2026 3M Open: Top DraftKings Showdown Plays & Live Bets Ahead of Round 3
The 2026 3M Open has reached the halfway point, with TPC Twin Cities producing the low scores we’ve all come to expect from this event. Michael Kim came out guns ablazing on Friday, achieving the rare feat of breaking 60 with a 12-under-par round, propelling himself to the outright lead at -14. He is three strokes clear of the next tier of contenders, Ben Kohles, Emiliano Grillo, and Chandler Philips. Kim’s round is further evidence that anything can happen at TPC Twin Cities, so long as your ball striking is accurate and your putter is hot.
Looking ahead, we have new data at our disposal to adjust our approach in DFS formats before Round 3 gets underway on Saturday. Conditions were largely calm on Friday, but the course will continue to get firmer as the week goes on. Ahead, we’ll look to identify the players who have shown they are most due for a Round 3 breakout.
Take a look at some of the best pillar players for the 2026 3M Open DFS contests and live betting opportunities.
DraftKings Showdown Golf Strategy
DraftKings Golf Showdown Golf is a one-round Daily Fantasy format in which players aim to construct the best-scoring one-round lineup while staying within the allotted salary cap. To identify value in Golf Showdown, it’s typically best to focus on buy-low opportunities on players who’ve shown uncharacteristically poor putting in the prior round. There is also an opportunity to find leverage by identifying favorable weather splits and players who are more likely to card birdies-or-better.
Round 3 3M Open Showdown Pillar Plays
As expected, birdies have been easy to come by at TPC Twin Cities. That is a change of pace since returning from the links swing overseas, and we’ve seen the players who remained stateside in opposite events over that stretch keep the hot hand. TPC Twin Cities has a reputation for being a birdie-maker’s dream, but we saw in rounds 1 and 2 that blowup holes are easy to come by too, with water lurking on the majority of holes here. That places a heightened importance on driving accuracy and ball-striking, as the leaders have displayed in the opening rounds. Looking ahead, it is going to take a combination of driving accuracy, elite iron play, and a streaky putter to go low at TPC Twin Cities.
Identifying value players who check each of these boxes can provide valuable bonus points in the DraftKings Showdown format. The three players below will be foundational plays in my Round 3 Showdown lineups for these reasons.
Hideki Matsuyama ($9,700)
A potential sleeping giant in this field, Matsuyama has crept inside the top-15 of the leaderboard after an explosive second round of 6-under-par. This week, it is the most accurate players off-the-tee who have been able to separate by generating repeated approaches from the fairway. That is normally the antithesis of Matsuyama’s game, but he has turned it into a strength at TPC Twin Cities.
Through the first two rounds, Matsuyama ranks 4th in Driving Accuracy. He also ranks top-25 in SG: T2G, SG: OTT, SG: ARG, and SG: Putting. TPC Twin Cities has a continued history of bridging the gap between poor and great putters, so it’s hardly a surprise to see Matsuyama find initial success putting here. Ranking outside the top-90 in SG: APP, I see a path for Matsuyama to build off his excellent second round, assuming the strength of his game – his approach play – comes back over the weekend.
Sam Stevens ($8,400)
TPC Twin Cities is a ball-striker’s paradise, and Stevens has enjoyed his time here with finishes of 2nd and T10 over the last three years. Stevens is a long driver with spike approach upside when his game is on. He ranks 20th in Total Driving and 12th in Comp Course History.
This week, he’s positioned himself well to chase another high finish at TPC Twin Cities. He heads into the weekend T30 at 5-under-par. Stevens fits the mold of a 3M Open contender, demonstrating great consistency with his ball-striking, and ranking top-50 in terms of both SG: OTT and SG: APP through the first two rounds. The putter has been the greatest concern for Stevens this season, but he’s leaned on the flatstick as a strength thus far, ranking 11th in the field in SG: Putting. Assuming he maintains that confidence with the putter, Stevens is a great position to make a charge on moving day.
Jordan Smith ($8,000)
Jordan Smith is your prototypical fit for TPC Twin Cities, and slots in perfectly as a comp player to those who have won before him at this event, like Kurt Kitayama, Lee Hodges, Jhonattan Vegas, Cameron Champ, and Tony Finau. Each is a reliable ball-striker who possesses above-average driving distance and can confidently lean on their driver as the strength of their game to attack this course with bold and aggressive lines off the tee. He is one of just three players in this field to rank top-25 in SG: OTT, Driving Distance, and SG: APP.
It took a hot closing stretch, but Smith secured himself a tee time on the weekend by making the cut on the number at 3-under-par. As you would expect of Smith, the ball-striking has not been the issue thus far. He ranks top-25 in Driving Distance, Driving Accuracy, SG: OTT, and SG: Ball Striking. A cold putter has kept him in neutral thus far, but we have seen plenty of lesser-skilled putters catch fire quickly on these straightforward greens at TPC Twin Cities. If he can flip the putter, Smith will have an early tee time on Saturday, and will be positioned well to capitalize on early soft and calm conditions.
Live Bets To Consider Entering Round 3
Top Canadian: Corey Conners
Best Available odds: +150
By the skin of his teeth, Corey Conners managed to back himself into the weekend, making the cut on the number at -3. That places him one stroke behind Mackenzie Hughes and tied with AJ Ewart with 36 holes to go. The leaderboard tells a very clear story of what it takes to consistently score at TPC Twin Cities: accuracy. Each player inside the top-10 ranks above-average in terms of both Driving Accuracy and SG: APP.
That is both the strength of Conners’ game and the weakness of the two other Canadians in this market. While Conners ranks 5th in Driving Accuracy for the week, Hughes and Ewart both rank outside the top-120 in the category. Considering how often water hazards and penalty areas come into play at TPC Twin Cities, I trust Conners to best navigate this course over the weekend.
Top 10 Finish: Michael Brennan
Best Available odds: +180
Of all the courses Brennan has faced yet in his early PGA Tour career, I believe it is TPC Twin Cities which favors his game the most. Just like past champion Cameron Champ, Brennan leans on his elite driving ability to separate from the field on driver-heavy tracks like this. Brennan has ranked top-10 in SG: OTT in virtually every tournament he’s played this season, and had it not been for one drive out-of-bounds in his second round, he would be at the very top of the field in SG: OTT again this week.
Brennan is currently T10 for the tournament, and has taken a very sustainable approach to get there. He ranks 3rd in SG: Ball Striking, 4th in SG: APP, and 45th in SG: Putting at the halfway point. Those are the three most important areas when it comes to scoring at TPC Twin Cities, so if the putter continues to cooperate over the weekend, Brennan looks well on his way to maintaining this position on the leaderboard.
Best of luck with your 3M Open DFS lineups and bets!
Photo Credit: REUTERS
