2026 Rocket Classic odds, picks: Surprising predictions from golf model that's nailed 17 majors
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- Cameron Young enters the 2026 Rocket Classic as the +950 favorite at Detroit Golf Club, where Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy are both taking the week off ahead of the FedEx Cup Playoffs
- SportsLine's model, built by DFS pro Mike McClure, simulated the Rocket Classic 10,000 times and has a track record of nailing 17 majors including the 2026 Masters — its fifth consecutive
- Jackson Koivun, priced at +2000 after winning the 3M Open with a final-round 61, barely cracks the model's top 10 and is flagged as a golfer to fade, partly because he also missed the cut at the recent John Deere Classic
- J.J. Spaun at +3000 is a model favorite, backed by four top-10 finishes this season, a 20th-place FedEx Cup Playoff standing, and two top-10s at the Rocket Classic in the prior three years
- Chris Gotterup sits at +1800 as a three-time 2026 PGA Tour winner this season, with Xander Schauffele at +1600 and Si Woo Kim at +2000 rounding out the top tier of odds
- A longshot around +3500 is also on the model's target list to make a run up the leaderboard, though the specific name is gated behind SportsLine's paywall
Why it matters: With only two regular-season events left before the FedEx Cup Playoffs, the model's fade call on Koivun directly contradicts the market pricing him as the co-fourth favorite, while its endorsement of Spaun and a +3500 longshot gives bettors concrete alternatives at longer odds than the head of the market.
