PGA DFS Core Plays - DraftKings & FanDuel: The American Express
Top-ranked DFS player, Notorious, breaks down his favorite PGA DFS plays at various salary ranges for the coming week’s golf tournament. Who should you be building around? Find out below.
The American Express
I always hate to miss out on the Si Woo Kim weeks, but didn’t end up with any exposure to him at the Sony Open. Luckily, Matt Kuchar, Corey Conners, and Andrew Putnam did enough to carry my main lineup across the cash line. There were a few screenshots shared by our RG members in cash, so overall I thought it was a successful week. We now return to the Continental United States for a great stretch of golf. While I don’t necessarily love the two pro-am events, we have the Farmers Insurance Open, the Waste Management Phoenix Open, and the Genesis Invitational all in the next five weeks.
This week’s event is a different format than most, as it will be played over three courses in the first three days. The cut won’t be made until after the third round. Here’s a quick glimpse of the three courses in action this week:
- PGA West Stadium (2 Rounds): Par 72, 7,187 yards
- Nicklaus Tournament (1 Round): Par 72, 7,147 yards
- La Quinta Country Club (1 Round): Par 72, 7,060 yards
I’m not sure it does a lot of good to break down the specifics of each course because with the exception of the Stadium Course, golfers will only play them one time during the event. Instead, I like to focus on their similarities. All three courses feature bermuda greens with poa annua overseed, all three feature four par fives, and all three have been in the top 15 of easiest courses on tour over the last five years. The Stadium Course is the most difficult, but that’s not saying too much.
Part of the reason why we see such low scores is the pro-am aspect of the event. The PGA Tour isn’t going to grow the rough up and put the pins in impossible spots for a bunch of amateurs. These rounds already take close to six hours and that would only add to the problem. Patience is not included in the model this week, but it’s certainly going to be needed given how slow the rounds will be played. We’ll likely see the winning score be somewhere in the 25-under par range.
The courses are certainly short by PGA Tour standards and we’ve seen a mix of bombers and accuracy players perform well here over the years. When the greens are easy to hit, it generally turns into a putting contest. In fact, Jon Rahm was caught on a hot mic saying, ““Piece of BLEEP BLEEPING Setup. Putting Contest.” He’s won the event before and is back in the field this year, so he must not hate the event that much.
Ultimately, I’m looking for birdie makers, good putters, and golfers that have a good track record on the West Coast. I personally think there is more variance with a setup like this, so don’t be afraid to take stands on golfers purely based on ownership. I suppose that’s a good strategy to take most weeks, but you get the idea. If you are a premium member and aren’t in the RG Discord, you are doing it wrong my friends. We talk strategy and plays all the way up to lock and then tilt and/or sweat the event for the next four days. It’s a safe place for everyone to vent or brag about their lineups.
Also, we are toying around with the idea of creating some new short-form PGA videos each week. If you have any ideas on what could make some good content, please feel free to reach out. And as always, leave as many comments as you’d like at the bottom of the article. The more questions you can bring my way each week, the better.
Model Video & Download Link for the Sony Open
Tournament Info
Field Size:
- 156 golfers
Cut Rule:
- Top 65 and ties move on after the first THREE rounds
Weather Forecasts