PGA DFS Targets: Shriners Open
Frys.com Open Review
Last week, I had the pleasure of writing the picks for the Frys.com Open while staring at the beach in lovely Hilton Head Island in South Carolina. Unfortunately, I’m back to normal life and the grind must go on. How did the picks turn out last week? Pretty well actually. Maybe I should write from the beach more often… My picks had two Top 10’s (Thomas and Wilcox) and another if you count my shoutout to Jason Bohn. The only disappointments were the two punt plays in Bryce Molder and Shawn Stefani. Four out of six isn’t great, but two Top 10’s is solid. Nailing the winner is the obvious goal and would have helped out a lot. Overall, we’ll go with B- for week one.
Some weeks, if time allows it, I’ll try to write up a section here about a particular topic, player, or possibly just some course information. This week wasn’t one of those weeks. Luckily, there are plenty of other excellent articles on RotoGrinders outlining the course layout, tournament history, and other helpful background information to help you this week. Follow me on Twitter “@taylorezell”:https://twitter.com/taylorezell and feel free to ask me any questions for this upcoming week. Good luck!
Ryan Moore
I don’t mind any of the players priced above $10k on DraftKings, but think I’ll be taking a more balanced approach this week. Moore is my favorite expensive play, and the savings from someone like Rickie Fowler can be used to upgrade elsewhere. Selecting Fowler to start your team leaves you with an average of $7,500 per golfer to finish out your team (think Jonas Blixt caliber). While starting your team with Moore allows you $8,000 per golfer (think Russell Henley caliber, etc.). Moore went low in his final two rounds at the Frys.com Open to snag yet another Top 10 finish. Not only is he hot coming in, he has won here in 2012 and also has two additional Top 10s. As he showed last week, he can roll in birdies in bunches, and makes for a great play this week.
Jason Bohn
I expected Bohn to finally crack the Top 10 in DK pricing and he barely made it, coming in at number 10. Vegas has him projected as the 10th likeliest winner, so it appears as though he is properly priced. It’s remarkable how much Bohn’s game has evolved over the last year, especially for someone of his age (42). He continued the hot streak last week in route to shooting a -14 and taking home third place. He led the field in GIR, which shows that all was missing was a few more made putts. Like many of the other players on this list, he has some history here. He finished 2nd in 2013 and has also been in the Top 20 in 4 of the last 5 events here.
Will Wilcox
This is from my write-up last week and is still true. “Wilcox has become a DFS favorite due to his great play at affordable prices, and his consistent “acknowledgement of DFS players on Twitter”:https://twitter.com/willwilcoxgolf/status/637404077329092609” Wilcox answered the call again last week in route to another Top 10 finish. Wilcox’ most impressive attribute is his ability to find greens consistently (4th in GIR) and his Ball Striking (2nd) last year, both of which will be essential to be successful again this week. Wilcox will likely be one of, if not the highest owned golfers this weekend, but I’ll still be rostering him and look to diversify elsewhere.
Kevin Streelman
Streelman isn’t a guy who normally finds his way into my lineups, but this week will be the exception. Streelman has experienced some success at this course in the past, going 5 for 5 in making cuts including a 2nd place finish here just last season. Streelman ranked in the Top 15 in Total Driving and Ball Striking last year. He was also in the Top 25 in Greens in regulation, so clearly he is an accurate player. His biggest weakness is an unfortunate one as he struggles with the flat stick (146th in Strokes Gained: Putting last year). Streelman is only a hot putter away from being competitive on a regular basis, and I think it starts this week.
Shawn Stefani
I promise I’m not just recycling my picks from last week (Wilcox is actually the only other repeat)! Here is my excerpt from last week… “For reasons I cannot explain, I tend to gravitate to Shawn Stefani. I think some of it has to do with the relative reliability that he provides. He made 21/26 (81%) last year, which is impressive for anyone, but especially for someone at this price point”. Then he goes out and misses the cut, right on cue… This week, he is even cheaper at $6,000 and stands out compared to the players around him, many of whom haven’t experienced anywhere near the level of success Stefani has. Stefani also provides a little upside. He had three Top 10s last year, and in a weak field, another one could be in the cards.