PGA First Look: Wyndham Championship

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

NOTE: If you’re looking for general golf betting tips, please refer to our PGA golf betting guide.

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Event Preview

Brooks Koepka is a beast. When he is motivated, there isn’t a better golfer in the world. Half of his finishes this season have been in the top four, including all four of the majors. He dusted Rory McIlroy in the final round on Sunday to take home his first WGC title. The best part is that we are finally starting to see a little emotion out of him. I know he wants us all to believe that he doesn’t care about golf and that he doesn’t as much effort into it as others, but I’m not buying it. I want the best in the world to love what they do. Even though the biggest events of the year have come and gone, I’m excited for the FedEx Cup Playoffs. Speaking of big events, the Fantasy Golf World Championship on DraftKings kicks off next week. This is the final week to qualify, so don’t miss your chance to compete in the biggest fantasy golf contest around. I am lucky enough to have four seats and will try to add another this week at the Wyndham Championship.

Sedgefield Country Club is located just outside of Charlotte. The course is a Donald Ross design that was originally built in 1926. The course was remodeled and made more difficult in 2007. This is still one of the easiest courses on the PGA Tour, routinely ranking in the bottom 10 in difficulty. Each of the last three winners have posted scores of at least 20-under par, so you’ll have to go low to compete this week. The course is a Par 70 that measures 7,127 yards. It features two par fives, four par threes, and 12 par fours. Both par fives should be reachable by the field and eight of the par fours measure between 400-450 yards. If you are looking at proximity, the highest percentage of approach shots are hit from 150-175 yards, but that obviously depends on how aggressive you want to be off the tee.

The fairways here are 29 yards wide on average, which is significantly narrower than your average PGA Tour event. Despite the thin fairways, golfers hit close to 70% of fairways here each season. This is due to the fact that you don’t need to hit driver to compete. You’ll need distance on the two par fives and on the two long par fours, but placement off the tee is more important on the rest of the holes. Credit to Josh Culp for this statistic — approaches from the fairway hit the green here over 80% of the time, while approaches from the rough hit the green here just over 50% of the time. While I’m not putting too much emphasis on off the tee stats, accuracy will be more important than raw distance this week.

The greens here are slightly smaller than tour average, but slightly larger than most short Par 70 tracks. They are fairly easy to hit and when you miss them, scrambling isn’t particularly difficult. The greens features Champion Bermuda grass and can be tricky at times. They slope from back to front and are quite undulating, which has caused a high rate of three-putts here over the years. If we look at golfer’s that have won and/or have competed here in the past, this is clearly more of a plodder’s course. If you hit fairways, give yourself birdie opportunities, and can capitalize on them with the flatstick, you will find yourself in contention on Sunday. With such a low winning score expected, avoiding the big number will be critical.

The last note for this week is that many golfer will be playing for their PGA Tour card. Those that finish outside of the top 125 in the FedEx Cup standings after this week will lose their full-time status for the 2019-20 season. Players that finish between 126th and 150th will have a chance to compete in the Korn Ferry Tour Finals, but nothing is guaranteed. From a fantasy perspective, I’m not going to play into the narratives too much this week. I can’t think of any sport where added pressure actually helps you play better. There will be a few that step up to the plate and have big weeks to secure their cards for next season, but there will be heartbreaks as well.

Cut Rule: Top 70 and ties move on after the first two rounds. The MDF rule is in effect if more than 78 golfers make the initial cut.

Recent Winners of this Event:Brandt Snedeker (2018), Henrik Stenson (2017), Si Woo Kim (2016), Davis Love III (2015), Camilo Villegas (2014)

Key Statistics (In Order of Importance)

1) Strokes Gained Approach
2) Birdie or Better Percentage
3) Par 4 Scoring
4) Strokes Gained Off the Tee
5) Greens in Regulation

Sports Betting Picks

We had two horses in the race on Sunday at the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational. Rory McIlroy (10-to-1) had a one shot lead heading into the final round and Webb Simpson (33-to-1) made a big charge up to the leaderboard. Unfortunately, they were no match for Brooks Koepka, who handles pressure as well as any golfer on tour. After a hot start to the season, we have officially hit a cold stretch. We’ll likely need to hit a winner here in the next four weeks to end the season with a profit.

YTD: 5 wins, -19.5 units

Outright Bets

Patrick Reed (two units) 22/1
Billy Horschel 30/1
Joaquin Niemann 50/1
Vaughn Taylor 90/1
Nick Taylor 110/1

Top 5 Bets

Patrick Reed 5/1
Billy Horschel 6/1
Joaquin Niemann 9/1
Vaughn Taylor 18/1
Nick Taylor 20/1

Top 20 Bets

Vaughn Taylor 4/1
Nick Taylor 5/1
Peter Malnati 5/1
Roger Sloan 6/1
Sam Ryder 6/1

Salaries, Odds, and Course History (2014-2018)

Golfer DK Salary FD Salary FDRFT Sal Odds DK % FD % FDRFT % Cuts 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014
Webb Simpson $11,200 $11,900 $17,700 11 0% 0% 0% 5/5 2 3 72 6 5
Hideki Matsuyama $10,900 $11,800 $17,100 14 0% 0% 0% 2/4 11 500 3 70 78
Jordan Spieth $10,600 $11,500 $16,700 17 -33% 0% 0% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Collin Morikawa $10,400 $11,600 $16,800 16 25% 0% 0% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Brandt Snedeker $10,000 $11,300 $16,000 24 -40% -17% -17% 4/4 1 500 3 43 5
Paul Casey $9,800 $11,400 $16,100 20 17% 0% 0% 2/2 500 500 500 3 18
Patrick Reed $9,700 $11,200 $16,000 23 14% 14% 0% 2/2 500 500 22 500 24
Billy Horschel $9,600 $11,000 $15,700 29 -13% 0% -13% 4/5 11 60 5 70 47
Viktor Hovland $9,500 $11,100 $15,600 28 11% 0% 11% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Matthew Wolff $9,400 $10,800 $14,700 45 -50% -36% -7% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Chez Reavie $9,300 $10,900 $15,000 39 9% 0% 9% 1/3 500 37 118 123 500
Rory Sabbatini $9,200 $10,100 $14,900 43 0% 33% 0% 2/2 57 4 500 500 500
Joaquin Niemann $9,100 $10,600 $14,500 47 -38% -38% 5% 1/1 33 500 500 500 500
Cameron Smith $9,000 $10,400 $15,100 39 21% 27% -10% 2/3 500 7 92 18 500
Charles Howell $8,900 $10,500 $14,700 45 -7% -14% -14% 1/2 500 500 500 31 132
Alexander Noren $8,800 $10,000 $14,700 46 -6% 11% -21% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Lucas Glover $8,700 $10,700 $14,700 43 18% -17% 0% 3/4 500 28 22 18 132
Martin Kaymer $8,600 $10,200 $14,600 49 -6% -12% -6% 1/1 500 500 500 14 500
Adam Hadwin $8,500 $10,300 $14,800 43 32% 19% 0% 2/2 500 500 33 51 500
Dylan Frittelli $8,400 $9,800 $14,300 58 -15% -5% -15% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Sungjae Im $8,300 $9,700 $14,300 60 -14% 0% -20% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Byeong Hun An $8,200 $9,900 $14,300 51 9% 0% 0% 1/2 500 140 500 18 500
Scott Piercy $8,100 $9,900 $14,200 54 9% -5% 13% 3/3 45 500 63 500 12
Jason Kokrak $8,000 $9,400 $13,900 67 -21% 6% 0% 2/3 57 16 92 500 500
Aaron Wise $7,900 $9,700 $14,000 64 0% -4% 4% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Martin Laird $7,900 $9,700 $14,300 57 12% 8% -10% 4/4 45 500 63 59 14
Kevin Streelman $7,800 $9,300 $14,000 65 0% 16% -4% 1/1 500 72 500 500 500
Russell Henley $7,800 $9,800 $14,200 64 4% -18% -8% 1/2 73 500 46 500 500
Sepp Straka $7,700 $9,300 $13,800 72 -7% 3% -3% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Kyle Stanley $7,700 $9,600 $13,600 74 -10% -19% 0% 2/4 500 86 14 51 132
Abraham Ancer $7,700 $9,200 $14,000 67 3% 18% -8% 1/2 24 500 148 500 500
Brian Harman $7,600 $9,100 $13,600 77 -6% 6% -6% 0/3 500 500 81 70 78
Doc Redman $7,600 $8,200 $13,400 81 -16% 43% -3% 0/1 107 500 500 500 500
Bill Haas $7,600 $8,900 $13,300 84 -19% 10% 5% 5/5 45 75 22 6 2
Russell Knox $7,500 $9,600 $13,700 72 14% -11% 3% 1/2 500 28 500 70 500
Jason Dufner $7,500 $9,100 $13,500 80 -3% 0% -3% 4/4 66 14 22 51 500
Branden Grace $7,500 $9,000 $13,100 89 -17% -5% 2% 1/1 500 500 500 47 500
Vaughn Taylor $7,400 $8,700 $13,400 86 -5% 15% -11% 2/3 80 50 500 47 500
Denny McCarthy $7,400 $9,500 $13,400 79 8% -21% 3% 1/1 36 500 500 500 500
Daniel Berger $7,400 $9,500 $13,600 77 13% -14% -3% 0/2 95 500 500 135 500
Lucas Bjerregaard $7,400 $8,600 $13,200 93 -13% 16% -5% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Bud Cauley $7,300 $9,200 $13,400 85 7% -15% -8% 2/3 500 42 10 500 78
Wyndham Clark $7,300 $8,700 $12,900 98 -5% 6% 2% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Charley Hoffman $7,300 $9,000 $12,700 101 -14% -23% 4% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
JT Poston $7,300 $8,900 $13,000 92 0% 0% 2% 1/2 120 50 500 500 500
Nick Watney $7,200 $8,800 $12,900 100 -2% -7% -4% 2/4 95 104 500 31 5
Zach Johnson $7,200 $9,100 $13,000 98 2% -25% -5% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Adam Schenk $7,200 $8,500 $12,800 108 -11% 7% -6% 0/1 120 500 500 500 500
Troy Merritt $7,200 $9,000 $12,700 105 -9% -28% 0% 3/3 500 28 74 500 51
Kevin Tway $7,200 $8,800 $12,900 99 0% -5% -2% 1/3 11 86 500 500 107
Peter Malnati $7,100 $8,100 $12,100 139 -35% 1% 5% 4/4 24 50 42 500 64
Roger Sloan $7,100 $7,900 $12,600 113 -8% 29% -4% 0/1 500 500 500 141 500
Brice Garnett $7,100 $8,100 $12,600 113 -6% 23% -2% 3/4 20 500 20 135 32
Corey Conners $7,100 $8,300 $12,500 120 -16% 3% -2% 1/1 45 500 500 500 500
Brendan Steele $7,100 $7,800 $12,600 117 -12% 30% -8% 0/1 89 500 500 500 500
Austin Cook $7,100 $8,600 $12,700 104 4% 4% 2% 1/1 500 500 500 43 500
Sebastian Munoz $7,000 $8,600 $12,500 117 0% -12% 2% 0/1 500 116 500 500 500
J.J. Spaun $7,000 $8,700 $12,600 111 9% -11% 2% 1/1 500 16 500 500 500
Kiradech Aphibarnrat $7,000 $8,200 $12,400 129 -11% 3% -3% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Jimmy Walker $7,000 $8,300 $12,300 129 -11% -3% 5% 0/1 500 500 118 500 500
Beau Hossler $7,000 $8,800 $12,600 116 2% -27% -6% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Si Woo Kim $7,000 $8,400 $12,400 131 -14% -12% -7% 1/2 143 500 1 500 500
Sam Ryder $6,900 $8,400 $12,500 123 5% -3% -3% 1/1 45 500 500 500 500
Shawn Stefani $6,900 $8,500 $12,300 126 2% -13% 6% 3/4 24 131 14 500 51
Ryan Armour $6,900 $8,500 $12,400 125 3% -11% 0% 2/3 8 4 500 135 500
Josh Teater $6,900 $8,300 $12,100 147 -16% -20% 0% 1/2 500 500 500 115 38
Bronson Burgoon $6,900 $8,700 $12,400 132 -5% -40% -8% 0/2 120 500 142 500 500
Robert Streb $6,900 $8,200 $12,200 147 -16% -12% -7% 3/4 129 72 33 500 18
Luke List $6,900 $8,200 $12,400 136 -6% -3% -10% 0/1 500 500 76 500 500
Nick Taylor $6,800 $8,000 $12,800 112 24% 28% -10% 2/4 8 50 81 70 500
Pat Perez $6,800 $8,400 $12,200 145 -1% -22% -4% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Andrew Landry $6,800 $8,200 $12,200 137 3% -5% 0% 1/1 500 500 57 500 500
Matt Jones $6,800 $8,600 $12,200 143 0% -37% -3% 0/3 89 104 118 500 500
Harris English $6,800 $8,100 $12,000 150 -9% -9% 1% 4/4 11 50 46 31 500
Harold Varner $6,800 $8,000 $12,200 145 -3% 3% -6% 2/3 53 10 128 500 500
Danny Lee $6,800 $8,100 $12,100 158 -11% -11% -7% 1/4 24 116 106 500 126
Talor Gooch $6,700 $7,200 $11,900 179 -18% 14% -12% 0/1 80 500 500 500 500
Joel Dahmen $6,700 $7,500 $11,900 167 -4% 13% 1% 1/1 500 42 500 500 500
Brian Stuard $6,700 $7,400 $12,000 164 -3% 19% -3% 2/5 73 116 46 123 32
Kyoung-Hoon Lee $6,700 $7,500 $11,900 168 -5% 12% 0% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Scott Stallings $6,700 $7,300 $11,800 175 -13% 14% -1% 0/4 73 116 81 500 107
Jonathan Byrd $6,700 $7,300 $11,800 176 -16% 12% -3% 3/4 24 37 500 18 78
Chris Stroud $6,700 $7,800 $12,100 149 3% 9% -3% 1/3 500 94 68 89 500
Kelly Kraft $6,700 $8,300 $11,700 174 -10% -39% 8% 1/1 500 500 57 500 500
Mac Hughes $6,600 $7,700 $11,900 170 4% 4% -1% 1/1 66 500 500 500 500
Johnson Wagner $6,600 $7,900 $12,000 157 9% 1% 0% 4/5 33 24 5 70 38
Jonas Blixt $6,600 $7,200 $11,800 180 -9% 12% -8% 3/4 36 86 33 10 500
Wes Roach $6,600 $7,600 $12,000 171 2% 7% -8% 1/1 500 500 500 500 57
Brian Gay $6,600 $7,900 $11,700 184 -13% -23% -4% 2/3 6 50 500 500 117
Tom Hoge $6,600 $8,000 $11,800 182 -11% -27% -9% 2/4 20 116 148 38 500
Luke Donald $6,600 $7,300 $11,700 175 -1% 15% 7% 2/3 500 94 2 26 500
Peter Uihlein $6,600 $7,900 $11,800 178 -6% -15% -5% 0/1 95 500 500 500 500
Adam Long $6,500 $7,400 $11,700 187 -5% 0% -7% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Carlos Ortiz $6,500 $7,400 $11,700 179 2% 7% 1% 1/2 500 500 42 70 500
Roberto Castro $6,500 $7,500 $11,800 184 -3% -4% -12% 4/4 500 28 20 66 18
Zack Sucher $6,500 $7,700 $11,700 197 -10% -20% -11% 0/1 500 500 500 70 500
Richy Werenski $6,500 $8,000 $11,900 172 10% -14% -4% 2/2 53 10 500 500 500
Chesson Hadley $6,500 $7,100 $11,700 204 -12% 7% -13% 2/5 45 116 57 89 126
Seamus Power $6,500 $7,100 $11,700 184 -2% 15% -3% 1/2 114 83 500 500 500
Cameron Champ $6,500 $7,500 $11,700 188 -6% -8% -8% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Michael Thompson $6,400 $7,700 $11,700 176 13% -4% 4% 3/4 11 500 92 47 64
Adam Svensson $6,400 $7,500 $11,700 197 0% -10% -10% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Scott Brown $6,400 $7,600 $11,600 200 -2% -16% 1% 3/5 57 86 33 3 78
Sam Saunders $6,400 $7,200 $11,500 217 -6% -1% -1% 4/4 45 37 68 14 500
Roberto Diaz $6,400 $7,300 $11,400 217 -6% -6% 1% 1/1 53 500 500 500 500
Alex Prugh $6,400 $7,800 $11,500 208 -4% -28% 1% 2/3 500 500 33 51 126
Ryan Blaum $6,400 $7,000 $11,300 231 -12% 4% -1% 1/2 57 131 500 500 500
Patrick Rodgers $6,400 $7,700 $11,700 191 1% -18% -9% 2/2 24 500 500 38 500
Stephan Jaeger $6,400 $7,500 $11,400 218 -8% -18% -1% 1/1 70 500 500 500 500
Hank Lebioda $6,300 $7,200 $11,300 242 -5% -9% -4% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Chase Wright $6,300 $7,300 $11,300 220 0% -9% 2% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Stewart Cink $6,300 $7,200 $11,300 222 -1% -5% 1% 1/2 500 500 14 89 500
Brandon Harkins $6,300 $7,200 $11,400 230 -2% -6% -4% 0/1 95 500 500 500 500
Patton Kizzire $6,300 $7,100 $11,200 249 -7% -5% 0% 2/2 500 24 53 500 500
Kramer Hickok $6,300 $7,600 $11,600 211 4% -19% -2% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Sang-Moon Bae $6,300 $7,000 $10,900 279 -8% -1% 1% 2/2 45 500 500 500 14
Cameron Davis $6,300 $7,100 $11,300 246 -6% -4% -4% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Anirban Lahiri $6,300 $7,000 $11,100 279 -8% -1% 0% 1/1 500 28 500 500 500
Aaron Baddeley $6,200 $7,100 $11,300 234 4% -2% -2% 2/4 24 75 500 89 132
Tyler Duncan $6,200 $7,000 $10,700 313 -4% -5% 1% 0/1 114 500 500 500 500
Ted Potter $6,200 $7,000 $11,400 242 3% 3% -6% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Ernie Els $6,200 $7,000 $10,500 363 -10% -11% -2% 2/4 73 500 106 68 64
Benjamin Silverman $6,200 $7,000 $10,800 289 -2% -3% 2% 0/1 89 500 500 500 500
Jose de Jesus Rodriguez $6,200 $7,000 $10,500 358 -8% -9% 0% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Padraig Harrington $6,200 $7,000 $10,900 308 -3% -4% -3% 1/3 107 80 500 500 132
Scott Langley $6,200 $7,000 $10,700 334 -7% -8% -2% 3/3 500 500 14 59 12
John Chin $6,200 $7,000 $10,700 345 -8% -8% -2% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Curtis Luck $6,200 $7,000 $10,400 437 -14% -15% -4% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Charlie Danielson $6,100 $7,100 $10,300 750 -15% -32% -6% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Boo Weekley $6,100 $7,000 $10,400 432 -5% -14% -3% 1/3 500 500 71 89 92
Joey Garber $6,100 $7,000 $10,900 313 4% -5% -3% 0/1 500 500 135 500 500
Cody Gribble $6,100 $7,000 $10,400 361 -1% -10% 1% 0/2 89 144 500 500 500
Fabian Gomez $6,100 $7,000 $10,800 300 5% -3% 1% 0/1 89 500 500 500 500
Kyle Jones $6,100 $7,000 $10,700 326 2% -7% -1% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Julian Etulain $6,100 $7,000 $10,200 576 -9% -19% 1% 1/1 500 28 500 500 500
Hunter Mahan $6,100 $7,000 $10,400 395 -3% -13% -2% 1/3 114 16 106 500 500
Seth Reeves $6,100 $7,000 $10,200 584 -10% -20% 0% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
J.J. Henry $6,100 $7,000 $10,300 568 -9% -19% -1% 2/5 95 16 135 107 32
Satoshi Kodaira $6,100 $7,000 $10,400 397 -4% -14% -2% 0/1 137 500 500 500 500
Nicholas Lindheim $6,000 $7,000 $10,400 455 2% -16% -5% 0/2 73 136 500 500 500
Alex Cejka $6,000 $7,000 $10,400 389 6% -12% -1% 0/3 73 116 500 89 500
Anders Albertson $6,000 $7,000 $10,300 513 1% -18% 0% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Chad Collins $6,000 $7,000 $10,100 763 -6% -26% 0% 0/4 500 131 81 132 92
Brady Schnell $6,000 $7,000 $10,200 605 -3% -22% -1% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Rod Pampling $6,000 $7,000 $10,200 724 -5% -25% -4% 0/2 114 500 92 500 500
Whee Kim $6,000 $7,000 $10,400 455 2% -16% -5% 0/4 120 140 128 115 500
Chris Thompson $6,000 $7,000 $10,200 592 -2% -21% -1% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Martin Trainer $6,000 $7,000 $10,200 711 -4% -24% -3% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Michael Kim $6,000 $7,000 $10,200 684 -4% -23% -2% 2/2 500 64 75 500 500
Mike Weir $6,000 $7,000 $10,000 900 -8% -28% 1% 0/1 500 500 500 500 92
Will Claxton $6,000 $7,000 $10,100 776 -7% -27% -1% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500
Steve Scott $6,000 $7,000 $10,100 1368 -9% -29% -2% 0/0 500 500 500 500 500

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 the top 25.
Course history in RED indicates a missed cut.

Legend

Term Description
Site % Odds The percentage differential between a golfer’s salary rank and odds rank. The higher the %, the better.
OWGR Official World Golf Ranking
Cuts Cut record of each golfer at this course in the last five seasons.
2014 – 2018 Columns Course history at this event in the last five seasons.
Cover Image Credit: USA Today Sports Images

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 X – @RG_Notorious