DFS Alerts
Tony Finau looks to rebound from an off week
More times than not we can judge a players improvement over time by the quality of their bad weeks. While Tony Finau certainly let a few people down last week, a made cut and a top 40 finish in an off week is never really that bad of a thing. While Finau certainly has not had the wins associated with a top-tier price, there is a strong argument to be made that he is still too cheap in comparison to his talent for this week’s WGC Bridgestone Invitational. Currently ranked in the 10th position in the FedEx Cup standings Finau at $8,000 on DraftKings makes a ton of sense in a cash roster build. With four guaranteed rounds, Finau should have not problem outscoring a less than desirable finish position due to his ability to make birdies in bunches.
As reported by: PGA Cash Game Breakdown
Let's Hope he Spends Less Time in the Sand than the other Hoff
The Hoff has five straight top 30 finishes worldwide. He’s a form golfer that is currently riding some momentum. When locked in, he’s one of the best total drivers on tour. While not the longest or the straightest, he’s above-average at both. He makes a lot of birdies and is one of the best in the field in par four scoring. He does feel a little overpriced given some of the names right around him, but I like the form and I like the fact that he finished in a tie for third here last season.
Great Course Fit
Finau disappointed many last week at the RBC Canadian Open, but it’s not like he missed the cut and ruined anyone’s DFS lineups. He still finished in the top 40, despite a bad week with his irons. I’m certainly willing to hop right back on board, especially at a course that requires you to hit so many drivers. Finau is ranked fifth in the field in driving distance and seventh in greens in regulation. A price of $8,000 feels too cheap for a birdie-maker that is guaranteed to play all four rounds. Even if he doesn’t finish extremely high, he should be able to outscore his finishing position thanks to how many birdies he makes each week.
Cash Game King
Casey is basically a strong play every time he tees it up. He is rarely priced at a premium (unless he’s playing in a weak field) and he is constantly finishing inside the top 25 and the top ten. He didn’t have a great week at the Open Championship, but he still made the cut (which is more than a lot of big names in this field can say). He’s strong off the tee, he’s ranked fourth in strokes gained approach, and he’s long been one of the best par four scores on tour. He’s posted progressively better finishes at this event in each of the last four seasons — T27, T17, T16, and T5. He’s a strong cash game option and still has enough upside to play in tournaments.
Long Locks of Love
Fleetwood is one of my favorite golfers on tour, but I can separate my fandom from DFS (unlike with Tiger Woods). Luckily for me, I can cheer for him this week, as I see him as the best play in the $9,000 range on DraftKings. He’s one of the best total drivers of the ball on tour. He’s long off the tee and he hits the ball straight, which is a big plus at a Par 70 that measures 7,400 yards. Fleetwood wasn’t in the best of form heading into the Open Championship, but he posted a T6 on that side of the pond and backed it up with a T12 at the RBC Canadian Open last week. It’s only a matter of time before he wins on U.S. soil and it wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest if it came in one of the next two events.
The Tiger Track of all Tiger Tracks
We all know that I’m a huge Tiger Woods homer. Rather than fight it, I have embraced it. I’ve already said that I will be on him when he finally breaks through and wins another PGA Tour event. The crazy part is that despite blindly playing him every week, it’s worked out more often than not. There are some concerns about his off the tee game at a course that requires you to hit driver so often, but he’s won this event while losing strokes off the tee. He’s one of the best in the field when it comes to approaches and he loves putting on fast greens (these should be around 13 on the stimpmeter). He’s won this event at Firestone a total of eight times and he’s been knocking on the door all season, maybe this is finally the week that we’ve all been waiting for.
Cookie Not Crumbling
This PGA TOUR rookie continues to plod along with a 19-for-24 record on the season. That cut-making ability by itself won’t help this week in a no-cut event but his recent uptick in form is very appealing. He’s hit more greens in regulation than the field in each of his last five starts and that’s translated for four top 35s, two of those being top-10 finishes. That GIR ability is also the recipe for success at Firestone. If you’re building Stars & Scrubs lineups then Cook should definitely be in the conversation this week.
Searching for Form before Ryder Cup
It’s been a rough summer for the Spaniard. He’s finished 70th or MC’d in each of his last seven PGA TOUR starts. There is light at the end of the tunnel, though. Recently he’s picked off a pair of top 15s on the Euro Tour, proving that he’s not a complete hack. Now he ranks outside the top 125 in the FedExCup race and also outside the automatic qualifying for the European Ryder Cup squad. I think we start to see those top 15s translate back to the States and that makes him a steal at this bargain-big price.
Pray for a Putting Week
The Aussie is a past champ here at Firestone. It makes sense when you consider the prototype that typically contends here (GIR machines that find a hot putter). During that 2011 victory he opened the week with an 8-under 62. He also has six other rounds of 66 or better here in Akron (60 total rounds played). Coming off a top 20 at The Open Championship, I’d look for him to keep building on that momentum and find himself flirting with another top 10 by week’s end.
Consistent Contender
Enters the week with five straight top 30s, worldwide. He’s positioned himself inside the top 15 heading into the final round in seven of his starts this season. You can’t ask for much more than that, considering his price across the industry. He’s pegged it here five times with his personal best coming last year when he finished in solo third.
Jordan Spieth flying under the radar this week
In what could be best described as a frustrating season, Jordan Spieth heads into this week with a bit of momentum by his side. Poor play on Sunday kept him from successfully defending his Open title two weeks ago, but by his own admission, Spieth was pleasantly surprised with the progress gained on his game. Struggling to play well this season, Spieth took almost a month off prior to The British Open to work on his game, and he heads into a very important stretch of golf with a lot left to accomplish this season. Looking to avoid his second winless season on tour, Spieth is projected to have somewhat low ownership for the WGC Bridgestone Invitational. With other big named players in the same price range pulling more than their fair share of interest, Spieth at a projected sub 8% ownership is shaping up to be a great GPP leverage play. Spieth has finished inside the top 15 in his last three starts at Firestone and should be in a good spot to play well again this week. Motivated to finish the season strong, the addition of Spieth to your roster builds represents an opportunity to buy low on a talented player trending in the right direction.
As reported by: DraftKings Projected Ownership Justin Thomas ranks as a top play amongst our experts
The game of golf is in a great spot right now. With so many of the top players in the game playing some amazing golf we could see a rotating door in terms of who is the best player in the world. It took a very long time for Justin Thomas to overthrow Dustin Johnson as the number one ranked player in the game. Thomas was only able to spend a few weeks at the top of the rankings before Dustin Johnson regained control of the top spot. Currently ranked in the third spot in the world, and entering this week off a very disappointing missed cut at The British Open, Justin Thomas receives a strong price discount in comparison to his talent for The WGC Bridgestone Invitational. The owner of two wins already this season and over five million in earnings, Thomas stands out as a strong pick in terms of his salary for the week. Currently ranked as the 12th highest salaried golfer on DraftKings, Thomas has played well enough this season to earn a bit more respect than he is currently receiving. Even in such a strong field, Thomas at $8,800 feels like one of the bigger values for the week. Priced under 10k for the first time since last September it’s very easy to see why the discount on Thomas has him ranked as the top overall pick in the mid-tier pricing range this week. Looking to improve on his two previous top 33 or better finishes at Firestone C.C, Thomas makes sense as a great option for both cash and tournament roster builds for the final WGC of the season.
As reported by: DraftKings PGA Value Rankings DraftKings projections are live and Phil Mickelson ranks as a top play
Phil Mickelson heads into this week with a ton of incentive to continue his solid play. With his first win since the 2013 season, Mickelson currently sits in the tenth position in the Ryder Cup standings and would love nothing more than to qualify for the team on his own accord. With 12 top 25 finishes in 18 events this season, Mickelson is playing the type of golf worthy of our attention, and at $7,400 on DraftKings this former multiple major winner stands out as one of the better value plays for this week’s WGC Invitational. Mickelson will tee it up in his 20th WGC Invitational this week and will look to improve on his 7 career top 25 or better finishes at Firestone C.C. In a non cut event we would ideally like to pick players who do more than just make a top 25 finish, and with his ability to make birdies with the best of them, Mickelson stands out as a great low-risk option in his price range. The combination of his solid play and the discount on price have Mickelson ranked as the overall top play in terms of PT/$/K in our DraftKings projections this week, and should be a great option in both cash games and GPP’s for the WGC Bridgestone Invitational.
As reported by: Rotogrinders Projections Tool Five minutes to roster lock and no major news to report
As expected it’s all quiet on the news front this morning. Good luck this week grinders, as always if any late news breaks we will provide the updates needed. Golf ownership numbers will be up and running within five minutes of roster lock. Make sure to check out Results DB to see how your percentages stack up vs the field.
Norman Xiong continues to gain steam
In what is quickly shaping up to be a stars and scrubs roster build week, former Oregon Duck Norman Xiong continues to gain steam as a great option for salary relief this week. At the bare minimum of $6,300, the very talent Xiong finally gets to play a course that fits his style of golf. Having barely missed the cut in his first three starts on tour, Xiong will tee it up this week with hopes of making his first check on tour. With only three professional tournaments under his belt, the choice to roster Xiong this week has less to do with his current form and more about his long-term potential. A proven winner at the highest level of amateur golf, Xiong could really end up crushing his value this week. A made cut combined with decent par five scoring should easily pay off Xiong’s salary in a wide variety of formats for The RBC Canadian Open.
As reported by: DraftKings Projected Ownership