FREE PREMIUM: PGA DFS Value Breakdown: RBC Canadian Open
Selecting the absolute best value out there is crucial to cruising to the top of the leaderboards. TJ “tjl5124” Laessig, will dive into the player pool, evaluating roster construction and picking out his favorite value options for the week’s tournament.
RBC Canadian Open
We are flying a bit blind this week at a course that we have not seen since 2010. When it comes to the field, it is strong at the top end, but drops off very quickly with a lot of dicey options once we hit the 7k range on DraftKings. I’ll be targeting ball strikers and overall looking to embrace variance this week. Given the number of unknowns, it is a great week to get contrarian in GPPs, especially by avoiding any of the cheaper priced chalk. The value range certainly is not pretty, but let’s check out some options that caught my eye.
Optimal Plays
Alex Smalley (7500 DK / 8400 FD)
I’ve targeted Smalley in this price range in stronger fields than this, and while the recent results have been inconsistent, he has at least shown some upside that can’t be said about many in this range. This is headlined by his T6 at the Mexico Open and T2 at the Corales, where he gained 10.7 and 12.1 strokes on the field respectively. Zooming out over the past 50 rounds, he ranks 20th in this field ball striking and 36th in total strokes gained. He struggles on and around the greens, but if the tee to green game continues, I like his chances to make the cut and have a deep run into the weekend.
David Lipsky (7300 DK / 9400 FD)
Lipsky has been arguably the most consistent golfer in this field below 7500, making 8 of his last 10 cuts including two top-10 finishes at the Mexico Open and Corales along with Smalley. Lipsky is a bit more balanced with an all-around game and less reliant on pure ball striking, placing him at 18th in this field in strokes gained total over the past 50 rounds and 14th in DK scoring. He is in good form, and I’m looking to ride this wave in all formats this week.
GPP Plays
Ryan Armor (7300 DK / 8300 FD)
Armor has been hit or miss in 2022, making the cut just 4 times in his 8 starts, but when he makes it to the weekend he’s finished in the top-30 each time. This includes a T25, T15, T28, and T20. This spike potential bodes well for GPPs, where we have Armor projected for sub-5% ownership. He ranks 18th in this field tee to green, 15th off the tee, and 30th on approach in the past 50 rounds. He certainly comes with some risk, but I’ll take the upside potential and target Armor in larger field GPPs.
Doug Ghim (7000 DK / 9100 FD)
Per usual, Ghim has been striking the ball great, while being nothing short of horrendous on and around the greens. Over the past 24 rounds, he ranks 10th in this field ball striking including 8th off the tee and 22nd in approach, but is nearly last in the field when it comes to both putting and strokes gained around the greens. He can be a frustrating one to roster, but in a field this weak he stands out above his peers in a way that makes him a viable option. We know the ball striking will be there, and if he can remain somewhat neutral on the greens, I like his chances to make the cut and score over the weekend.
Punt Plays
Vaughn Taylor (6800 DK / 7500 FD)
The 6k range is quite ugly, but finding some value here allows us to jam in the higher end studs at the top of the price range. Taylor is another ball striker who has been struggling on the greens. He ranks 25th in this field tee to green over the past 24 rounds and notched a top-10 three months ago with a T7 at the Peurto Rico Open. We are grasping at straws for punt plays this week, but Taylor presents at least some semblance of upside and opens up a ton of salary for your remaining roster spots.
Brice Garnett (6700 DK / 7700 FD)
Garnett is a more well-balanced punt option that has a strong short game and can get hot with the putter. This was on display most recently at the AT&T Byron Nelson, where he gained 2.9 strokes around the greens and 7.2 strokes putting on his way to a T15 finish. We’ll see if he can ride the hot hand here and roll in some putts on his way to a made cut this week at sub-5% ownership.