2026 Open Championship: Top DraftKings Showdown Plays & Live Bets Ahead of Round 4
The 2026 Open Championship approaches its final round now, with Royal Birkdale setting the stage for a truly exciting finalé to the 2026 major season. Sam Burns has emerged as the solo leader going into Sunday, dodging the media frenzy alongside his playing partner Bryson DeChambeau to post an impressive Saturday round of 65. At 10-under-par, he’ll hold a 2-stroke lead over Si Woo Kim and Ryan Fox.
Looking ahead, we have new data at our disposal to adjust our approach in DFS formats before Round 4 gets underway on Sunday. Conditions have been calm in the morning with wind gradually picking up in the afternoon over the first three days. The exact same forecast is in store for Sunday, giving a slight edge in round 4 to players with an early tee time. Ahead, we’ll look to identify the players who have shown they are most due for a Round 4 breakout.
Take a look at some of the best pillar players for the 2026 Open Championship 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 4 Open Championship Showdown Pillar Plays
No two years seem to be the same at The Open, as each course on the rota brings a unique identity. While Total Driving, distance, and short game are more essential on other Open Championship venues, Royal Birkdale has established its own unique identity as the preeminent test of accuracy. The R&A have set this course up exactly how they want to, drying out these brown fairways to make the course play firmer. That invites players to test their creativity and use the ground game more often, especially when hitting from out of position into these fescue-based greens. Going forward, it is the players who can consistently place themselves in the fairways and demonstrate skilled approach play who stand the best opportunity to contend at Royal Birkdale.
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 4 Showdown lineups for these reasons.
Ludvig Aberg ($9,600)
I gave Aberg some strong consideration pre-tournament, and despite not pulling the trigger on him as an outright bet, there really wasn’t anything about the state of his game that felt concerning. At 6-under-par and T6 on the leaderboard heading into the final round, Aberg seems well on his way to his eighth career top-25 finish in a major over 13 appearances. While that sounds great for the 26-year-old phenom, I’m sure his sights are set on winning his first, as he sits just four strokes off of Sam Burns’ lead.
Aberg is the exact archetype of a player who can strategically attack Royal Birkdale. He hits a piercingly straight ball off the tee and has a high apex on his approach shots needed to hold these firm greens in calm winds. Aberg ranks top-40 across all four strokes gained categories thus far, and looks to be in complete control of his game at the moment.
Kristoffer Reitan ($7,000)
It’s been a breakout 2026 season for Reitan, who has all but locked up PGA Tour Rookie of the Year honors at this stage of the season. The Truist Championship winner continues to hold his own against the best players in the world, currently sitting T29 for the tournament.
While far from a bomber’s paradise, it is the confidently aggressive ball-strikers who have found the most scoring opportunities at Royal Birkdale. Reitan has not been shy off the tee, ranking 6th in Driving Distance with a very driver-heavy approach all week. He also ranks top-20 in terms of SG: APP and SG: P for the week, only held back by his around-the-green play this week. In a one-round sample, Reitan has a path to go low if he continues to hit greens in regulation at a high clip.
Keegan Bradley ($6,800)
If the first two rounds have taught us anything, it is that Royal Birkdale is most vulnerable in the early morning before any breath of wind begins to pick up. That certainly helped Sam Burns, Lucas Herbert, and Ryan Fox as they each posted major-record-tying 62’s by playing from one of the first five games out. In assessing the round 4 board, the player with an early tee time who stands the best chance to charge, is Keegan Bradley.
Keegan will be in the very first group out Sunday morning, able to capitalize on the calmest conditions of the day. He ranks 4th in the field in SG: APP through the first three rounds, something you would not expect from a player who sits 77th on the leaderboard. Keegan has gotten absolutely nothing out of his putter thus far, but if that flips, we know he is capable of catching fire as he plays with nothing to lose on Sunday.
Live Bets To Consider Entering Round 4
Top 5 Finish: Tommy Fleetwood
Best Available odds: +180
Always the bridesmaid on the biggest stage, the crowd will universally attempt to will Tommy Fleetwood to victory on Sunday. Entering the final round 5-strokes off Sam Burns’ lead, he’s going to need all the help he can get to catch him.
The nerves will undoubtedly be there for Southtown’s hometown hero, but a late tee time at The Open is not unfamiliar territory for Fleetwood. I expect him to give his best crack at it tomorrow, and his experience positions him well to chase past less proven players ahead of him on the leaderboard like Lucas Herbert, Ryan Gerard, and Jackson Suber.
Outright Winner: Ludvig Aberg
Best Available odds: +1400
I will preface this by saying Sam Burns is a very real threat to hold on to this tournament lead, and has been unconscious around Royal Birkdale over his last 36 holes. With that said, the pressure of sleeping on an overnight lead in a major is heavy, especially for a player like Burns who must deal with the scar tissue left from near wins at Oakmont and Shinnecock.
This has been a tournament defined by chasing from behind, and that’s a role Ludvig should feel far more comfortable in. To catch Burns, it is going to take an aggressive player with power off the tee who can create birdie-or-better opportunities on Royal Birkdale’s short par-4s. With a four-stroke deficit leading into Sunday, Aberg is within range to claim his first career major victory.
Best of luck with your Open Championship DFS lineups and bets!
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