Doc Redman Daily Fantasy News, Rankings, Projections

Doc Redman simply gains strokes on approach every single week. He continued that trend by gaining two strokes over the field last week at the Sanderson Farms, and he finished the 2019-2020 season ranked 4th in that metric. He grades out solidly above average in virtually every metric that I am looking at here, and the form has been rock solid of late. Despite a missed cut at the Northern Trust, Redman still has two top fives in his last four starts, and he posted four consecutive under par rounds last week. He’s a fine target for his combination of safety and upside in the mid-range. He made the cut here a year ago, and he is playing better golf on the whole this time around.

Redman is quietly becoming one of the more consistent players on the PGA Tour, as he ranked 11th in strokes gained on approach in the 2019-2020 season. He also led the field in strokes gained on approach at the opening fall swing Safeway Open event, where he finished third. We have been seeing consistently strong trends from Redman for several months now, and I would not expect that to slow down in a weaker field event. He did play here a year ago and made the cut, so he has at least seen this course competitively. Give him a long look as a strong DFS option in any format.

Before the Rocket Mortgage Classic, Redman had everything in his favor. His ball striking was elite in the two events prior and he had a top 10 at that event the year before. This led to him being both overpriced and over-owned. This time around is a bit different. He missed the cut at the Memorial Tournament last week and he nearly finished dead last at this event last year. I don't expect him to be low owned, but I do think he's a better play this week given his salary and ownership combination. Since the restart, he has gained more strokes ball striking than anyone in this field (+27 in only 18 rounds). This course rewards elite ball striking, as we saw Matthew Wolff and Collin Morikawa finish first and second here without gaining any strokes putting.

I have been on Doc Redman the past few weeks, and we've now seen his price sky-rocket from near minimum to $8500 on DK and $10k on FD. Is this seemingly excessive price hike justified? I personally believe it is. Doc is consistently striking the ball well both off the tee and on approach. He has shown an ability to grind it out on Thursday/Friday to make cuts, and is a guy I am trusting in my lineups this week as both a high floor and high upside play. The ownership will likely be pretty significant, so if you want to fade for that reason I completely understand, but I also think this is a spot where you can eat the chalk.

It feels gross paying $8,500 for Redman, who will likely be one of the highest owned golfers of the week. If you are playing large-field tournaments and/or building a bunch of lineups, it's not the worst idea to take an underweight stance here. However, I will eat the chalk and look to differentiate my lineups elsewhere. Over the last three weeks (in stacked fields no less), Redman has gained 5.1, 7.8, and 4.7 strokes on his approach shots. He is one of three golfers ranked in the top 10 in both strokes gained off the tee and strokes gained approach in this field (other two are Bryson DeChambeau and Viktor Hovland). Redman played this event last season and nearly won, posting his best career finish on the PGA Tour.

The value plays start to get ugly in a hurry with this field, but Redman is a very intriguing cheap option. He’s punt level priced on every site other than Yahoo, and he’s even a respectable value over there. Redman struggled a bit at the start of the fall swing, but he steadied the ship toward the end with a 13th place finish in Houston and a 23rd place finish at the RSM Classic that could have been a top ten if not for a wayward final round. That wayward final round will contribute to lower ownership than Redman should have at this price tag. At some points during the fall swing, he was significantly more expensive than this. His iron play is elite compared to the other value options on the board, as he ranks 13th in ball striking so far this year. Give him a look as the final piece of your GPP lineup.

Redman did not have a strong week in Mexico, but I am not concerned in the long run. He only missed the cut by one stroke, and he did not make a lot of mistakes with just two bogeys in his two rounds. He simply couldn’t get any birdie putts to drop. Redman still grades out very well statistically so far in 2019-2020, with solid ranks in ball striking (13th) and strokes gained on approach (33rd). He has plenty of value at these prices, especially since the masses will run away after a missed cut last week. Redman was only one putt away from making the weekend and possibly sneaking out a much better finish, so this is a fine spot to get some GPP leverage.

Redman has played in six full field events during the fall season, and he has made the cut in five of them. His approach play has been super consistent ever since the middle of the summer, and he feels like a safe option for a made cut here. That has plenty of value in a suspect field, especially when you factor in Redman’s affordable price tag. He did flash some upside with a 13th place finish in Houston last month, and I expect him to play well despite the fact that he has never played on this layout. The course should cater to his fairways and greens ability, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see Redman sneak inside the top ten.

Redman is going to be very popular this week. He’s been popular at similar price points in much tougher fields, so I expect the masses to gravitate to him this week. While I don’t love eating chalk, I can afford to this week given the fact that I am playing Brian Harman at the top instead of Henrik Stenson or Russell Henley. Redman is ranked fifth in this field in strokes gained off the tee, 18th in strokes gained approach, third in greens in regulation, and eighth in birdie or better percentage. That’s awfully enticing for a golfer that’s this cheap. He’s a talented young golfer that just needs to keep it together on and around the greens. He has lost strokes with his short game in each of his last five events. While that’s not ideal, scrambling is pretty straightforward at this course. And for what it’s worth, he’s had more success putting on bentgrass than he has on bermuda in his short career. If he can run into a hot week with the putter, he could find himself in contention on Sunday.