Underdog PGA Best Ball: Format, Rankings and Strategy

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Updated on February 3, 2024 4:05PM EST

Underdog PGA Best Ball: Overview and Strategy

Underdog has added season-long PGA Best Ball to its repertoire with a variety of buy-ins headlined by "The Scramble" -- a $10 contest with a $10,000 prize for first place. The contest was so popular that Underdog added an identical second contest after the original sold out two weeks in advance. They also have a $100 contest with a $20,000 first-place prize called "The Big Scramble'" as well as "The Little Scramble with a $3 buy-in and $2,000 to first.

Scoring: Albatross 20 points, Eagles 10, Birdies 4, Pars 1.1, Bogeys -1.2, Double Bogeys -3, Triple Bogey or worse -7, Bogey free round 3, Consecutive birdies 1, Consecutive bogeys -1

Draft: Six teams, 10 rounds, serpentine/snake draft format.

A quick analysis of the scoring shows that birdies and eagles are rewarded much more than dropped shots are penalized, so we're giving a boost to players that are capable of posting birdies in bunches over the consistent golfers that make a lot of pars and avoid bogeys. That's also in line with the best-ball format in general of targeting players with higher ceilings.

Another key thing to note is that unlike a lot of season-long golf contests that determine standings based on total money won, that is not the case here. That devalues all the LIV players to being undraftable, as we can't afford to take up a roster spot on someone that's only going to play four tournaments. Also, while DFS sites award bonus points based on tournament result, that is not done here. Both these nuggets put more of an emphasis on golfers that are going to play often.

With all that in mind, let's take a deeper dive into the format and schedule.

Underdog PGA Best Ball Format

Round 1: WM Phoenix Open, The Genesis Invitational (Signature Event), Mexico Open at Vidanta, Cognizant Classic, Arnold Palmer Invitational pres. by Mastercard (Signature Event), THE PLAYERS Championship (flagship event)

Round 2: Valspar Championship, Texas Children's Houston Open, Valero Texas Open, Masters Tournament (major championship)

Round 3: RBC Heritage (Signature Event), CJ Cup Byron Nelson, Wells Fargo Championship (Signature Event), PGA Championship (major championship)

Round 4: Charles Schwab Challenge, RBC Canadian Open, the Memorial Tournament pres. by Workday (Signature Event), U.S. Open (major championship)

Round 5: Travelers Championship (Signature Event), Rocket Mortgage Classic, John Deere Classic, Genesis Scottish Open, The Open (major championship)

The top two teams from each draft in Round 1 will advance to the second round. The Mexico Open is a key event here, as the winning score last year was 24-under, so there will be a lot of birdies available. If you draft a bunch of big names, however, you won't end up with a full team for the event, as this is typically played by golfers with less status/rookies and those that are grinding to maintain their Tour card.

Those advancing to the second round will randomly be placed in groups of 10, with the top three advancing. We have three non-Signature Events and one major in this portion of the contest. None of these are birdie-fests, and you'll want to keep an eye on those that often play both Texas tournaments.

If you make it to the third round, you'll be placed in a group of six with only the top team advancing. With three of the four tournaments being marquee events, you'll need a mix of top players as well as those who play in the Byron Nelson, which always yields low scores.

Round 4 will also group the remaining teams into groups of six with the top team advancing. Two non-Signature Events are followed by Jack's tourney and the U.S. Open with summer golf in full swing.

A total of 31 teams will make it to the final round and earn a chance at the grand prize. It is an interesting stretch of tournaments that includes a pair of Midwest birdie-fests that you'll need to make sure you have several golfers playing in. The final two tournaments are in Europe, so it certainly won't hurt to have golfers who play well overseas.

Underdog PGA Best Ball Rankings

Underdog PGA Best Ball Draft Results

Let's take a look at a recent draft I completed out of the second draft position.

I think Scheffler-McIlroy are a pretty clear 1-2. McIlroy has stated he plans on playing more tournaments leading up to The Masters, and he recently committed to play at PGA National, so I'm not opposed to taking him first -- especially if you're looking to diversify between the two.

Finau is one of the rare upper-echelon players that will play lesser tournaments, like he did last year with the Mexico Open and Rocket Mortgage Classic. He's the defending champion at Vidanta Villarta, so you would expect him to play there again.

An has started the season off quickly with a pair of top-5s. He has typically played a weaker schedule, although there's some concern there now that he's top-50 in the world. I don't think that will be the case, but you could opt for someone like Fleetwood in this range instead.

Looking at the back end of my draft, you'll notice I took players that I think are going to play a lot and are also capable of performing at a top-50 level. Six of my golfers are currently in the field for The Masters, and you would also expect a lot of these guys to tee it up in lesser events. Finding that balance will be pivotal. When in doubt, go with the player you expect not to take many weeks off. It's hard to pull the trigger on a guy like Scott when he's going to play a limited schedule filled mainly with Signature Events.

Underdog PGA Best Ball End-Game Targets

In addition to my cheat sheet, here are five other golfers to target in the last round of your draft. These players aren't being drafted often and can provide nice leverage on the competition on their ceiling weeks.

Ryo Hisatsune

The 21-year-old from Japan acquired his card through his standing on the DP World Tour, and he finished T6 at the ZOZO Championship this fall and has followed that up with finishes of T30 at Waialae and a share of 11th at The American Express. He should play a busy schedule, too.

Alexander Bjork

It's the same situation with Hisatsune above in that Bjork is coming over from the DP World Tour. I'm not sure if people aren't picking these guys because they're unfamiliar with them or if they are unsure about which events they will play. Bjork has played the first three events to start the year, so I expect him to tee it up stateside frequently. He should also perform well in the final two events in Europe.

J.J. Spaun

Spaun played 32 events last season, so he's no stranger to staying busy. He has established himself as an above-average PGA Tour player and is coming off a solid fall that included three top-15s over five starts.

Keith Mitchell

Mitchell is a bounceback candidate following a disappointing 2023. He's coming off a top-10 in Palm Springs and is a good fit for the best ball format with his boom-or-bust nature. He's a long driver that was seventh in SG: Off-the-Tee last season, which helps set up a lot of birdie chances.

Jacob Bridgeman

Bridgeman is an up-and-coming rookie who enjoyed a standout career at Clemson, where he won four times over the last two years. His six top-10s on the Korn Ferry Tour last year ranked fifth, and he has made two consecutive cuts on the PGA Tour. I expect him to play a ton of events.

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