PGA DFS Expert Survey: RBC Canadian Open

Our panel of experts is here to give you their PGA DFS picks for today’s main slate contests by answering a handful of questions to help you make crucial lineup-building decisions. Want to know who Noto has as the top three finishers? Or who is STLCards’ top overall golfer? Find out below!

PGA DFS Picks – DraftKings & FanDuel Expert Survey: RBC Canadian Open

Who is your favorite golfer for optimal lineups?

Notorious: Tyrrell Hatton
STLCardinals84: Tyrrell Hatton
hondizzle: Tyrrell Hatton
darddog: Rory McIlroy

Who is your favorite golfer for large field contests?

Notorious: Matt Kuchar
STLCardinals84: Corey Conners
hondizzle: Rory Mcllroy
darddog: Matt Fitzpatrick

Who is your favorite salary relief play in optimal lineups?

Notorious: Mark Hubbard
STLCardinals84: Mark Hubbard
hondizzle: Mark Hubbard
darddog: Garrick Higgo

Who is your favorite salary relief play in large-field tournaments?

Notorious: Brendon Todd
STLCardinals84: Carson Young
hondizzle: Akshay Bhatia
darddog: Mackenzie Hughes

Which golfer are you afraid of being underweight on compared to the field?

Notorious: Matt Fitzpatrick
STLCardinals84: Justin Rose
hondizzle: Carson Young
darddog: Justin Rose

Which high-priced golfer will you have little to no exposure to in tournaments?

Notorious: Keith Mitchell
STLCardinals84: Sam Burns
hondizzle: Sam Burns
darddog: Tommy Fleetwood

What type of golfers are you targeting most? (ie: bomber, short game specialist)

Notorious: Birdie makers
STLCardinals84: Ball Strikers
hondizzle: Ball Strikers
darddog: Ball Strikers

Which statistic other than Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green are you weighing most?

Notorious: SG: Approach
STLCardinals84: SG: Approach & Par Four Scoring
hondizzle: SG: Approach
darddog: SG: Approach

Predict the top three finishers of the event.

Notorious: 1. Rose 2. Hatton 3. Kuchar
STLCardinals84: 1. Hatton 2. Conners 3. Kuchar
hondizzle: 1. Hatton 2. Svensson 3. Rose
darddog: 1. McIlroy 2. Fitz 3. Hughes

Predict the winning score of the week (e.g., E, -5, -10).

Notorious: -22
STLCardinals84: -20
hondizzle: -21
darddog: -17

Which useful trend or statistic stuck out most during your research?

Notorious: This is a good week to listen to player interviews because we don’t really know how the course is going to play. We can make assumptions based on the rough length (4 to 5 inches) and how short the course is for a Par 72, but we really don’t know if Oakdale Golf and Country Club is going to favor the bombers or the accuracy types. Any information we hear from the golfers could help us when it comes to course fit. With all of that said, the last four winners of this event (different courses) were all at least 19-under par. I expect that trend to continue this week. Regardless of if it favors bombers or accuracy types, a lot of birdies should be made.

STLCardinals84: We already have a chaotic week in the golf world with the news of the PGA Tour / LIV Tour / DP World Tour “merger” of sorts. While we don’t have concrete details yet, actual golf is likely going to be the back story this week — and the distraction might affect some players. We also have a new course this year for the RBC Canadian Open with Oakdale Golf and Country Club playing as a short par 72 layout. It is unique for a par 72 in that it has just three par fives and three par threes, meaning there are 12 par fours on the course. I will be prioritizing good tee to green players and par four scorers this week.

hondizzle: This is the week of moving parts. Prior to the news of a PGA / LIV merger, there was already a ton of uncertainty in getting ready for the RBC Canadian Open. US Open qualifying, combined with the week before a major, has led to a large number of players withdrawing. Combine that with the fact we get a first-time course, and that makes this a complete week full of guesswork. I had hoped to get some more news from players about the course as the week progresses, but I imagine that most questions will be about the merger. So with that being said, we can try to build around the things we know. Course setup for this event leans towards low scores, so target birdie makers and possibly par 4 scoring. For roster construction, I would tend to take on more risk than normal to get exposure to top-end golfers.

darddog: Welp, this tournament has kind of taken a backseat to the news breaking earlier this morning with PGA/LIV/DP are joining forces for the “good of golf.” I have a lot of takes on the PGA and their current clown of a commissioner Jay Monahan, but I’ll spare y’all from those for now. Back to the RBC Canadian Open this week, everyone is predicting a birdie fest. The problem? No one really knows that’s how it’s going to play out. Oakdale Golf & CC has never hosted a pro event. I’ve seen some caddies say they expect a -13 to -15 winning score and that this front 9 might play harder than predicted. I’ll say embrace the variance and don’t necessarily go for guys who only score well but also avoid big numbers.

Who is your top contrarian golfer (when considering price, key stats, projected ownership, etc.) on the board and why?

Notorious: Brendon Todd and Matt Kuchar – I’m pairing these two together because they both have similar games and they both have sub-10% ownership projections. Even though this is a short course that is expected to play easy, two of the best plodders in the field are getting overlooked. Todd is one of the best at hitting fairways and he’s the best putter in the field on bentgrass. He’s also gained strokes on approach in five of his last seven starts. Kuchar struggled on the weekend last week and missed the cut at the PGA Championship, but those aren’t good courses for his skill set. Prior to that, he was in great form. I like pairing golfers with similar skill sets this week in hopes that the course favors one specific type of golfer.

STLCardinals84: Matt Kuchar – I am generally not a fan of targeting Kuchar in GPP formats because his game has always been one of “safety” as opposed to “upside.” However, these shorter courses suit his playing style very well, and he has been dialed in with his irons for much of 2023. I’m not going to let one poor start be of major concern, and that might even benefit by serving to lower ownership. He should be a strong course fit at Oakdale, at least much moreso than the last couple of venues where he has teed it up.

hondizzle: Adam Svensson – While Corey Conners will take the lead as the favorite Canadian player on rosters this week, I like the chances of Svensson’s being the best Canadian golfer- or even winner- by week’s end. While his play of late has not been stellar, I do like the long-term prognosis for Svensson. A tour winner already this season, Svensson is a great tee-to-green type of player who might have a bit more knowledge of how to play this course.

darddog: Matt Fitzpatrick – Seems like Fitz might go a little under the radar this week after no one really talking about his T9 at Memorial last week. Once again, he’s another guy who might get overlooked because people keep screaming birdie fest. Outside of his MC at PGA Championship, he has only finished outside T30 in one of his last six starts. I like the idea of double-stud builds with him and McIlroy.

Who is your top overall golfer (when considering price, key stats, projected ownership, etc.) on the board and why?

Notorious: Tyrrell Hatton – The easy answer here is Rory McIlroy, as he’s clearly the most talented golfer in the field. However, I’m worried about his wedge game and about his confidence in general. He ran away from the field at last year’s RBC Canadian Open, but his game was in different shape then. And now, he has to deal with the LIV/PGA Tour merger after backing the tour more than anyone the last eight months. I’ll side with Hatton as my top overall play. He’s been more consistent than McIlroy this season and his statistics are solid across the board. He has rattled off five straight top 20 finishes and has finished T6 or better in five of his last 11 starts. I like his floor/ceiling combo here.

STLCardinals84: Tyrrell Hatton – I worry about McIlroy this week with his up and down form and the chaos of the news cycle this week, so I prefer to start lineups with Hatton or Conners. I struggled with which of the latter two to put here, but settled on Hatton, as he strides in with a very strong run of form with finishes of 19th or better in four straight starts. That includes a T3 at the Wells Fargo and a T5 at the Byron Nelson. He’s a fine fit for Oakdale and brings a nice blend of safety and upside to the table.

hondizzle: Tyrrell Hatton – I am really not sure how Hatton has yet to win this season. I want exposure to the best top-end talent this week and less exposure to mid-priced golfers who get a price bump due to the weak nature of this field. In my opinion, Rory and Hatton are the best top-end options for the week, and after the news from today, I wonder if Rory might possibly be a bit more distracted. Hatton is a stud tee to green and should be in a good spot to contend for his first win of the season.

darddog: Rory McIlroy – With all the talk about Hatton and $1,000 price difference on DK, I wouldn’t be surprised if Hatton garners more ownership than Rory. It seems like people are always trying to see what’s going on in his head. He finished T7 last week despite another high-pressure final round where he shot three-over and was T7 at the PGA Championship. There’s a lot less pressure here, and I’ll take one of the best players in the world in a spot where he is going to be much lower owned than he should most likely.

What is your hot take of the week?

Notorious: Matt Kuchar and Brendon Todd both finish in the top 10.

STLCardinals84: Justin Rose and Cameron Young both miss the cut.

hondizzle: Tommy Fleetwood wins on a week where I may not have any exposure.

darddog: Rory laps the field by 3+ strokes, makes it three Canadian Open wins in a row, and chokeslams Jay Monahan through a table on the 18th green.

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