Fantasy Golf Picks, Odds, and Predictions – 2025 RSM Classic

Fantasy Golf Picks, Odds, and Predictions for the 2025 RSM Classic

2025 RSM Classic Fantasy Preview

Every week it feels like there’s lessons for us all to learn from the PGA TOUR, and on Sunday it was the turn of Adam Schenk to turn teacher: his class is in the art of never giving up.

He was making his 243rd start on the PGA TOUR at the Bermuda Championship, so even he – privately, at least – must have thought that his chances of winning at the top level were all but over.

In fact, comfortably outside of the top 100 in the FedEx standings prior to teeing it up, Schenk may just have been envisaging a golfing future away from the PGA TOUR.

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But in the ferocious winds that buffeted the players on the island, it was he – irrespective of what had gone before in 2025 – who coped best, and 16 pars on Sunday, allied to a clutch putt at the final hole, were enough to see Schenk one shot clear of Chandler Phillips in second.

With a two-year exemption on the PGA TOUR guaranteed, Schenk can tee it up at the RSM Classic this week – the final chance to finish inside the all-important top 100 of the standings – with a smile on his face.

For those fighting for their futures on the PGA TOUR, it’s more likely that they will be wearing a grimace.

The 2025 RSM Classic Field

There’s a hometown feel this week, with Harris English, Brian Harman, and J.T. Poston amongst those who have made St. Simons Island their home.

Daniel Berger, Si-Woo Kim, Michael Thorbjornsen, and Denny McCarthy are some of the other eye-catching names in what is a reasonably strong field given that this is the final tournament of the 2025 season.

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Defending champion Maverick McNealy won’t attempt to defend his trophy, but those who he beat into second place last year – Berger, Nico Echavarria, and Luke Clanton will, alongside many vying for top 60 (Signature Event qualification) and top 100 (full PGA TOUR status in the FedEx standings.

Will the likes of Beau Hossler, David Lipsky, Victor Perez, and Joel Dahmen cling onto their Tour cards?

This Week’s Course Preview

It’s off to the Sea Island club we go as St. Simons Island, off the coast of Georgia, welcomes elite golf once more.

Sea Island has two principle courses, Seaside and Plantation, which take on hosting duties on a rotational basis. The players play each course either on Thursday or Friday, before the Seaside track enjoys exclusivity over the weekend.

So the Seaside Course is where much of the action will unfold, and this is the slightly more challenging of the two layouts given that it’s exposed to the coastal winds blowing in off the Atlantic Ocean.

A short and tight 7,015 yards for its Par 70, it’s unlikely that the Seaside Course will be overpowered – Ludvig Aberg did on his way to a tournament low score in 2023, but that was largely due to benign, rain softened conditions.

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If the wind is blowing, the Seaside Course is not easy by any means; in fact, in 2024, 12 of its holes averaged over par, including the stretch from 1-4 – what a way to get acquainted with a day’s golf.

Two Par 5s at seven and fifteen offer some respite, but this is not a walkover track by any means.

Contrasted to the Plantation Course, anyway. This is a tree-lined parklands track with wide landing areas, and at 7, 1670 yards for its Par 72, there are numerous holes here – including a quartet of Par 5s – that are ready to be attacked.

Grind out scores on the Seaside Course, make hay on the Plantation – that’s how the tournament winner will go about their business this week.

Weather Forecast for Sea Island, GA

SEA ISLAND WEATHER

A seemingly settled week is expected on St. Simons Island.

A mix of sunshine and cloud are in the offing, with temperatures of between 73-78 degrees keeping things plenty toasty.

The wind, such a factor at the Sea Island club, is set at a reasonably benign 8mph on Thursday and Friday, but of course that is subject to change – and 12mph over the weekend, with stronger gusts, could well prove to be a factor.

Last Year’s Results

McNealy posted a round of 62 at the Seaside Course on Thursday last year… a staggering +8.24 strokes better than the scoring average.

And then on Friday at the Plantation Course, he could only muster a score of 70!

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Despite that bewilderment, his fast start meant that McNealy was one shot adrift of Patrick Fishburn at the halfway stage, before third round of 66 helped him to the 54-hole lead alongside Vince Whaley.

Whaley came unstuck on the front nine on Sunday, but McNealy did just about enough – 15 pars, three birdies, and a bogey, including a clutch birdie at the final hole – to land his maiden PGA TOUR title by a single shot.

Where to Play Fantasy Golf for this Week’s the 2025 RSM Classic

It’s the final full field event of the year, and with low key ‘fairways and greens’ merchants often coming to the fore at the RSM Classic, this is a good week for conscientious DFS gamers.

So let’s try and take advantage with a blend of risk-and-reward strategies.

• PGA TOUR $80k Drive the Green: Relatively low risk at $5 per entry, this contest also boasts the possibility of high returns, with 15 prizes of $100 and higher and a top payout of $20k.
• PGA TOUR $150K Sand Trap Special: Those with deeper pockets can lock into this $25 game, which offers many big payouts and the king of them all: a $50k jackpot for the winner.

This Week’s Fantasy Notes for the 2025 RSM Classic

Sea Island used to be the preserve of short, accurate plodders.

Since 2010, the likes of Ben Crane, Chris Kirk, Robert Streb, Kevin Kisner, Austin Cook, and Charles Howell III have won the RSM Classic, with Webb Simpson, Billy Horschel, J.J. Spaun, Brian Harman, and Daniel Berger all finishing in second.

Clearly, a high percentage of fairways and greens in regulation is key.

The goalposts have shifted somewhat in recent years, but neither Ludvig Aberg nor Maverick McNealy – the last two winners – can be described as wild off the tee, anyway.

So we’re willing to stick with the profile of accurate drivers that have a bit of class with irons and wedges in hand, too.

Coastal, wind affected layouts can be treated as correlations, but historically the best marker has been the Sony Open, with a whole catalogue of players performing well in both events down the years.

Top 5 Picks/Odds to Win the 2025 RSM Classic  

Top Tier Pick # 1

Alex Smalley (Odds: 35/1, FPPG: 61.5, Salary: $9,000)

There’s some quality operators in this field that easily catch the eye – English, Harman, Si-Woo, Berger etc.

But their lack of competitive golf lately is a turn off, particularly as they’ll take up a large chunk of our salary cap this week, and we simply have no way of knowing how they’re swinging right now.

Preference, then, is to stick with those who have shown form in recent weeks, with Alex Smalley doing exactly that.

Nobody played the weekend better in hellacious conditions than Smalley, who posted rounds of 65-68, and evidently there’s a competitive fire that burns in him given how he grinded with nothing on the line.

We can hope for similar at the RSM Classic this week, where he has previously finished T5. Both Aberg and McNealy landed their maiden PGA TOUR title in this event in the last two years, and while Smalley isn’t in their class, he’s also not a million miles away at his very best.

Key Stats:

• Scrambling – 26th
• Scoring Average (adjusted) – 27th
• Driving Accuracy – 46th

Top Tier Pick #2

Matt Kuchar (Odds: 40/1, FPPG: 68.8, Salary: $8,300)

Although he can cash his career earnings exemption, Matt Kuchar doesn’t want to do that until he absolutely has to.

So, it will be one last big effort from the veteran on St. Simons Island – a location that he once called home.

Given the number of rounds that he’s no doubt played at these courses, it’s surprising that Kuchar only has one top-ten to his name at the RSM Classic.

But we like his profile for this event, and top-20s in three of his last four starts – even the anomaly in Bermuda last week saw him post an excellent 66 on Friday to make the cut – suggests that Kuchar can deliver a PB at Sea Island this week.

Key Stats:

• Scrambling – 4th
• SG: Putting – 15th
• Driving Accuracy – 34th

Mid-Tier Pick #1

Nico Echavarria (Odds: 45/1, FPPG: 65.2, Salary: $8,100)

Nico Echavarria was one of the favorites for the Bermuda Championship, and now he finds himself down in mid-division this week given the addition of extra quality at the head of the field.

But don’t sleep on the Colombian, because he showed here 12 months ago how fitting this test is for him – coming within a whisker of forcing McNealy to a playoff.

He was travelling along nicely enough in Bermuda until a round of 76 on Saturday rather undid his hard work, but writing off players for conditions that should suit based on one bad round days ago seems foolhardy.

Solo second and T6 at the correlating Sony Open and World Wide Tech Championship, Echavarria has the ideal profile for more success at the RSM Classic.

Key Stats:

• SG: Putting – 8th
• Birdie Average – 45th
• Driving Accuracy – 49th

Mid-Tier Pick #2

Takumi Kanaya (Odds: 50/1, FPPG: 52.4, Salary: $7,600)

You have to give credit to sportsmen and women who are able to produce their best under the harshest of pressure.

Takumi Kanaya was 120th in the FedEx standings heading into the Bermuda Championship, meaning that he was quite literally playing for his future on the PGA TOUR.

An excellent run to T3 in Bermuda has propelled him up to 99, and so the Japanese ace just needs one more big performance to confirm a stay of execution.

Since July, he’s recorded three finishes of T7 or higher on the PGA TOUR and won on the Japan Golf Tour, so Kanaya’s game is right where it needs to be.

Key Stats:

• Scrambling – 1st
• Driving Accuracy – 2nd
• SG: Putting – 23rd

Low-Tier Pick

Seamus Power (Odds: 55/1, FPPG: 53.3, Salary: $7,600)

It might just annoy Seamus Power that he’s finally found form… but at the very end of the season.

Mind you, with finishes of T4 and T5 within his last three trips to the RSM Classic, you could argue that the Irishman’s timing is impeccable.

T27 at the WWT Championship was followed by T11 in Bermuda last week, which was Power’s best finish on the PGA TOUR since March.

He finished fourth in the field for GIR in touch conditions in Bermuda, so the sense is that Power is swinging it very nicely right now.

Key Stats:

• Driving Accuracy – 51st
• Greens in Regulation – 54th
• Total Birdies – 77th

Sleeper Pick for the 2025 RSM Classic

Andrew Novak (Odds: 80/1, FPPG: 59.4, Salary: $7,300)

Sleeper picks are those upon whom we can take a low-risk chance that they’ll outperform their salary-based expectations.

Andrew Novak ticks the box, having posted five finishes of T6 or better on the PGA TOUR in 2025 – confirming his high upside.

He won the Zurich Classic alongside Ben Griffin, who has since gone on to capture three other titles and represent the United States in a Ryder Cup. Not to suggest there’s any competitive jealousy between the friends, but surely Novak must feel inspired in some way.

He’s a St. Simon’s Island resident who will t tie up at the RSM Classic for the first time as a TOUR winner this week… could that confidence boost help Novak to finally break through as an individual on home soil?

Key Stats:

• Putts Per Round – 9th
• SG: Around-the-Green – 35th
• Total Birdies – 67th

Alternative Sleeper Pick for the 2025 RSM Classic

Greyson Sigg (Odds: 120/1, FPPG: 51.5, Salary: $7,000)

Greyson Sigg is a low-key member of the ‘Sea Island Boys’, the cabal of PGA TOUR pros that call St. Simons Island home.

That perhaps helps to explain why he has such a solid record in the RSM Classic, where he’s gone 15-8-MC in his last three trips.

Not always the most consistent, Sigg is the archetypal sleeper pick because of that potential upside – he knows the Sea Island so well that he’s fired plenty of low rounds at its individual courses.

Sigg has made the cut in six of his last seven PGA TOUR starts, and that’s a useful foundation for such a bargain pick to build upon at a venue he knows so well.

Key Stats:

• SG: Approach – 27th
• Driving Accuracy – 29th
• Scrambling – 34th

This Week’s Sample Fantasy Lineup

Note: Sample lineups provided as examples only.  Be sure to mix-and-match to best fit individual contests.

Cover Photo via Instagram