This article is part of our Golf One and Done Pool Expert Picks series.
Memorial Tournament
The Memorial Tournament and its $4 million top prize offer one of the last chances of the season to make a serious move in the standings in One and Done formats. The interesting dynamic involves defending champion Scottie Scheffler who has been used by just over 70 percent of our RotoWire pool. He is the overwhelming favorite with Rory McIlroy skipping the Memorial. If he's still available, this would be the time to burn him, although some could be thinking about the U.S. Open in a couple weeks which had a $21.5 million purse last year. Nevertheless, if it's not Scheffler this week, it does feel pretty wide open after that with a lot of potential options on the table who could have a big showing in this signature event of just 72 players.
For up-to-the-minute updates on injuries, tournament participation and overall golfer performance, head to RotoWire's latest golf news or follow @RotoWireGolf on X.
Course Tidbits
- Course: Muirfield Village Golf Club (7,569 yards, par 72)
- Location: Dublin, Ohio
- Purse: $20 million ($4 million to winner)
- Defending Champion: Scottie Scheffler (-8)
- 2024 Scoring Average: 73.50
- Average Winning Score Last 5 Years: -10
Muirfield Village is annually one of the most challenging tests on the PGA Tour and can often be put in the same category of difficulty with some major championship venues. It's a demanding ball-striking course that requires players to hit it long and straight, then be able to control sometimes mid-to-long irons into firm, sloping greens. Scottie Scheffler has had two of the best SG: Approach weeks of his career in these last two Memorial Tournaments where he finished 3rd and 1st. Muirfield Village has been the toughest course to gain strokes on approach over the last four years, so great iron players will have a key separator this week.
The scoring over the last two years has been very tough with the cut for the top-50 and anyone within 10 shots of the lead being +3 and +4. There were also only 15 players who finished the week under-par in 2023 and 11 last year. There is a decent chance we see some better scoring this year, however. May has been a wet one and the greens are likely to be a little more receptive than normal here, especially considering rain has already fallen early in the week and more is expected on Friday. The worst of the wind is projected for Saturday with gusts near 30 mph.
Visit RotoWire's PGA earnings report to find total winnings and winnings per entry via our fantasy golf stats pages.
RotoWire One and Done Tools
Memorial Tournament: One and Done Picks
Conners checks a lot of boxes as to what I'm looking for around Muirfield Village – very accurate off the tee, precise with his long irons, and he's also a much-improved putter. He led the field in SG: Approach here in 2022 for his best result of T13 at the event, which should prevent him from being overly popular this week. He's eighth in the FedExCup Standings despite lacking a win or a runner-up, which isn't easy to do and shows how often he's been close to the top of the leaderboards. I don't see many other spots I'd want to use Conners outside of maybe his national open next week. --Ryan Pohle
For purposes of this article, I still have Scheffler at my disposal, so I'm deploying him here. This is a great spot to use him as it's a signature event, so the purse is large, yet the competition is not as strong as you'd see at a major or another signature event. That's because Rory McIlroy is absent this week as are the LIV golfers of course. Though Scheffler did not have his best this past week, he's not that far off and returning to a site where he's had a lot of success is all he needs to get another win. --Greg Vara
This is primarily a suggestion for folks in large-field pools who might not be anywhere near the top of their OAD leaderboards as the summer months suddenly arrive, but I like the concept of Conners as a low-owned dart throw this week. Priced similarly to past champion Viktor Hovland at 30/1, and even shorter than other names like Hideki Matsuyama and Shane Lowry, Conners is earning the betting market's respect. The Canadian has been on a ball-striking tear since the beginning of March, gaining at least 4.9 strokes from tee to green in seven of his last eight outings. In theory, Muirfield Village's small greens and overall scoring difficulty should help mask Conners' questionable putting ability as well. --Bryce Danielson
I'm in a position where I need to make up some ground and I have already used up a lot of the top options on the board. Enter Spaun who has been in the mix to win a number of times this season with four top-six finishes, including last week at Colonial. He doesn't have a great record around Muirfield Village, but he is hitting the ball better than he ever has. Spaun ranks sixth in total driving, fourth in SG: Approach and 13th in proximity. He has also gained strokes on the greens in his last five starts. Spaun got very close to that signature win at THE PLAYERS, but the Memorial might be the perfect place for him to claim that title. --Ryan Andrade
It's getting to the point in the season where a lot of top guys have already been used. But you also will want to save some other big names for the remaining majors and playoffs. Conners, at No. 20 in the world, is a guy most of us will use at some point. This is a good week. Scoring should be tight, maybe even a single-digit winner. He's had a bit of success here, with three top-25s. And now that Conners is putting better, he is better situated to challenge for a top-10, top-5 or maybe even more. --Len Hochberg
Memorial Tournament: One and Done Fades
I think there will be people that are tempted to use Hovland considering he won here two years ago, but his game was in a much more reliable place back then. He's only posted one top-10 this year and the main cause of his decline has been consistent struggles with his around the green play. He's certainly still a very good iron player, but I'm not confident enough to use him here. We've seen him peak during the playoffs on multiple occasions, so I think he's a fine guy to hold until later. --Ryan Pohle
I've been touting Berger since this past fall and for the most part, he's come through, but it looks like he might be hitting a wall as we approach summer. Berger was 3rd at the RBC Heritage this past month and followed that up with a T11 at the Truist, but he hasn't been great since then and he missed the cut this past week at the Schwab. He has played a lot of golf recently and as someone who didn't play much the previous couple years, maybe he's feeling a little fatigued. Whatever the case, I wouldn't be surprised to see a little drop-off in form for a spell, but he'll be back to himself sometime soon. --Greg Vara
He's second to only Scottie Scheffler in SG: Approach over their last 36 rounds, but Straka lands outside of the top-50 in scrambling within this frame, and he's lost nearly nine collective strokes around the green throughout his last four starts dating back to a missed cut at the Masters. A short-hitting profile doesn't help at a 7,600-yard venue, either. If Straka is going to be a popular OAD click, I'd rather pivot elsewhere to someone with shorter outright odds with this Signature Event purse up for grabs. --Bryce Danielson
Henley really hasn't been the same player since breaking through for the biggest win of his career at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March. He's been one of the most consistent players over the last couple years, but he has just one top-25 finish over his last five starts and missed cuts at both major championships this year. The putter had been really strong over the early part of this season and late last season, but it has betrayed him over the last couple months. Henley will get things turned around, but Muirfield Village is not a place you want to come to if you're struggling. Save him for down the line. --Ryan Andrade
It's not uncommon for a very good young player to take a step back in their second full year on Tour, after the "newness" wears off and life on the PGA Tour becomes an eight-month grind. This is Aberg's second full year. Yes, he's won the Genesis and finished seventh at the Masters. But he also has only four top-25s in 11 starts. Statistically, he's been good off the tee but nowhere else. And that's a recipe for trouble at Muirfield Village. Aberg tied for fifth there a year ago. But he was a different golfer a year ago. --Len Hochberg
Don't get burned by late withdrawals. Visit RotoWire's PGA tournament field page for a live-updated summary of the field for the current week and list of players who have dropped out.
