will gladly take my chances on his long-term course fit at extremely low ownership. In Scottie Scheffler lineups, there will be a necessity to get different from the field, and Conners should provide that opportunity as a worthy flier with a ton of ball-striking upside.

Fade: Keegan Bradley, $7,600:

I do not envy the position that Keegan Bradley is in as the American Ryder Cup captain. Not only does he have to decide whether to pick himself, but he also has to make five other sound decisions to fill out the rest of the roster. Bradley played OK at Caves Valley last week, which I felt was a far stronger fit for his game than the task at hand at East Lake.

$6,000 range

Play: Shane Lowry, $6,400:

Just like Corey Conners, we are buying low here on someone with an elite course fit who can still hit a ton of fairways and has supreme approach upside as well. The Irishman still marginally gained in both ball-striking categories last week, and he now returns to a golf course that places a premium on driving accuracy and middle iron play, which are both Shane Lowry’s jam.

RELATED: Keegan Bradley and the trickiest captain's pick ever

Andy Lack is a PGA Tour writer and podcaster from New York City who now resides in Los Angeles. Andy is the founder and CEO of Inside Sports Network, a website devoted to the predictive quality of advanced analytics and golf course architecture. He came to Golf Digest’s betting panel after previously writing for Run Pure Sports, RickRunGood.com, the Score and GolfWRX. In his free time, Andy can likely be found on a golf course. Follow him on Twitter: @adplacksports