The 156-player field has arrived at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pa., for the 2026 PGA Championship, and I have a few tricks of the trade to share with my PGA Championship cheat sheet for your pools and contests for the second major of the year.
Alongside my top PGA Championship picks, here are a handful of additional tips to help you finish in the money this week.
🗝️ Keys to winning your PGA Championship pool
- Surviving the 36-hole PGA Championship cut line to play the weekend is critical: Only the top 70 players (and ties) play the weekend
- Picking the right favorite likely won't win a pool, but picking the wrong one can lose it
- Prioritize a contrarian or against-the-grain golfer or two, but don't overdo it
- Identifying the correct mid-tier golfers separates pool contenders from pretenders
- Current form and course fit are tougher to determine with Aronimink last played in 2018 (BMW Championship)
📊 2026 PGA Championship player tiers
Odds via BetMGM as of Monday at 3:15 p.m. ET.
Favorites
To win your pool, you’re probably going to have to pick the winner, in addition to a number of other players crowding the top of the leaderboard. Of the past 10 winners of the PGA Championship, only two would be considered long shots, with Phil Mickelson winning out of nowhere in 2021 and Jimmy Walker all the way back in 2016.
However, I’m anticipating Aronimink Golf Club to be scorable this week, which could bring more players into contention than recent years when the PGA Championship has been set up more in the style of a U.S. Open,
Scottie Scheffler (+450): With three consecutive solo-seconds while pacing this field in true strokes gained tee-to-green, Scheffler’s ball-striking prowess has been on full display, and he’s a perfect course fit to go low at Aronimink this week and defend the Wanamaker Trophy, with a PGA Championship win probability of 17%.
Cameron Young (+1200): The two-time 2026 winner has paced this field in true strokes gained tee-to-green across his past seven events, while also winning twice and finishing T3 in both the Arnold Palmer Invitational and the Masters, and Young is second in bogey avoidance and fourth in adjusted scoring average for the season.
Jon Rahm (+1600): I’d be surprised if Rahm doesn’t succeed at this shot-maker's track, and the PGA Championship odds agree. Additionally, I suspect he’d be carrying an even shorter price if he didn’t fire an opening-round 78 in the Masters to derail an otherwise respectable showing at Augusta.
Contenders
This is where the pool’s contenders separate themselves from the pretenders, and selecting the right players from the middle of the pack will leapfrog you up the standings in your PGA Championship pool when they’re sitting pretty on the Sunday leaderboard.
Ludvig Aberg (+2000): It’s starting to appear next to automatic for Aberg, and he’s gained true strokes across the board, including ranking fourth in true strokes gained tee-to-green and 13th in accuracy while carding four Top 5s across his past seven events.
Collin Morikawa (+4000): I’m viewing Morikawa as a potential contrarian target this week because he played poorly at a poor course fit in the Cadillac Championship to interrupt an impressive five-tournament run of Top 10s dating back to his win at Pebble Beach. He’s pacing this field in true strokes gained on approach while ranking ninth in driving accuracy and fourth in tee-to-green play, after all.
Long shots to target
A quick peek at the PGA Championship odds is an easy way to prepare for your pools, and here are a handful of players whose game carries far more weight than their name recognition might. Overloading longshots isn’t necessary, either. Instead, identifying a player or two who go low will be enough to separate you from the pack.
Russell Henley (+5500): Few can match Henley’s elite tee-to-green precision and touch on and around the greens, and his long odds stand out considering he’s a proven winner who’s also popped in recent major championships.
Patrick Reed (+6600): Obviously, I’d love to have seen Reed play competitively since finishing T12 in the Masters. Still, he gained true strokes across the board at Augusta National, and Aronimink won’t penalize his lack of driving length while also allowing him to show off his short-game skills.
Our Esten McLaren made his best PGA Championship long-shot predictions, with three picks at +6600 or better.
Big names to avoid
Often, who you fade and don’t select is just as important as the golfers you prioritize in pools. Here are a number of well-known players and household names I’m looking past this week.
Rory McIlroy: Finishing T19 in the Truist while losing true strokes on and around the greens last week in his return to action since his Masters win in April, was a so-so result for McIlroy. I’m skeptical he’ll put it all together across all four rounds to win back-to-back major championships.
Bryson DeChambeau: I’m expecting Aronimink to be set up to defend the “bomb and gouge” approach off the tee, and I’m not confident enough in DeChambeau’s iron play considering he ranks 61st in this field in true strokes gained on approaches across eight 2026 events.
Matt Fitzpatrick: Including his team win with brother Alex, Matt Fitzpatrick won three times in four events, and he also finished solo-second in The Players before the run started. It’s entirely possible the 2022 U.S. Open champ continues the torrid stretch, but I think it’s far more likely he’s already peaked this year and lands between his T18 showing in the 2026 Masters and T52 finish last week in the Truist.
Brooks Koepka: With ranks of 116th in this field in true strokes gained putting and 106th in driving accuracy in 2026, I’m fading Koepka this week because I expect precision off the tee to narrow fairways and tidy putting on massive green complexes to be important to scoring this week.
💰 Best bets for the 2026 PGA Championship
Russell Henley to win (+5500)
In addition to ranking third in this field in true strokes gained tee-to-green and fourth in driving accuracy across his past 18 events, Russell Henley also sits third in bogey avoidance, 11th in Par 4 scoring average and 16th in adjusted scoring average in 2026. Aronimink sets up perfectly for his tee-to-green precision, and Henley also has three consecutive Top 10s in major championships, including his T3 in the Masters in April.
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
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