FREE PREMIUM - PGA DFS GPP Breakdown: Zurich Classic of New Orleans
Top-ranked grinder, STLCardinals84, will break down his top GPP golf targets for the coming week’s tournament, going over his favorite plays at various price ranges. Who better than PGA DFS master, STLCards, to help you on your way?
Zurich Classic of New Orleans
Welcome to another PGA DFS GPP breakdown! We have an unusual “partner” based team event this week, and both DraftKings and FanDuel are offering contests for the second consecutive year. Be somewhat careful with your bankroll usage for this tournament, though, as it is often unpredictable in nature. It’s still an interesting one to discuss and break down, though!
Here’s the scoop on this event:
For the fifth consecutive time, this will be played as a pairs event. 80 pairs of golfers will partake in the event, with the top 35 and ties making the cut after Friday’s second round. The first and third rounds will be played in fourball format, which is where each player plays their own ball, and the best score of the pair is taken for that hole. Scores will be very good in those rounds. The second and fourth rounds will be played in foursomes format, which is where alternate shots are taken by each player on just one ball. Scores won’t be quite as good in those rounds, though this is generally an easier course.
TPC Louisiana has been the host of this event for every edition since 2007. From 2007 to 2016, this was a traditional PGA Tour event, and the winning score was -13 or better every year. In the four years where it has been played as a team competition with two fourball days and two foursomes days, the winning scores have been -27, -26, -22, and -20. You need to target birdie makers here, especially when you consider the fourball format that will be used in two of the rounds.
Also, we can expect some unpredictability with this event. This is essentially an exhibition that is seen as ‘fun’ for a lot of the golfers, though you do see some who take it quite seriously. It will be very interesting to see how things shake out in terms of ownership. There are narratives for some pairs where the event becomes important for them (you’ll see a couple in my breakdown below as examples).
DraftKings has priced individual golfers for this tournament, but each member of a team has the same salary, and you cannot roster both members of one team. For all intents and purposes, they are “together” despite being shown individually. This likely was easier from a coding perspective for DK to maneuver. FanDuel has paired the golfers together as one “player.”
Let’s check out some of my favorite GPP targets! With only 80 golfers in the field, I’ll list fewer golfers here than usual. We’ll be back to normal for the next full field event.
Patrick Cantlay + Xander Schauffele
DraftKings – $10,400
FanDuel – $11,800
When you combine their skill sets, they are the best fit for this type of event. I don’t trust Morikawa and Hovland to make enough putts to contend in an event like this, and you know Cantlay and Schaffele will work through each other well. Cantlay has continually been in contention throughout calendar year 2022 to date, and despite some disappointing Sundays, his game is in a good place right now. Over the last 50 rounds, Cantlay ranks inside the top five of this field in every category except approach, and Schauffele is 6th in that department. They will work well together. Given the format of this tournament, they are my favorite pairing.
Scottie Scheffler + Ryan Palmer
DraftKings – $9,700
FanDuel – $11,500
I’m not sure what Ryan Palmer has for blackmail on a lot of PGA Tour golfers. He’s played with Jordan Spieth at this tournament when Spieth was at the top of his game. He’s played with Jon Rahm at this tournament when Rahm was at the top of his game. Now, he’s playing with Scottie Scheffler at this tournament when Scheffler is at the top of his game. Respect goes out to Ryan Palmer for his ability to close the deal. To his own credit, he’s played very well at this course, and I’m not going to doubt him in an event that he’s clearly motivated to perform well at. It also doesn’t hurt when you have the hottest golfer on the planet rolling with you.
Sungjae Im + Byeong Hun An
DraftKings – $8,700
FanDuel – $10,000
If you’re looking for narrative fuel, there aren’t any questions here. Byeong Hun An lost his full time Tour card this year, and he’s been grinding out strong results on the Korn Ferry Tour in an attempt to get full playing privileges back for next year. This event will provide him with a fantastic opportunity to fast track that possibility. We know that Sungjae Im loves teeing it up every week, and I expect their games to complement each other well. The ball striking is going to be fine. If An can hole enough putts — which is certainly something of an “if” — this team could find itself in the mix come Sunday afternoon. I’m a sucker for some narratives here, and I’m rooting for this pairing.
Keegan Bradley + Brendan Steele
DraftKings – $8,500
FanDuel – $10,100
If you think that friends play better together in this format, then this is the duo for you. Bradley and Steele teed it up together on their way to a T-4 finish here a year ago, so that’s a positive sign. They also come in with some respectable form. Bradley finished 5th at THE PLAYERS in March and 8th at the Valero Texas Open a few weeks ago, while Steele has recovered from a slow start to the year with three straight made cuts. They make for one of the best upside pairings in the mid-range and are worth a peek in any DFS game format.
Maverick McNealy + Joseph Bramlett
DraftKings – $7,700
FanDuel – $8,500
This is my favorite “unpredictable duo with upside” to target this week. McNealy is obviously having a solid year with 13 cuts made in 14 starts with a pair of top tens, while Bramlett has had a more difficult year. However, Bramlett did fire one of the best rounds of the day on Sunday at last week’s RBC Heritage, shooting 64 to climb more than 20 spots up the leaderboard. Perhaps that will give him some confidence heading into this tournament. It’s worth a look in GPP builds for a potential top ten ceiling.
Alex Smalley + Hayden Buckley
DraftKings – $7,000
FanDuel – $7,000
These two golfers are a bit of an unknown in this format because they are both playing in their first full year with a Tour card. The fact that they are playing together with this as the backdrop makes them a perfect fit for this type of event. You know both will be motivated for a strong finish. Both are risk/reward golfers that can make some birdies, and I like them a lot in the format where each will play their own ball. If they can hold their own in the alternate shot rounds, they could be sneaky contenders here at very reasonable DFS price tags.
| Meet the Experts | Content Posting Times |