DFS Alerts
Peaking during a Ryder Cup Year
The Englishman is in a good place in his life. He finally got back in the winner’s circle, he got right back in contention at the RBC Heritage (54-hole leader), he’s enjoying time with his kids on the off-weeks, and it’s a Ryder Cup year. Adding to his appeal. Poulter is a long-time Orlando resident which has helped him become very comfortable on bermudagrass. With TPC Sawgrass taking the driver out of hand at times, that favors a short knocker like Poults and his record here proves that. He’s played here every year since 2004 (lots of experience) and highlights include a pair of runner-up finishes. With Poulter you pay for consistency but he’s proven recently that upside is back in his repertoire.
The Aussie Gets a Glimpse of Putts Dropping
A miracle happened last week with Adam Scott. He gained strokes with his putter at Quail Hollow Club. Unfortunately, his ball-striking dipped which is unusual for the Aussie. With a little confidence now under his belt, Scott may just sync together his elite striking with some average putting. That is the recipe for a top 10. There is plenty more to like about Scott this week. Looking at a time-weighted view of performance at TPC Sawgrass, this Aussie ranks #1 in total strokes gained here over the last 10 years. He also ranks #1 in total strokes gained in Florida since 2014. Scott has plenty of motivation to get himself back inside the top 50 in the world and get back into the strong fields he’s used to playing.
Dustin Johnson fighting to hold on to number one ranking
The unofficial fifth major of the year will not be without compelling storylines this week. TPC Sawgrass always carries the excitment of covering the famed stadium finish. In addition to news of how players fared on the famed 17th hole, there will be much interest in a possible changing of the guard in the official world golf rankings. Dustin Johnson has held the number one spot since February of 2017 but is in serious danger of losing that spot this week. Johnson needs a top 11 finish or better this week in order to retain the number one spot in the rankings. For the first time since the 2016 U.S. Open, we have every member of the top 50 in the world is slated to compete this week. Each of the current top five in the rankings will have a mathematical chance to end the week as No. 1, and for Johnson to remain, king, he will need his first ever top 10 at TPC Sawgrass. Johnson is the type of player that can win on any given week, and up until this point has held off the strong stable of players vying for the top overall spot in the world.
As reported by: PGA GPP Breakdown
Tony Finau hopeful to finally play well at TPC Sawgrass
Tony Finau has been one of the more consistent golfers over the last three and half years on The PGA Tour. With 48 top 25 or better finishes since the start of the 2015 season, Finau is making a strong name for himself as one of the better young players on tour. Currently ranked 13th in the Ryder Cup Standings, Finau could really boost his chance of making the team with a strong showing this week. With poor starts in his first two appearances at The Players Championship, Finau comes into this week at a bit of a discount. As we saw at last week’s Wells Fargo Championship, Finau has the game to dominate DK scoring in light of a top finish on the leaderboard. If you just look at the final standings in the tournament Finau finished a respectable T21, but his ability to make eagles allowed for a top-five finish in terms of DK scoring. The combination of his overall form and the discount on pricing makes Finau a top overall player in terms of Pt/$/K on our projection tool this week. The choice to roster Finau does not come without risk, but he is the type of player that could potentially crush his value for the week.
As reported by: Rotogrinders Projections Tool Justin Thomas looking for answers with his putter
Heading into the unofficial fifth major and with yet another chance to claim the number one spot in the official world golf rankings, Justin Thomas finds himself looking for a spark on the greens. Thomas ditched his normal putter last week and replaced it with a borrowed putter from Rickie Fowler. After a poor day of putting on Thursday, Thomas put a Scotty Cameron Newport 2 GSS in his bag for the remainder of the tournament. After the tournament finished on Sunday, Thomas gave that particular putter back to Fowler but plans to have his own version of that putter to use moving forward. Having putting with this type of putter as a kid, Thomas feels like this is an easy switch to make if needed moving forward. Players change clubs all the time, and it would not surprise me to see Thomas go back to his previous putter for his week’s event. Regardless of the putter, Thomas has not fared well on the greens of late, even with a new look putter this last weekend he had 31 putts on Sunday losing almost a stroke to the field. If Thomas wants to regain the form used during this amazing run he will have to make more putts at this week’s Players Championship.
As reported by: GolfWeek Ten minutes to roster lock and no major news to report
Outside of the already reported withdrawals of John Senden and Sang-Moon Bae its all quiet on the news front this morning. Rosters lock in ten minutes, but for now, there is no news to report. Good luck this week grinders, as always if any late news breaks we will provide the updates needed.
Other tagged players: John Senden Adam Scott looks to bounce back after a missed cut
Former number one ranked player in the world and multiple PGA Tour winner Adam Scott is in danger of missing the U.S. Open. Currently ranked in the 68th position in the official world golf rankings Scott is currently not exempt for the second major of the year. Once again plagued by a balky putter Scott has really struggled to play well since the 2016 season. With a price reduction that represents his current form, Scott is a position to be one of the better value plays on the week. Still a very good ball striker, Scott has the skills to play well at Quail Hollow. If he can find the magic with his putter this week, Scott has the game to more than pay off his &7,300 salary on DraftKings.
As reported by: Pga Value Breakdown Sam Burns looks to make the most of his opportunity
Former LSU standout and current Web.com Tour player Sam Burns is in this week’s field as a sponsors invite. Burns has already made his presence felt in only a handful of professional starts this season. With a win and a second place finish on the Web.com Tour, Burns is in a great spot to earn his way onto the PGA Tour next season. Burns is three for three in PGA Tour cuts made this season including two top 15 finishes. Paired with Tiger Woods on the weekend at this year’s Honda Classic, Burns outplayed his elder Woods on Sunday while showcasing his talent and poise. Currently projected at a very low ownership, Burns makes for an interesting GPP pivot play off other players in his same price range.
As reported by: DraftKings Projected Ownership Paul Casey looks to say hot
More times than not PGA Tour seasons are judged by a players ability to win, and for Paul Casey, the inability to win a tour event has been a big thorn in his side. Currently ranked inside the top 15 in the world, Casey captured The Valspar Championship earlier this season to claim his first win in the last nine years. Known for his steady play Casey has posted 39 top 25 or better finishes since the start of the 2016 season. With a more than a reasonable price tag on DraftKings Casey sits as the over number one player in the mid-tier expert rankings this week. Looking to quickly get back into the winner’s circle, Casey at $8,900 makes sense on almost any roster build for the Wells Fargo Championship.
As reported by: DraftKings PGA Value Rankings Justin Thomas returns to the site of his greatest victory
Over the last two seasons, there is not a hotter player on tour than Justin Thomas. One year after hosting the PGA Championship, Quail Hollow returns to its normal role of hosting the Wells Fargo Championship. At last year’s PGA championship hosted at Quail Hollow Thomas put an exclamation mark on his season by winning his first major championship. Of the four players priced above $10,000 on DraftKings this week Thomas is projected to have the second highest ownership. With what appears to be a large amount of value to be had at the lower pricing range, it will be easy to fit one or two top-end players in your roster builds for the Wells Fargo Championship. A reoccurring storyline to Thomas’ 2018 season has been an opportunity to gain the number one spot in the Official World Golf Rankings. Now only needing a top 12 finish or better, Thoms is as close as he has ever been to moving to the number one spot in the world. For the most part, predicted ownership numbers will be somewhat evenly distributed among the four top priced players. Thomas has played well enough over the last two seasons to merit a spot as a top end roster choice this week. Depending on your style of roster build, there is a strong case for being equal with or even overweight on Thomas’ ownership verse the field.
As reported by: DraftKings Projected Ownership DraftKings projections are live and Luke List ranks as a top play
Currently ranked in the 54th position in the World Golf rankings, Luke List is in the midst of his best season to date on the PGA Tour. Always considered a talented young player, List struggled to compete at the highest level on a consistent basis. In seventeen starts this season List has four top tens and has only missed four cuts. Known for his ability to hit both long and accurate golf shots, List’s balky putter often holds him back from reaching his full potential. Evident by his second-place finish at the Honda Classic, List can compete with the best players in the game when putts start to fall. Normally priced above 8k this season, the combination of his discounted price and his solid play makes List a top option in the Rotogrinders Projection Tool this week. At $7,400 this discount is significant enough to make List a viable option in any format this week.
As reported by: Rotogrinders Projections Tool Cut Maker at a Cheap Price
Glover is a former winner of this event. While it was back in 2011, he clearly likes this course. He’s made 10 of 12 cuts here with four top eight finishes. He’s always been a solid ball striker and he’s actually a decent putter on Bermuda. Trey Mullinax and Joaquin Niemann are getting a lot of buzz at similar price points, but I’ll take the proven commodity in Glover.
World Class Golfer at a Discounted Price
Noren feels underpriced this week. I never thought I’d see the day where Noren and DeChambeau were priced similarly and Noren was expected to be the lower owned of the two. He’s strong off the tee, he’s great with his irons, and he can score on the par fives. He’s actually ranked 29th in the field in strokes gained putting too, which is never a bad thing. Everything checks out for Noren this week, including the fact that he made the cut here at the PGA Championship. Much like Fleetwood, Noren is much more comfortable playing in America after spending most of the year playing on the PGA Tour.
On the Prowl
Another week and another Tiger recommendation from yours truly. While he didn’t play all that well at the Masters, it was his irons and putter that let him down. All season, those have been the strongest parts of his game. HIs biggest weakness (his driver), was actually his biggest strength at Augusta. If he can carry some of that into this week, the rest of his game should come around. He’s one of the best putters in the world and he’s won this event in the past. The best part is that his price and expected ownership are finally reasonable.
Simply Too Cheap on Most Sites
This price tag on DraftKings and FantasyDraft simply is far too cheap. While I am not weighing course history all that much this week, I will certainly do it for a golfer who is a member at Quail Hollow. Simpson knows all the ins and outs of this course, and certainly he knows more about the general renovations than the average PGA Tour player. While he doesn’t check the driving box like some others do, his approach game is solid and the putter remains rejuvenated. He ranks inside the top ten on Tour in putting this year, and that would have absolutely shocked me if you would have told me that two years ago. By the way, Simpson also happened to finish second here in 2015 and comes in with top eight finishes in five of his last seven starts. At his price tag, it’s bargain shopping this week.
