The PGA Championship is on the horizon, but first there is one more tune-up tournament on the PGA schedule. The AT&T Byron Nelson is set to tee off, and with it comes a handful of guys looking for form before a major. For the rest of the field, it is a chance to vastly move up the playoff standings and set themselves up for a big second half of the season. This is another opportunity in One and Done to pad the yearly earnings before a huge prize pool next week. Let’s dive into potential One and Done candidates who can compete for the $1.7 million winning share.
AT&T Byron Nelson One and Done Picks and Targets
The term “safe pick” does not exist in PGA given the variance, but Adam Scott is playing as consistently as anyone on tour. He has not missed a cut all year and is coming off an impressive top-5 in a field that was much stronger than this one at the Wells Fargo. Scott gained across the board but really stood out with the irons and putting combo, which is exactly the formula for Craig Ranch.
Scott is most likely available, so for a non-elevated event, he checks a ton of boxes. Add in the weak field around him, and he makes for a sensible high-floor option for One and Done.
Contrarian Pick: Stephan Jaeger
If Scottie Scheffler and the few other top-end guys do not take this down, the board is incredibly wide open for a potential first-time winner. Stephan Jaeger is inside 50-1, and his tee-to-green game jumps off the page. He finished 18th in Mexico and 27th last week, both of which showed promise due to his ball striking.
The gigantic issue that must be fixed is Jaeger’s putter, which is now in the critically poor range. He has not gained strokes putting since mid-January, and that absolutely caps his upside. However, a change of surface could be the catalyst, and Jaeger is a hot putter away from breaking through. He should easily be available and makes for a great against-the-grain One and done option.
Ben Rasa’s One and Done Pick: Tom Kim
Given the lack of firepower up top and Jordan Spieth withdrawing, Tom Kim is among the favorites and makes perfect sense for all formats. Kim is around 15- to 20-1 in the outright market and should be a popular DFS play as well. It all stems from his ball striking, which gained him another nine strokes last week at Quail Hollow. Like a lot of these guys, Kim is just a hot putter away, but that has happened numerous times in his young career. He got crazy hot with the flat stick at both the Wyndham and the Shriners, which propelled him to the victory. With a change of surface, a weak field and a course that’s more than gettable, Kim is primed to contend once again in a great tune-up before he heads to Oak Hill.
