DFS Alerts
Blistering Hot and Ready to Contend at a Major
I’ve long been a fan of Molinari’s game, and you can almost guarantee that you will see him on my player pool list when you add in his current form. In his last five worldwide events, Molinari has two wins and two additional runner-up finishes sprinkled around a top 25 at the U.S. Open. That’s not too shabby. He is playing much longer off the tee this year and has worked with a new putting coach to shore up his game on the greens, and the results have been fantastic. His price tag is very reasonable on DraftKings to the point where you can make a case for him as potentially the best point per dollar play on the entire site, and I like him on FanDuel and FantasyDraft as well. His game is truly in a different place right now, and he is absolutely capable of contending at Carnoustie.
You're Gonna Hear Me Roar
Roar! The Tiger is back! Woods is one of a handful of players that is seeing Carnoustie for the third time in a major championship, and he has shown well here with a 7th place finish in 1999 and a 12th place finish in 2007. The fact that the course is firm and fast will mean that Tiger won’t have to hit many drivers, and that is the club that has caused some issues for him this season. He’s going to hit a lot of his patented “iron burners” off the tee, and he might get 100 yards of roll on some of those with these conditions. If the course stays in the condition that it is in right now, it’s a massive advantage for Woods. His experience here is also a big plus, and I’m fully on board this week. The fact that he is coming off a top five in his last start at the Quicken Loans says that he might be ready to compete for a major title again.
The Best Player in the World
He’s the best player on the planet right now. Period. Even though I am not targeting bombers necessarily at this course, DJ is still capable of overpowering a golf course like this one. He hit a WEDGE in for his second shot on one of the par fives in a practice round. A WEDGE. Even though he has the bomber label, Johnson isn’t necessarily weak in other areas of his game, though. He ranks inside the top 50 in both ball striking and strokes gained around the green, and there isn’t anything to dislike about him other than the fact that he is the most expensive golfer on the board. I won’t make the mistake of fading him this time.
DraftKings projections are live and Tony Finau ranks as a top play
Currently ranked in the 31st position in the world, and playing at a pace that should put him at the Tour Championship for the second consecutive year Tony Finau feels a bit underpriced on DraftKings this week. With two top tens in both majors this season, Finau should be on the radar of many in the DFS community for The Open Championship. With 13 top 25 or better finishes in his 17 made cuts this season, Finau is a great value at $7,200 on DraftKings. The combination of consistency and upside have Finau firmly positioned at the top of our DraftKings projections this week in terms of PT/$/K. Finau will make his 3rd British Open start this week and will look to improve on his previous top 30 or better finishes. Even though we typically see much softer pricing for the majors, Finau has played the type of golf this season to earn a bit more respect in terms of his place on the pricing chain.
As reported by: Rotogrinders Projections Tool
Thirty minutes to roster lock and no major news to report
All quiet on the news front this morning. Besides the early week withdrawals of Alex Cejka and Abraham Ancer there is nothing new to report this morning. Good luck this week grinders, as always if any late news breaks we will provide the updates needed.
Harold Varner continues to gain steam
Shortly after winning The Australian PGA Championship in December of 2016, Harold Varner began to gain popularity amongst the DFS community. With a game built around distance and a flair for the dramatic, Varner quickly became an easy player to pull for on any given week. Unfortunately for Varner, poor play began to take shape in his game, and prior to last week’s T5 at The Greenbriar, Varner had all but been forgotten by the DFS community. Plagued by inconsistent play throughout this season it’s easy to see why Varner has only surpassed the 10% ownership barrier once this season. After last week’s solid performance Varner is trending as one of the more popular value plays of the week. Currently projected to have an ownership level above 15% it remains to be seen whether or not Varner is truly back to playing golf you can trust. As in the case of any highly predicted player, there could be an edge to gain by either fading or going underweight on what could be an inflated perspective of golfer who played well the week prior. To put things in perspective Varner has missed 9 cuts in 23 starts with only 3 top 25 or better finishes this season.
As reported by: DraftKings Projected Ownership Weather update for The John Deere Classic
Kevin Roth’s weather report is up for the John Deere Classic and for the second straight week, it looks like we can cross weather off our list in preparation for building rosters. With only a small chance of wind speeds breaking the 10mph barrier either day, we can safely just use weather in case of a tiebreaker this week. Of the two days Thursday afternoon could have the windest weather, but with speeds of only 10mph, it’s probably not enough of an edge to attack this week.
As reported by: Kevin Roth Weather Report J.T. Poston playing with extra motivation towards the end of the season
As a player currently in need of his conditional status to enter PGA Tour events, J.T. Poston has a ton of motivation to keep playing well. Poston enters this week in the 109th position in the FedEx Cup standings and will need to finish the season inside the top 125 in order to gain full status next season. With extra incentive to keep playing well, Poston has made five out of six cuts including four top 30 or better finishes. In terms of course fit, Poston seems to play well on courses that are less than driver venues and should have an opportunity to score again this week. Using motivation to help make roster choices is never an easy task, but in the case of Poston, it’s very clear to see that his game is trending in the correct direction at the right time. Reasonably priced across the industry, Poston’s solid form and desire to keep his tour card, make this a great spot to use him as a source salary relief in all roster builds this week.
As reported by: Pga Value Breakdown Andrew Putnam looks to bounce back from a missed cut
In what has been an overall solid year, Andrew Putnam heads into this week’s John Deere Classic looking to bounce back from a missed cut. Putnam was near the cut line late on Friday but was not able to make enough birdies to keep his consecutive cut streak intact. Prior to last week, Putnam had made nine straight cuts including six top 30 or better finishes. Given a small price decrease due to his one off week, Putnam stands out as a great value play in what is an overall weak field. Putnam will make his first career start at TPC Deere run this week, but we should not fear picking a rookie in good form as this course has a history of crowing first-time winners. Currently ranked inside the top 60 in the FedEx Cup standings, Putnam needs another good week as we draw even closer to the end of the regular season.
As reported by: PGA Cash Game Breakdown Andrew Landry add to the British Open field
Andrew Landry announced via his twitter feed this morning that he will be in the field for next week’s British Open. With already one win under his belt, this PGA Tour rookie is having quite a memorable season. Currently ranked inside the top 20 in the FedEx Cup standings, Landry is in a great position to possibly play his way into the season-ending Tour Championship. Comming off a T8 in last week’s Quicken Loan Invitational, Landry will play in this week’s John Deere Classic looking to keep the momentum going ahead of next week’s British Open. Priced at a very affordable $7,900 on FanDuel, Landry stands out as the top option in terms of PT/$/K in our projection model for the week. Landry last played this event during the 2016 season and finished at 14 under par placing him inside the top 10. With a game built around accuracy and not length, Landry should thrive on a course like TPC Deere Run and makes sense as a great play in all formats on FanDuel this week.
As reported by: Rotogrinders Projections Tool A Great Point-Per-Dollar Value
If you compare the golfers’ relative price points to their Vegas odds and our RotoGrinders projections this week, Reavie stands out as one of the top point per dollar plays on the entire board. While he is not in elite form with three missed cuts in his last four starts, the one made cut in that stretch was a sixth place finish, and he is a top class golfer in this weak field. He has made the cut in each of his last five visits, with two of those resulting in top 15 finishes. He ranks well above field average in most stat categories I am looking at this week and brings a nice combination of floor and ceiling despite the recent form. This tournament should be a perfect recipe to get Reavie back on track.
A Perfect Layout for his Playing Style
Similar to Zach Johnson and Steve Stricker being #1A and #1B at the top this week, Kevin Tway and Keith Mitchell are #1A and #1B in terms of mid-range upside potential. I love the aggressive nature of Mitchell’s game, and while that makes him prone to the big number at times, it also gives him a lot of potential to post low numbers. This course doesn’t offer much in terms of punishment for the occasional wayward shot, so Mitchell’s scoring propensity carries even more appeal. He polished off last week’s tournament with a final round 65, which is a fantastic sign. He also ranks 38th on Tour in total driving, which is good for the 10th best mark in this field. Throw in the affordable price tag and a fun tee time pairing as the first group off on Thursday (with Patrick Rodgers also in that group), and I’m fully aboard the Mitchell train. It’s no secret that I’m a fan of his game, and I love the way this course sets up for his aggressive style.
Don't Discount the Veteran
While Zach Johnson is the #1A play at this event, don’t sleep on the wily veteran Steve Stricker as the #1B option. In fact, Stricker is actually the all-time earnings leader at this event. He made the cut last year on the number, barely squeezing into the weekend, but yet he somehow walked away with a T-5 finish after a 65/64 weekend. While Stricker is playing more often on the Champions Tour these days, that’s not to say that he can’t compete at the PGA Tour level still. In fact, he posted top 20 finishes in his last two starts at the U.S. Open and the St. Jude Classic. As another Midwest native, Stricker is also clearly motivated to play well at this event, and there’s little reason to expect him to struggle at an event where he generally plays very well.
Always a Top Option at the John Deere Classic
If you are talking about the King of the John Deere Classic, Zach Johnson to check in as the #1A play on the board. He is an Iowa native who treats this event like another major, and he has made the cut all nine times he has played here. That 9-for-9 mark includes a ridiculous six top THREE finishes. He “slipped” last year with an incredulous fifth place finish. How dare he play so poorly! The fact that he is clearly motivated for this event, combined with the weak field and his course history makes him the overall favorite for me. Johnson ranks second on the PGA Tour this year in approach play from 125-150 yards, which is no surprise given his history as one of the best wedge players on Tour. Lock in ZJ as a top option in all game formats this week.
Chez Reavie stands out as a top play in terms of value on DraftKings this week
Fueled by a slew of early season top 25 finishes, Chez Reavie currently sits inside the top 30 in the FedEx Cup standings. Looking to bounce back from consecutive missed cuts in his last two starts, Reavie is priced down a bit this week on DraftKings and currently sits at the top of our projections in terms of PT/$/K for The John Deere Classic. Making his eighth career start in this event, Reavie will look to get his game back on track prior to the British Open next week. An excellent tee to green player, Reavie should have the skills needed to play well at TPC Deere Run. Currently ranked among the top 60 in the world, Reavie has played well enough this season to put himself in contention to win his second career victory on several occasions. Value you can trust will be a scarce commodity this week, and the combination of safety and upside makes Reavie an excellent option in all formats this week.
As reported by: Rotogrinders Projections Tool