Pat Mayo’s Truist Championship Bets, Weather, DraftKings Notes + Myrtle Beach & LIV Bets

2026 Truist Championship CHEATSHEET

Mayo and Keith Stewart of Read The Line discuss the odds for the 2026 Truist Championship, making their Final Bets, One & Done selections. The guys preview which golfers fit the course, the weather draw, and more in a free-flowing golf conversation to have the final word on the week in golf. Plus, Keith is at Quail Hollow and has insights on the course conditions and gives out his tips on getting fitted for clubs.

PROGRAMMING NOTE: NEW PME drops Thursday am with Kyle Porter, as we preview the course and field for the 2026 PGA Championship, rank players by tier, and present the Mid-Season PGA Awards.

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TRUIST CHAMPIONSHIP QUICK BETS

FIRST ROUND LEADER

MYRTLE BEACH CLASSIC

FIRST ROUND LEADER

LIV VIRGINIA

Truist Championship Notes

Jake Knapp (thumb) is WD for the second straight week. Sources have told me he’s probably out for a while, too, including the PGA Championship. He’s likely trying to make a return in and around the US Open. Austin Smotherman takes his place at The Truist. It’s a bummer for Knapp, who was having a great season. If he confirms his WD, Yelamaraju will take his spot in the year’s second Major.

Marco Penge is a WD from the Myrtle Beach Classic. Not sure why, but he was third on the odds board. The CHAIRMAN, William Mouw, is WD as well. Last year’s playoff loser, Harry Higgs, and Taylor Montgomery are now in the field at Myrtle Beach.

Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods are both officially OUT of the PGA Championship. Max Homa is officially in now. Dustin Johnson received a special invitation.

Jon Rahm paid his fines to the DP World Tour, and all is good on that front. We also found out he can’t get out of his LIV deal. So, not good on that front. For him, at least.

With expected rain overnight tonight and into Thursday morning, the tee times have shifted around for the first two rounds at Quail Hollow.

2026 Truist Championship Picks

Xander Schauffele — The price is going to be horrible, but it’s finally time for Xander to get across the finish line. He’s third in ball striking, has plenty of top results at Quail Hollow, including a win, and the putter has started to stabilize over the past two months. His time will come soon.

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Ludvig Aberg — Realistically, I think there are five players with the required skills and upside to win at Quail Hollow (not that it won’t stop me from betting on others), and while your mileage may vary on Ludvig as a part of that group, especially at these odds, I think he’s there. Granted, he’s a clear fifth on that list. Aberg’s been hit with the gagger label the past few months, yet that’s a double-edged sword. Yes, he’s blown a few events and looks rather stiff on Sunday, but no one would care if he didn’t have the chance to win all those events. He’s finished outside the Top 5 just once in five starts since February. That’s remarkable consistency. Gagger, blown, stiff: I wonder if a pic of Ludvig populates on… other searches?

Gary Woodland — Woodland’s weekend at Doral is somewhat concerning. Juxtaposed with his numbers from the first two rounds, you’d think he let me hit all his approach shots. If that iron play persists, he’s DOA, but it’s been good enough over the past two months, so I can give him a pass. The driver remains elite, and he’s actually putting quite well in 2026, gaining on the greens in eight of nine starts. He’s even gained with his putter at Quail Hollow in four of his past five appearances.

Alex Noren — Pure hunch. Noren’s irons have been spiking since the Masters, and he’s been one of the more consistently good putters all year, as he is most years. The weird part is that his short game has abandoned him. Normally elite greenside, he’s lost significant strokes to the field in three straight starts. As he’s only finished in the negatives just once in 10 years on TOUR, I’d expect that to flip. And while you may have forgotten because he finished T17, Noren was in the final group with Scheffler at the PGA Championship last year here.

Taylor Pendrith — Like Woodland, flew a bit too close to the sun with his amazing ball striking Thursday/Friday, only to have it go sideways on the weekend. But it was encouraging to see his driving and irons start to spike, even a little. If he can maintain respectable iron play, Pendrith has the prototypical game for Quail: Bomber, who hits fairways and can putt. He was 5th here at the PGA Championship a year ago, and T10 in 2024.

2026 Myrtle Beach Classic Picks

Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen & Johnny Keefer — Similar reasons. Bombers who’ve won against this style of weak field in their careers. If one of them could putt this week, it’d be a miracle. However, if that happens, they’ll be there on Sunday.

Max Greyserman — If this event took place in January, Greyserman would have been one of, if not THEE favorite. The problem is: He’s been garbage most of the year. I’ll wager on the talent, though. He’s still one of the longer players in the field, and despite some recent struggles with the putter, he’s been one of the more reliable players with the flat stick over the last two years. Just be reasonable with the irons, and it’s game on.

Pontus Nyholm — After a disastrous start to his PGA career, the Swedish dentist has been pretty good since getting away from the West Coast. While he’ll still splice in some missed cuts along the way, Nyholm has three Top 20s in his last five starts, sitting 16th T2G, seventh in driving distance, and fourth in SG: TOTAL over that time.

2026 LIV Virginia Picks

Joaquin Niemann — His ball striking is fine; it’s just the putter has been frigid. Worth a stab in case he turns that around. Longest odds I’ve been on Niemann in some time.

2026 Truist Championship Weather

Tee times have already been adjusted because of the weather on Thursday. They’ll probably have to do the same for Sunday, too. They don’t want all the top players getting stuck in Charlotte and missing prep for a Major.

The condensed tee times take out any sort of wave advantage. Everyone will be on the course within a two-hour window.

WIND TOWER: Charlotte Douglas International Airport

2026 Truist Championship DraftKings

Another boring week on the DraftKings front: Limited field, no cut, clear course skill fits. Tambo and I made some lineups and discussed ownership, but focused on tournament selection and when to press and when to hold back when playing, not only PGA DFS, but all DFS.

As you’ll see from the ownership projections, Fleetwood-Griffin is basically a dead range in the pricing. If you have some leans from in there, go hard.

Of the low-priced guys: Reitan, Ol’ Yella, Alex Fitz, Coody, Pendrith, and Fox are popping above the rest. From that range, I’m playing Pendy, Cauley, and Michael Kim.

Projections And Ownership Data Powered by the Rabbit Hole Tool

2026 Truist Championship Round 1 Underdog Picks

Despite the annual field GIR rate hovering around 55%, the entire field gets to attack the course in wetter conditions, likely with preferred lies. So, I’ll be hamming some Underdog HIGHERS on 11.5 GIR. There are 40% and 30% BOOSTS available in the lobby, so take advantage of those.

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