Weekly PGA Preview: Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches

This article is part of our Weekly PGA Preview series.

Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches

PGA National - Champion Course
Palm Beach Gardens, FL

The PGA Tour heads to Florida for another edition of the Cognizant Classic.

Well, I always say that I either wants big names in the mix on Sunday or some drama, however, while there was some drama this past Sunday, we didn't exactly get there because of some great golf, so maybe going forward we need two of three elements – stars, drama and great golf. Any two of the three will do.

I don't want to get too down on what happened in Mexico, after all, we had young mister Potgieter come seemingly out of nowhere to almost capture his first title and at just 20 years old, perhaps we've got something on our hands with him. Not every star comes with enormous expectations, some just happen upon us. Not to say he's the next big thing, as we are far too quick to anoint the next stars of this game, but let's see how this plays out, I'm thinking that maybe we've got something here, but it's still very early. 

Enough of that, let's looks ahead to this week and beyond. Another non-signature event this week, but the field is certainly better than it was this past week. Is it great? No, it's not even good, but it's better, so let's focus on the positives. We've got a couple major champions in the field (Shane Lowry and Jordan Spieth), a handful of proven winners like Daniel Berger, Russell Henley and Sungjae Im and the man currently in 3rd-place on the FedEx list, Sepp Straka.

Yeah, it's not a who's-who of professional golf, but it's better than what we had this past week and if the right players are in contention come Sunday, we could have an interesting afternoon. One added bonus this week is all the course history in play as this event has been held PGA National since 2007.  

All odds via FanDuel Sportsbook as of 6:30 PM ET Tuesday.

LAST YEAR

Austin Eckroat shot a final-round 67 on his way to three-stroke victory over Min Woo Lee and Erik van Rooyen. 

FAVORITES

Shane Lowry (20-1) 

Lowry has yet to win this event, but he's come close on several occasions. Lowry has finished inside the top-5 in his past three starts here, which includes a runner-up in 2022. He's played well here in tough conditions and easier conditions, so there's no worry about the wind this week when it comes to Lowry. He didn't fare well in his most recent start at the Genesis, but he posted a runner-up in his previous start at Pebble Beach. 

Russell Henley (22-1)

Henley also has a solid track record here, which includes three top-10s in 10 starts, but unlike Lowry, Henley has won this event back in 2014. Henley's form is okay entering this week, but it's not quite where it needs to be if he's to win. That can change with one good hole however, so I'm not discounting Henley's chances. Henley has two top-10s in four starts this season, with his best showing at Pebble Beach where he finished T5.

Daniel Berger (25-1)

I should mention, that even though Berger is in a group of players as the fourth favorite, he's still above 20-1, which is my unofficial threshold for this middle group. If you've followed this column for the past six months, you know that I've been all over Berger as someone who is about to regain his old form. It's been a long journey for Berger, but it looks like he's almost back to his old self. Will he get all the way back? It's tough to tell, but he's headed in the right direction, so why not? As for this week, things are looking up as he has three top-4s in eight starts here.        

THE NEXT TIER

Sepp Straka (28-1)

Straka was the hottest player on the planet heading into the final round at Pebble Beach, but things fell apart on Sunday, and he's been a bit lost ever since. Well, that might be a bit of an exaggeration as he's only played once since that Sunday, but he did miss the cut at the Genesis, which wasn't exactly easy to do. Anyhow, as we've gone over already, the field is not that strong this week, so if Straka can find his form from a few weeks ago, he'll be in contention again on Sunday. His track record here is all over the place, but when he's on, he's been really good here. He won this event in 2022, and he followed that up with a T5 the next year.        

Taylor Pendrith (28-1)   

Pendrith seems like a guy who is ready to break out in a big way. He's coming off a season where he picked up his first PGA Tour win and over $4.5 million in earnings, and while that would be considered a breakout season for most golfers, I think his ceiling is higher than what we've seen to this point. Like many other big names in the field, he didn't fare well at the Genesis but prior to that he posted top-10 at Pebble and the Farmers. His track record here isn't great, but it's not so bad that I would eliminate him from consideration.                  

Min Woo Lee (33-1)

Lee has yet to live up to the lofty expectations put on his by the golf world, but that doesn't mean he's been a disappointment since joining the PGA Tour this past year. Lee has three DP World Tour wins under his belt, and while he didn't exactly build on those in 2024, he still managed a decent season. Lee is just 26 years-old and he only has one full season on the PGA Tour to date, so we should have expected an adjustment period. With that said, he should be ready to start amping up his game right about now and this looks like a spot where has can thrive. Lee has only two starts here, but one of them resulted in a runner-up.   

LONG SHOTS

Gary Woodland (55-1) 

I mentioned Berger earlier and how he was getting closer to his old self and the same holds true for Woodland, although his journey is going to take a lot longer because the reason he was out was much more serious. While he hasn't posted any high-end finishes for a while, he is getting more consistent as evidence by his three consecutive top-25s earlier this season. It would be an incredible sight to see Woodland win this week, or actually at any point this season, but that's why you are getting such large odds. 

Lee Hodges (75-1)        

Hodges is off to a good start this season, he actually played his way into a signature event at Pebble Beach but failed to do much with that opportunity. His level has fallen off a bit since a top-10 at the Farmers in January, but he's also had a couple weeks off to regroup, so I'm expecting him to come out firing at PGA National. His track record here is pretty solid, with top-15s in two of three starts at this event.   

ONE-AND-DONE LEAGUES

Highly-Chosen Pick: Shane Lowry – Everyone is in play this week, there isn't a single player that should be held back for signature events, although Lowry is one that definitely could be used at a larger event. Lowry has everything going for him this week, but he is going to be very popular. There are a decent number of good options for the Cognizant, which could affect his ownership, but he should be the top play.  

Moderately-Chosen Pick: Daniel Berger – Berger is a bit of a tricky pick this week. On the one hand, he's still a bit of a risk as he hasn't complied a bunch of high-end finishes since his return. On the other hand, if he gets back to his old form at some point this season, you might be wasting him at an event like this. Let's not forget that Berger was a top-10 level golfer before his injury and if he returns to that this season, he'll have value at a signature event. With that said, he seems to be in a good spot right now, so I wouldn't worry about using him this week.                                  

Lightly-Chosen Pick: Lee Hodges – I'll start by stating that I wouldn't go with a sleeper, as there are plenty of good options above Hodges, but if you think those options will be quite popular, then you could make up some ground with Hodges. He's been pretty consistent this season, especially at non-signature events, so there's not as much risk here as you'd think.

Buyer Beware: Jordan Spieth – There are a couple big names in the field this week that are buried on the odds chart, Spieth and Cameron Young to name a couple, but both are at 40-1. I bring up the odds because the books are always in protection mode, they don't want to get burned by setting an incorrect line, so they are usually cautious when it comes to big names like Spieth. If they had any inclination that Spieth might win this week, he'd be in the 20-range, but he's not, which leads me to believe that the odds makers feel he has little chance to win and in turn, little chance to contend. They aren't always right, but in this case, I'm going to side with the odds makers.  

This Week: Shane Lowry – If you know me, you know that I hate to take the popular pick, but I think it's the right play this week. I thought about taking Berger, but I think he'll have some value down the line and quite frankly, Lowry is just the better pick. Lowry has been so consistent here that I can't imagine him having a bad week. Hopefully the other teams in my league will try to get cute and go another route.                            

Previous Results

FANDUEL PICKS

Upper Range: Shane Lowry ($11,800)
Middle Range: Gary Woodland ($9,700)
Lower Range: Lee Hodges ($8,900)

SURVIVOR LEAGUES

This Week: Shane Lowry – Going back to the double-up this week. Lowry not only has a bunch of high-end finishes here, but he's also never missed the cut in seven tries. It's nice to know that he can get through this course no matter the conditions as well, because they can have a large impact.