The fourth and final major of the 2025 season is upon us! Royal Portrush in Portrush, United Kingdom, is hosting The Open Championship for the 3rd time in this event's prestigious history. Many of the players on tour consider the Open to be the best event that they can win during the season, and it is the key to many players who are currently chasing a career grand slam. With Xander Schauffele back as the defending champion and Shane Lowry back as the defending winner at Royal Portrush, there are many storylines to follow this week and many good bets to make. Before we dive in, it is important to remember that links golf is a different beast, and The Open lacks much of the historical data we hope for when trying to find our favorite plays for events.

 

 

 

The Open Championship Free Picks Featuring Matt Fitzpatrick & Tommy Fleetwood

Matt Fitzpatrick To Finish Top 20 (+185 at DraftKings)

Having grown up in the United Kingdom, playing courses like Royal Portrush and in conditions like we’re expecting on coastal links style courses, it should be no surprise that I love Matt Fitzpatrick this week. Not only does Fitz have a great track record on links-style courses, but he’s also playing some spectacular golf as of late. Fitz is coming off 3 straight weeks of T17th finishes or better, including a T4th last week at the Genesis Scottish Open. Additionally, he’s finished in this position before, as he recorded a T20th finish here in 2019, the last time the Open was hosted at Royal Portrush. Fitzpatrick has the accuracy off the tee, strong ball-striking, and elite flat-stick that we typically look for at this type of event, and also features strong wedge play, which will be important at Royal Portrush’s small, elevated greens that are much harder to hold than traditional links courses. Fitz is a great DFS play this week, and a great player to bet on.

 

 

 

The Open Championship One & Done Pick: Tommy Fleetwood

Picking Tommy Fleetwood to win on the PGA Tour always seems like a questionable play given his constant inability to close out wins, but picking Tommy Fleetwood on a European course always seems like a good idea. Fleetwood has consistently brought good finishes over in Europe and has almost always played well at The Open. He’s made the cut in 6 of his last 7 Open Championship starts, and has 4 T12th or better finishes during that span in this event, including a 2nd place finish last time we were at Royal Portrush. He’s extremely accurate off the tee and one of the best ball-strikers on tour, which lines up well for this event. Given he grew up in the United Kingdom, it should be no surprise to hear how well he’s played on links-style courses, and it’s clear his game is built for this type of venue. He’s an elite wedge player and solid with the putter as well, both of which will come into play at Royal Portrush. This may be one of the last events this year; it makes sense to have Fleetwood as a one-and-done pick, and I’m not going to miss this opportunity.

 

 

 

The Open Championship Long Shot Pick: Taylor Pendrith (140/1 at DraftKings)

Taylor Pendrith is making his Open Championship debut this week, but he’s one of my favorite players in the long-shot range for a few reasons. As always, he has the game we’re looking for here. He’s one of the top 20 players in the field in Good Drives Gained, which factors driving distance and accuracy, as well as the approach shot that is set up after. He’s also been solid with the putter at times in 2025, and has been extremely strong most weeks on approach. He’s also been in good form of late, with back-to-back top 25 finishes, including one on a links course at the Scottish Open. He’s also shown some nerve at tougher events, as evident by his T5th finish earlier this year at the PGA Championship. At 140-1, I’m certainly interested in sprinkling a little on Pendrith this week. 

 

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