The NFL season is in the books, which means golf starts to become the main event in the sports world. We certainly aren’t at major season just yet, but marquee events continue, including this week’s Genesis Invitational. It’s time to continue our PGA DFS picks series with our best Genesis Invitational DFS picks, including some value in the margins.
The format is a little atypical with just a 70-man field and a cut line consisting of the top 50 golfers plus anyone within 10 shots of the lead. That should make most golfers safe for four rounds, but we still need to find those guys in contention. Let’s get into some of my favorite PGA DFS values and salary savers for the 2024 Genesis Invitational. Need more PGA DFS advice? Subscribe today for access to our industry-leading resources, including our PGA DFS projections, lineup generator, contest simulator and weather splits tool.
PGA DFS Picks: Top Values for the Genesis Invitational (2024)
PGA DFS: Genesis Invitational DFS Picks & Tournament Preview
The first huge piece of news this week is that Tiger Woods is set to tee it up here at Riviera. Regardless of if you think he can even make the weekend, there is no bigger draw and the spotlight increases exponentially anytime Tiger tees it up. I’m not sure how relevant he is in DFS, but it is a good thing for golf.
In terms of skillset we want in potential plays, it’s a course that forces golfers to bring their A-game. A par 71 measuring just over 7,300 yards allows all different types of players to thrive, from bombers to long iron specialists. Keeping it out of the thick stuff will help, and having some familiarity with poa greens is another benefit. At the end of the day, we want players who have the ability to attack a challenging layout, and in a field like this they need every club in their bag working. Here’s a few guys that can round out lineups while still giving us some upside.
PGA DFS Picks: Top Values
Hideki Matsuyama
DFS Salary
DraftKings: $7,400
FanDuel: $9,300
Projection
DraftKings: 62.74
FanDuel: 60.79
I’m treating values in this small field as anyone $7,500 and below, which somehow includes Matsuyama this week. I get that it’s a loaded field up top, but I am a little surprised to see this price point on a guy I view as playing pretty decent golf to get the season started.
Last week at Waste Management Phoenix Open, he finished 22nd despite not having anything dialed in with the ball striking. If he can build on that short game, Matsuyama has everything he needs to get in the mix.
Course history is a mixed bag, which is completely fine for me. The most important thing is Matsuyama has seen this course every year and has some high-end finishes, so clearly his game can translate. His ability with long irons and attacking some of these longer holes will come in handy, but he really needs the approach game to improve. The price point is right, and this is an easy click in the mid-$7,000 range for me this week.
Emiliano Grillo
DFS Salary
DraftKings: $6,900
FanDuel: $8,900
Projection
DraftKings: 62.84
FanDuel: 61.49
It’s been a nice start to 2024 for my guy Grillo, as he’s made every cut and has four straight top-25s. He gained a ton with his irons at Waste Management, and the putter hasn’t been a liability lately, which is huge.
He has not had much success at this course, but I see nothing in Riviera’s layout that Grillo can’t handle. With his game in seemingly much better shape overall, this is a $6,000 value I am open to targeting.
Taking a peek at the current data at Stokastic, we get even more incentive to play Grillo as he’s grading out well on Wednesday morning. He comes in with positive leverage, meaning we want to consider getting over the field on this guy with some potential upside. The way Grillo has developed into a more well-rounded player will pay dividends here, and he’s one of my favorite $6,000 options.
Luke List
DFS Salary
DraftKings: $6,600
FanDuel: $8,400
Projection
DraftKings: 60.98
FanDuel: 59.83
We know how the Luke List experience usually goes: We get elite off-tee numbers but a gigantic mess with the short game. That was the story once again last week in Scottsdale, with List unable to get anything going around the greens which cost him.
The putter ironically wasn’t terrible, and that’s something he can at least try to build on. The positive here is you really can lean on the ball striking and driving around this track, and List is gaining consistently in that area.
List is another guy who has done a little bit of everything at the Genesis. That is to be expected with players in this range, but seeing List win at Farmers proved that he can handle tests of this caliber. It’s a small field with an easy-to-make cut, and we know that List can really score when given a chance. He sits in the mid-$8,000 range on FanDuel and the mid-$6000s on DraftKings, both of which are price points I’m willing to back. I’ll call for List to find the weekend and give us a little bit of upside with even the slightest improvement around the green.
Stokastic’s PGA Tools & Expert Advice
Still need more PGA DFS picks and Genesis Invitational DFS picks? The rest of our expert articles are loaded with advice here to help, but even our experts need tools, and that’s what a subscription to Stokastic will get you! Use the tools our pros use to win contests, like our PGA DFS projections, lineup generator, contest simulator and weather splits tool.
