2026 Truist Championship: Top DraftKings Showdown Plays & Live Bets Ahead of Round 2
The 2026 Truist Championship in officially underway, with Matt McCarty setting the pace after an explosive -8 opening round. Round 1 is just about in the books, with two groups still on the course to wrap up their opening round Friday morning. Looking ahead, we have new data at our disposal to adjust our approach in DFS formats before Round 2 gets underway on Friday. Conditions have been fairly calm thus far, and while storm clouds threatened on Thursday, the course should play similarly in Round 2. We’ll look to identify the players who have shown they are most due for a Round 2 breakout.
Take a look at some of the best pillar players for Truist 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 2 Truist Championship Showdown Pillar Plays
At the 2026 Truist Championship, there is a particular focus on longer hitters with proven success navigating other championship-style, challenging venues. From a statistical standpoint, Driving Distance, SG: Approach (with a focus beyond 200 yards), Scrambling, and performance on positional long courses continue to be of premium importance. 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 2 Showdown lineups for these reasons.
Ludvig Aberg ($9,800)
I was high on Aberg leading into this week, and continue to feel optimistic about his prospects to contend after the first round. Aberg ranks 1st in SG: OTT and 3rd in SG: T2G through the first 18. Unfortunately, he ranks 66th out of 72 players in terms of SG: Putting.
Aberg ranks top-25 on the PGA Tout in SG: Putting this season, and gained over 3 strokes putting in his last visit to Quail Hollow, so it seems inevitable that his putting woes will correct themselves the rest of the way. Aberg’s round included three birdies and just one bogey in the first, currently sitting T21 at 2-under-par. If he continues to drive the way he has in round 1, Aberg will have plenty of birdie-or-better opportunities in round 2.
Nicolai Hojgaard ($7,900)
There were some questions surrounding how Hojgaard’s game would stack up at Quail Hollow leading into this week, as this marked his Trust Championship debut. On paper, one would expect this to be a great course fit for the Danish bomber, and that’s materialized through the opening round. Hojgaard fired an impressive opening round 67 and currently sits T3 on the leaderboard. He navigated the course in a sustainable way as well, ranking top-5 in SG: APP, SG: OTT, and SG: T2G through his first 18.
Hojgaard stumbled into this week a bit with finishes of T23, T55, and MC over his last three starts, but those results were marred by an uncharacteristically cold putter. Ranking 21st in SG: Putting through the opening round, Hojgaard’s ceiling is sky high if the putts continue to fall at Quail Hollow.
Justin Thomas ($7,600)
At $7,600, Justin Thomas is not being priced like the superstar talent and 2017 PGA Championship winner at Quail Hollow that he is. It’s been a gradual return from injury for Thomas in 2026, but the signs of vintage form have been there. He finished T8 at The Players Championship on familiar Bermuda greens and has finished top-30 in two of his last four starts.
Thomas has one hole to complete in his first round tomorrow morning, but currently sits T13 at 3-under-par. It’s been a well-sounded display thus far, ranking above-field-average in all four strokes gained categories. If that form continues, he’s positioned well on the leaderboard to make a round 2 charge at a nice discount.
Live Bets To Consider After Round 1
End of Round 2 Leader: Nicolai Hojgaard
Best Available odds: +940
I write this post-round analysis filled with regret for not including Nicolai Hojgaard on my betting card. Quail Hollow is exactly the type of golf course we should expect Nicolai Hojgaard to thrive on, and he entered this week in peak ball-striking form.
He’ll enter Round 2 just three strokes off of Matt McCarty’s lead, and 2 strokes shy of Sungjae Im. McCarty is due for major regression, as he was the first player in the ShotLink era to hole three putts beyond 55 feet in the same round. Assuming his putting cools off, I’m expecting him to come back to the field in Round 2. Assessing the other contenders at the top of the leaderboard, Hojgaard is the only player who possesses elite Driving Distance and ranks top-10 in SG: APP leading into this event. The top of the leaderboard is cluttered, but it’s Hojgaard who jumps out to me as the best value.
Top 10 Finisher: Alex Fitzpatrick
Best Available odds: +240 (DraftKings)
You may think it’s just a Linsanity run for Alex Fitzpatrick, but he refuses to let his foot off the gas, regardless of which Tour he plays on. Fitzpatrick’s last five results include: T9, 1st, 1st, T6, and 14th. With all of the confidence in the world and complete control of his game, Fitzpatrick hasn’t shown any signs of stopping at the Truist Championship. He fired an opening round 68 and sits T8 going into Round 2.
The driver has been the one club holding him back thus far, which is surprising considering he led the field in SG: OTT at Doral last week. I expect he’ll bounce back well with the driver the rest of the way, and if he does, he still offers great value as a longshot top-10 finisher.
Best of luck with your Truist Championship DFS lineups and bets!
Photo Credit: AP/Mike Stewart
