While it took betting on the favorite at a team event to pick up our first outright of the season, I am not complaining. The Fitzpatrick brothers won the Zurich Classic in incredible fashion, as Matt hit a 35-yard bunker shot to tap-in range on the final hole of the tournament. He not only secured his 3rd PGA TOUR win of the season, but he secured his brother Alex (who gets to play in this week's Signature Event) a PGA TOUR card.
Sometimes, all it takes is one to really get the ball rolling. Let's get on a heater over the next couple of weeks before the year's second major.
Let's take a look at my Cadillac Championship picks and PGA Tour predictions for this week's event.
Cadillac Championship Course Preview: Trump National Doral's Blue Monster Course
For the first time in 10 years, the PGA TOUR is heading back to Trump National Doral in Miami, Florida. The Blue Monster Course has hosted a couple of LIV events, but it hasn't hosted a PGA TOUR event since the 2016 WGC-Cadillac Championship.
The course lives up to its name (at least the monster part), as it's a Par 72 that measures nearly 7,800 yards. The fairways are average in width, while the greens are quite large (7,200 square feet). The greens should be relatively slow on the stimpmeter (11-11.5) and like all Florida courses, they feature bermudagrass.
Water is in play on 10 of the 18 holes, so there will certainly be some big numbers this week. This was a difficult course 10 years ago, and the course has only gotten longer since then. The one positive on the scoring front is that the forecast is calling for relatively calm winds over the four days of the event.
Driving distance is going to be a top priority for many this week, and it's easy to see why. The course is the second-longest on TOUR (behind only Torrey Pines), and bombers have performed well here in the past. While I don't mind the bomber angle, it's going to take a solid all-around game to lift the trophy on Sunday.
Cadillac Championship Picks, Predictions
After back-to-back runner-up finishes at the Masters and the RBC Heritage, Scottie Scheffler looks primed to reel off a few wins over the next couple of months. However, I can't stomach an outright bet on a new course at +330 odds. Scheffler's elite form has led to some enticing prices on the rest of the field.
Tommy Fleetwood +2700 (FanDuel)
I'm always interested in Fleetwood at long odds at a difficult golf course. While he never won a WGC event back in the day, he was in contention so many times.
These no-cut Signature Events honestly feel like glorified WGC events. It's worth noting that Fleetwood's lone win on the PGA TOUR came at the TOUR Championship, which is also a limited-field, no-cut event.
He has one of the best all-around games in the world. He's a good total driver of the ball, an excellent iron player, and has an elite short game. He has underwhelmed in his last two starts, but he has four top 10 finishes already this season.
Si Woo Kim +3300 (FanDuel)
Kim doesn't fit the narrative this week, but he's an elite total driver of the ball. He's top 10 in this field in strokes gained off the tee because he hits a ton of fairways. With water in play on so many holes, accuracy could pay big dividends this week. His elite long iron play also offsets his lack of distance.
He doesn't have a win yet this year, but he already has three top-3 finishes and six top-11 finishes. I'm happy to keep betting him at odds like this, as he's one good putting week away from getting back in the winner's circle.
Hideki Matsuyama +3300 (bet365)
This is the first time all year that I have bet on Matsuyama. The driver has been a real issue for him this year, which is strange because he's always been known as an elite total driver of the ball.
Based on his last five events, it looks like he has turned a corner with the driver, as he's gained strokes off the tee in three of those events.
If that continues, it's only a matter of time before he's in contention again on a Sunday. His iron play has been elite (+4 strokes on approach in each of his last two starts), and he's one of the best scramblers on TOUR.
Adam Scott +3900 (DraftKings)
While it's been ten years since he's played this course in competition, Scott has always fared well at the Blue Monster. I'm not factoring in course history, but it certainly doesn't hurt that Scott should have good vibes heading back here.
He has quietly put together a strong six months of golf. He played great in Europe at the end of 2025 and has yet to miss a cut in eight starts on the PGA TOUR in 2025.
Scott is 4th in the field in driving distance and 3rd in strokes gained approach. That's a lethal combination anywhere, but especially on a long and difficult course like this one.
Akshay Bhatia +5500 (Caesars)
My model absolutely loves Bhatia this week.
He has a good track record on long and difficult courses, and he has a good track record on Florida courses. He's fairly average in terms of distance off the tee, but he's an elite iron player and one of the best putters in the world (we don't need to bring up the anchoring debate).
We've seen several golfers post more than one win this calendar year, so why can't Bhatia join that list? I love the odds for how well he has played this year.
