PGA First Look: Deutsche Bank Championship

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The PGA First Look is complete with a course preview, odds, salaries, Official World Golf Rankings, and course history.

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The Barclays Recap

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Even though it was nice to see Patrick Reed pick up his first win of the season, I was pulling for Rickie Fowler and that nice mustache. He fell apart on the back nine and will now have to wait and see if he will be a captain’s pick for the Ryder Cup.

There were two performances at the Barclays that I wanted to point mention. Adam Scott finished two shots back (-7), despite losing 4.8 strokes putting to the field. Rory McIlroy had a similar week, finishing at even par but losing 5.6 strokes putting to the field. If these two can keep up their tee to green game and start rolling in some putts, they could make some noise over the next few weeks.

Deutsche Bank Championship Preview

We are down to the final 100 left standing in the FedExCup Playoffs. Danny Willett is the only player in the top 100 that is certain to miss this event. Kevin Na had his baby on Monday and is tentatively expected to play this week. Henrik Stenson withdrew after the first round of The Barclays and is expecting to get an MRI this week before making a decision on whether or not he will play. After this week’s Deutsche Bank Championship, only the top 70 in the FedExCup standings will move on to the BMW Championship. This event is played at the TPC Boston each and every season, which is a Par 71 that measures 7,297 yards. This is a Gil Hanse redesign that was opened in 2002. The course was shortened in 2007 and after last season, they lengthened one of the drivable par fours. This course features a nice mix of long and short par fours and fives.

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In terms of difficulty, TPC Boston plays fairly easy. You don’t have to be particularly long or particularly accurate to fare well here and these greens have been easy to hit over the years. In 2015, the average score per round was 70.96 and the winner in each of the last five seasons has finished with a score of at least 15-under par. Rickie Fowler returns as the defending champion and without an automatic spot on the Ryder Cup, he still has plenty to prove in the next two weeks. Matt Kuchar, Bubba Watson, Jim Furyk, and J.B. Holmes also have an added incentive this week, as they are also vying for those last four Ryder Cup spots.

Here are a few quotes on TPC Boston from players on tour:

Phil Mickelson: “I do like the course a lot. It’s one of the best risk/reward courses that we play. I’m able to be aggressive into the greens, which is the strength of my game, my iron play. So I think that’s why I like this course so much.”

Jason Day: “The front nine suits my eye, the back nine you have to pay a little more respect.”

Brandt Snedeker: “The greens are perfect to roll on, so if you’re hitting your lines you can make a lot of putts.”

All in all, I am looking for players that are going to give themselves a ton of birdie chances this week. The closer they can get to the hole the better. I am looking for good ball strikers that are solid with their approaches. Putting is always important, but it is the most variable statistic each and every week. Scrambling has been important here in the past, so I’ve included strokes gained around the green in the key statistics. Keep an eye out for players that have a good track record at TPC Boston and that are also coming into the event in good form.

Cut Rule: Even though there are only 99 golfers in the field, the top 70 and ties will make the cut after the second round. At least 70.7% of golfers are going to make the cut this week.

Recent Winners of this Event: Rickie Fowler (2015), Chris Kirk (2014), Henrik Stenson (2013), Rory McIlroy (2012), Webb Simpson (2011)

Key Statistics

1) Strokes Gained Tee to Green
2) Strokes Gained Putting
3) Birdie or Better %
4) Ball Striking
5) Strokes Gained Around the Green

Salaries, Odds, and Course History (2011-2015)

Golfer Salary S-Rank Odds O-Rank + / – OWGR Cuts 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011
Jason Day $12,500 1 7 1 0 1 5/5 12 7 13 51 3
Dustin Johnson $12,100 2 11 2 0 2 4/4 44 500 27 4 42
Jordan Spieth $11,600 3 13 4 -1 3 2/3 85 29 4 500 500
Rory McIlroy $11,100 4 12 3 1 5 4/4 29 5 47 1 500
Henrik Stenson $10,700 5 15 5 0 4 3/3 2 26 1 500 500
Adam Scott $10,400 6 21 6 0 6 4/4 500 16 53 7 8
Patrick Reed $10,200 7 24 8 -1 9 3/3 4 74 70 500 500
Rickie Fowler $10,000 8 24 7 1 8 4/5 1 23 86 74 52
Justin Rose $9,700 9 28 9 0 10 2/4 75 500 16 79 68
Sergio Garcia $9,500 10 31 11 -1 12 2/2 500 500 4 500 31
Phil Mickelson $9,300 11 31 10 1 13 5/5 65 45 41 4 10
Louis Oosthuizen $9,100 12 40 13 -1 17 2/2 12 500 500 2 500
Emiliano Grillo $9,000 13 41 16 -3 25 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Bubba Watson $8,900 14 41 15 -1 7 4/5 29 29 67 88 16
Jim Furyk $8,800 15 40 14 1 22 5/5 4 23 27 13 6
Brooks Koepka $8,700 16 41 17 -1 18 0/1 92 500 500 500 500
Hideki Matsuyama $8,600 17 37 12 5 16 2/2 25 57 500 500 500
Billy Horschel $8,500 18 54 20 -2 66 3/3 72 2 70 500 500
Matt Kuchar $8,400 19 45 18 1 15 5/5 9 29 4 35 25
Charl Schwartzel $8,300 20 78 29 -9 26 4/4 500 43 22 47 21
Branden Grace $8,200 21 65 22 -1 14 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Daniel Berger $8,100 22 76 28 -6 38 1/1 12 500 500 500 500
Zach Johnson $8,000 23 81 30 -7 24 5/5 22 16 27 47 16
Paul Casey $7,900 24 88 32 -8 30 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Ryan Moore $7,900 24 63 21 3 43 4/5 96 73 75 10 10
Jason Dufner $7,800 26 89 34 -8 57 4/4 60 500 9 18 31
Sean O’Hair $7,800 26 89 34 -8 77 3/3 4 500 500 64 25
Gary Woodland $7,700 28 65 23 5 52 4/4 12 29 41 500 25
Brandt Snedeker $7,700 28 52 19 9 23 4/5 44 88 47 6 3
Kevin Na $7,600 30 99 37 -7 33 2/4 60 84 500 69 86
Justin Thomas $7,600 30 69 24 6 31 1/1 56 500 500 500 500
Russell Knox $7,500 32 71 25 7 20 2/2 12 26 500 500 500
Johnson Wagner $7,500 32 130 48 -16 155 3/3 44 500 500 51 25
Jhonattan Vegas $7,400 34 130 48 -14 80 1/1 500 500 500 500 42
Kevin Kisner $7,400 34 76 27 7 32 1/1 12 500 500 500 500
Charley Hoffman $7,300 36 73 26 10 47 4/5 3 84 27 26 31
Si Woo Kim $7,300 36 113 40 -4 62 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
John Senden $7,200 38 164 60 -22 110 4/4 33 5 500 12 21
Jamie Lovemark $7,200 38 155 56 -18 94 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Kevin Chappell $7,100 40 95 36 4 34 3/4 12 50 22 500 79
Jerry Kelly $7,100 40 195 65 -25 99 4/4 9 57 53 500 10
Jimmy Walker $7,000 42 88 33 9 19 3/5 85 9 81 51 37
Steve Stricker $7,000 42 86 31 11 87 3/3 500 500 2 13 42
Roberto Castro $6,900 44 225 69 -25 105 2/2 500 500 9 51 500
Russell Henley $6,900 44 125 47 -3 98 2/3 75 2 62 500 500
William McGirt $6,800 46 111 38 8 40 4/5 12 69 81 26 42
Kyle Reifers $6,800 46 296 80 -34 115 1/1 25 500 500 500 500
Bill Haas $6,700 48 122 45 3 35 4/5 60 9 77 35 61
Ryan Palmer $6,700 48 113 41 7 68 3/5 65 16 77 79 61
Brendan Steele $6,600 50 132 50 0 72 4/4 44 50 20 500 10
Harris English $6,600 50 143 51 -1 60 3/4 12 81 27 69 500
Tony Finau $6,500 52 117 42 10 71 0/1 92 500 500 500 500
J.B. Holmes $6,500 52 123 46 6 21 3/3 44 35 500 39 500
Chez Reavie $6,400 54 196 66 -12 125 1/1 500 500 500 500 2
Chris Kirk $6,400 54 149 55 -1 76 5/5 29 1 16 35 31
Martin Laird $6,400 54 158 59 -5 136 1/4 96 500 86 88 74
David Lingmerth $6,300 57 164 60 -3 54 0/2 80 500 97 500 500
Graeme McDowell $6,300 57 188 62 -5 73 3/3 500 500 47 74 37
Aaron Baddeley $6,300 57 257 74 -17 137 2/2 500 500 500 42 77
Scott Piercy $6,200 60 119 43 17 29 3/4 75 500 13 64 74
Smylie Kaufman $6,200 60 357 89 -29 79 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Fredrik Jacobson $6,200 60 332 86 -26 118 2/3 500 79 81 500 42
Derek Fathauer $6,200 60 389 94 -34 258 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Webb Simpson $6,100 64 112 39 25 63 5/5 44 9 53 18 1
Luke Donald $6,100 64 119 44 20 64 5/5 39 57 41 26 3
Vaughn Taylor $6,100 64 443 97 -33 116 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Scott Brown $6,100 64 286 77 -13 166 2/3 69 77 97 500 500
Alex Cejka $6,000 68 229 71 -3 119 1/1 39 500 500 500 500
David Hearn $6,000 68 268 76 -8 139 3/4 80 43 35 26 500
Patrick Rodgers $6,000 68 214 68 0 121 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Daniel Summerhays $6,000 68 148 54 14 56 4/4 9 57 22 69 500
Jim Herman $6,000 68 371 92 -24 84 0/1 75 500 500 500 500
Patton Kizzire $5,900 73 329 85 -12 93 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Billy Hurley $5,900 73 292 79 -6 147 1/1 500 57 500 500 500
Danny Lee $5,900 73 155 56 17 51 2/2 33 35 500 500 500
Kevin Streelman $5,900 73 193 64 9 107 3/4 69 26 41 500 93
Spencer Levin $5,900 73 346 87 -14 190 2/2 56 500 500 500 37
K.J. Choi $5,800 78 304 82 -4 112 2/4 500 35 41 86 86
Ricky Barnes $5,800 78 225 69 9 170 1/2 500 500 500 79 76
Harold Varner $5,800 78 362 91 -13 183 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Marc Leishman $5,800 78 143 51 27 49 4/5 80 65 16 42 42
Bryce Molder $5,800 78 439 96 -18 124 2/3 85 500 41 9 500
Jason Kokrak $5,700 83 146 53 30 100 2/3 95 16 73 500 500
Chad Campbell $5,700 83 289 78 5 182 1/2 75 500 500 500 21
Jason Bohn $5,700 83 443 97 -14 122 1/2 90 35 500 500 500
John Huh $5,700 83 296 80 3 214 3/3 500 69 22 51 500
Charles Howell $5,700 83 231 72 11 102 4/5 56 35 53 88 31
Colt Knost $5,600 88 321 84 4 103 1/1 44 500 500 500 500
Ben Martin $5,600 88 155 56 32 113 1/2 25 92 500 500 500
Vijay Singh $5,600 88 357 89 -1 123 2/3 500 35 500 26 86
Brian Stuard $5,600 88 314 83 5 138 2/2 500 16 67 500 500
Fabian Gomez $5,600 88 446 99 -11 83 1/1 33 500 500 500 500
Brian Harman $5,600 88 191 63 25 132 3/4 12 65 77 74 500
Tyrone Van Aswegen $5,500 94 346 87 7 250 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Hudson Swafford $5,500 94 211 67 27 224 1/1 33 500 500 500 500
Jon Curran $5,500 94 375 93 1 97 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Adam Hadwin $5,500 94 263 75 19 179 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Sung Kang $5,500 94 238 73 21 164 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
James Hahn $5,500 94 429 95 -1 65 0/1 80 500 500 500 500

Color Coding
Course history in BLUE indicates a top ten finish.
Course history in GREEN indicates a top 25 finish.
Course history in YELLOW indicates a made cut with a finish outside of the top 25.
Course history in RED indicates a missed cut.

Legend

Term Description
S-Rank Each golfer’s salary rank compared to the field, with one being the most expensive.
O-Rank Each golfer’s odds rank compared to the field, with one the biggest favorite.
+ / – The difference between a golfer’s salary and odds rank. The bigger the number, the better.
OWGR Official World Golf Ranking
Cuts Cut record of each golfer at this course in the last five seasons.
2011 – 2015 Columns Course history at this event in the last five seasons.

About the Author

Notorious
Derek Farnsworth (Notorious)

Derek Farnsworth (aka Notorious) is a lead RotoGrinders Expert and one of the most recognizable names and faces in all of DFS. Before joining the RotoGrinders team, Derek received a Master’s Degree from the University of Utah. When he’s not busy providing content, he’s dominating the DFS industry as evidenced by his consistent top rankings in several sports and multiple Live Final appearances. Noto provides expert NBA, NFL, MLB, and PGA analysis for RotoGrinders Premium members on a daily basis and has also been nominated for five different Fantasy Sports Writer’s Association (FSWA) awards. Follow Noto on Twitter – @RG_Notorious