2025 Cognizant Classic odds, picks, field: Surprising predictions from model that's nailed 13 majors
If Austin Eckroat can finish on top of the leaderboard this week at the 2025 Cognizant Classic, he'll become the first golfer since Jack Nicklaus (1977-78) to win this event in back-to-back years. Eckroat will have to stave off a number of serious contenders if he wants to rewrite the history books. Shane Lowry, Jordan Spieth, Russell Henley, and Rickie Fowler are among the experienced players looking to dethrone Eckroat and win the Cognizant Classic 2025. Play gets underway from The Champion Course at PGA National on Thursday, Feb. 27.
Lowry, a major winner and three-time PGA Tour champion, is the 20-1 favorite, according to the latest 2025 Cognizant Classic odds. He's followed by Henley (22-1), Sungjae Im (22-1) and Sepp Straka (22-1) on the PGA odds board. Eckroat is going off as a 50-1 longshot to repeat. Before locking in your 2025 Cognizant Classic picks, be sure to see the golf predictions and projected leaderboard from the proven computer model at SportsLine.
SportsLine's proprietary model, built by DFS pro Mike McClure, has been red-hot since the PGA Tour resumed in June 2020. In fact, the model is up over $9,000 on its best bets since the restart, nailing tournament after tournament.
This same model has also nailed a whopping 13 majors entering the weekend, including the 2024 Masters -- its third Masters in a row -- and last year's PGA Championship and U.S. Open. Anyone who has followed its sports betting picks could have seen massive returns on betting apps like FanDuel, DraftKings and Fanatics.
Now that the 2025 Cognizant Classic field is locked in, SportsLine simulated the tournament 10,000 times, and the results were surprising. Head to SportsLine now to see the projected leaderboard.
2025 Cognizant Classic predictionsOne major surprise the model is calling for at the 2025 Cognizant Classic: Russell Henley, a four-time PGA Tour champion and one of the top favorites, stumbles this week and barely cracks the top five. Henley enters this week's event ranked 17th in the Official World Golf Ranking and has finished T-10 or better in two of his last three starts on the PGA Tour.
However, Henley hasn't won a PGA Tour event since 2022 and has struggled mightily off the tee this season. The 35-year-old enters this week's event ranked 99th in total driving (191), 148th in strokes gained: off the tee (-0.277) and 179th in driving distance (288.8). He also finished T-41 at this tournament last year. He's not a strong pick to win it all and there are far better values in the 2025 Cognizant Classic field. See who else to fade here.
Another surprise: Denny McCarthy, a 40-1 longshot, makes a strong run at the title. He has a much better chance to win it all than his odds imply, so he's a target for anyone looking for a huge payday.
McCarthy is still searching for his first win on the PGA Tour, but he has all the tools needed to be in the mix at PGA National this week. He's been playing well in recent weeks, finishing T-16 or better in three of his last four starts on the PGA Tour. He's coming off a T-5 finish at the Genesis Invitational and is ranked 22nd in scoring average (69.25) and 48th in greens in regulation percentage (71.39%). Those impressive stats, plus his long odds, make him a strong value pick for your 2025 Cognizant Classic bets. See who else to pick here.
How to make 2025 Cognizant Classic picksThe model is also targeting four other golfers with odds of 30-1 or longer who will make a strong run at the title. Anyone who backs these longshots could hit it big. You can only see the model's picks here.
Who will win the 2025 Cognizant Classic, and which longshots will stun the golfing world? Check out the 2025 Cognizant Classic odds below and then visit SportsLine to see the projected leaderboard, all from the model that's nailed 13 golf majors, including the last three Masters and three majors in 2024.
2025 Cognizant Classic odds, favoritesGet full 2025 Cognizant Classic picks, best bets and predictions here.
Shane Lowry +2000Russell Henley +2200Sungjae Im +2200Sepp Straka +2200Daniel Berger +2800Taylor Pendrith +3000Min Woo Lee +3300Byeong Hun An +3500Keith Mitchell +3500Denny Mccarthy +4000Cameron Young +4000Jordan Spieth +4000Davis Thompson +4000Michael Kim +4500Ben Griffin +4500Patrick Rodgers +5000Billy Horschel +5000Kurt Kitayama +5000J.J. Spaun +5000Max Greyserman +5000Luke Clanton +5000Andrew Novak +5000Austin Eckroat +5000Alex Smalley +5500Rickie Fowler +5500Lucas Glover +5500Gary Woodland +5500Jhonattan Vegas +5500Nicolai Hojgaard +6000Brian Harman +6000Harry Hall +6000Christiaan Bezuidenhout +6000Taylor Moore +6000Chris Kirk +7000Beau Hossler +7000Seamus Power +7000Niklas Norgaard +7500Bud Cauley +7500Jake Knapp +8000Lee Hodges +8000Eric Cole +8000Kevin Roy +9000Ryan Gerard +9000Doug Ghim +9000Mackenzie Hughes +9000Pierceson Coody +9000C.T. Pan +9000Thorbjorn Olesen +9000Brian Campbell +9000Michael Thorbjornsen +10000Isaiah Salinda +11000Ryan Fox +11000Adam Schenk +11000Nicolas Echavarria +11000Erik Van Rooyen +11000Sam Ryder +11000Jesper Svensson +12000Chan Kim +12000Jacob Bridgeman +12000Mac Meissner +12000Joe Highsmith +12000Greyson Sigg +12000Justin Lower +12000Adam Svensson +12000Kyoung-Hoon Lee +12000Matt Wallace +12000Mark Hubbard +12000Matt Kuchar +12000Victor Perez +12000Tom Hoge +12000Quade Cummins +15000Patrick Fishburn +15000Antoine Rozner +15000Kristoffer Ventura +15000Jackson Suber +15000Andrew Putnam +15000
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