Welcome to Playing the Tips!
Each week this will be the one-stop resource to soak in all the picks from our fantasy staffers at Rotoworld.com.
Page 1 is going to look at GolfChannel.com’s fantasy game and also the PGATOUR.com’s Fantasy Game.
Page 2 will have a look at One-and-Done options as well as Daily Fantasy Sports picks (FanDuel and DraftKings).
Page 3 looks at European Tour’s Race to Dubai.
Editor’s Note: With over 15,000 reviews, DRAFT is the highest rated fantasy sports app. For a limited time, DRAFT is giving Rotoworld readers a FREE entry into a real money draft and a Money-Back Guarantee up to $100! Here’s the link.
Golf Channel (PlayFantasyGolf.com)
Josh Culp
“@FutureOfFantasy”
Last Week Points: 387.5
Last Week Rank: 6845
Rickie Fowler ($32,600)
Brooks Koepka ($33,200)
Tiger Woods ($6,800)
Tony Finau ($17,200)
Joaquin Niemann ($5,000)
Aaron Wise ($5,000)
Analysis: Loading up on golfers with elite resumes in major championships. Then I’m rounding out the team with a few shots on up-and-coming stars (Wise and Niemann).
Mo Yoshimoto
“@BearsGolf3423”
Last Week Points: 453.5
Last Week Rank: 745
Jason Day ($32,400)
Henrik Stenson ($25,200)
Tony Finau ($17,200)
Keegan Bradley ($11,100)
Byeong Hun An ($7,900)
Jamie Lovemark ($5,900)
Analysis: Taking on a potential injury-risk in Stenson but his ball-striking was good last week so the elbow may be fine for now. Overall, this team is full of ball-strikers but it’s anchored by one of the best putters on TOUR (J Day).
PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO
Josh Culp
“@FutureOfFantasy”
Last Week Rank: 5178
Season Rank: 1,930 *Did not play most of Segment 1*
Starters:
Dustin Johnson
Rickie Fowler
Brooks Koepka
Rory McIlroy
Bench:
Mo Yoshimoto
“@BearsGolf3423”
Last Week Rank: 16299
Season Rank: 1560
Starters:
Bench:
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One-and-Done
Each week I will think out loud about my process in determining my One-and-Done selection. If you are new to the One-and-Done format, it is like an NFL survivor league. You pick one golfer per week, but you can’t use them again all year.
Almost pulled it off last week with Jason Day but a back-nine fade on Sunday ruined the fun.
Starting with tournament history this week, let’s see who has played well at PGA Championships over the last 10 years:
Jason Day (6-for-8 with five top 10s including WIN)
Henrik Stenson (9-for-11 with five top 10s)
Rory Mcilroy (8-for-9 with TWO WINS)
Francesco Molinari (9-for-9 with two top 10s)
Hideki Matsuyama (5-for-5 with two top 5s)
Rickie Fowler (7-for-8 with two top 5s)
Brooks Koepka (5-for-5 with four top 15s)
Patrick Reed (4-for-4 including T13 and T2)
Louis Oosthuizen (6-for-9 with four top 25s)
Justin Thomas (T18-T66-WIN)
Justin Rose (9-for-15 with seven top 25s)
Paul Casey (10-for-15 with four top 15s)
Jordan Spieth (2-T13-T28 Last 3)
Keegan Bradley (6-for-7 with three top 25s including WIN)
Matt Kuchar (5-for-9 with three top 10s)
After history, we can look at baseline performance over the last few years. More recent results are weighted more heavily:
Dustin Johnson
Rory Mcilroy
Jason Day
Jordan Spieth
Justin Rose
Henrik Stenson
Jon Rahm
Rickie Fowler
Paul Casey
Tommy Fleetwood
Hideki Matsuyama
Justin Thomas
Patrick Cantlay
Brooks Koepka
Phil Mickelson
Looking for overlap we see a few names pop up: Jason Day, Henrik Stenson, Rory McIlroy, Hideki Matsuyama, Rickie Fowler, Brooks Koepka, Justin Thomas, Justin Rose, Paul Casey, and Jordan Spieth!
That is a lot of overlap which says a lot about this event. It often gets the short end of the stick when it comes to recognition as a major but overall the cream does seem to rise to the top here on a year-to-year basis.
It’s that time of the year where you’ve probably used all or most of the names on that list. That is definitely the case for me as I’ve used them all. Time for plan B.
For Plan B, I will look at the percentage of events played since 2014 where a golfer gained enough strokes to warrant a top-5 finish (since those are so important in OAD). The next 10 names that adds to my board are Dustin Johnson, Jon Rahm, Patrick Cantlay, Tommy Fleetwood, Matt Kuchar, Tiger Woods, Sergio Garcia, Patrick Reed, Phil Mickelson, and Tyrrell Hatton.
I’ve used all of those names except for Tiger and Hatton. TIGER WOODS it is, for me.
Daily Fantasy Sports [DFS]
I will be giving out selections for one team for each DFS site, per week.
These lineups will be entered into a large-entry Guaranteed Prize Pool. That means we need to take a risk or two, in order to separate ourselves from the field.
The idea is to provide you a list of names to consider. I would not recommend copying these teams, golfer for golfer. Duplicate teams are no fun and don’t help anyone.
FanDuel Picks:
Rickie Fowler ($11,300): Continues to hunt down that coveted major championship. I will keep trotting him out in lineups until he stops performing in these big events.
Xander Schauffele ($9,900): Speaking of big events, he won the TOUR Championship as a rookie! That course also features zoysia fairways which is what he’ll see this week in St. Louis.
Patrick Cantlay ($9,700): As steady as they come, he even flashed a bit of putting prowess last week, gaining more than 4 strokes putting at Firestone.
Russell Henley ($8,800): This Georgia Bulldog can lap the field in a putting contest but sometimes he can turn normal events into a putting contest (for himself). I like his upside at this price.
Rory McIlroy ($12,300): Soft and receptive greens should mean bombs away and then target practice for McIlroy.
Aaron Wise ($7,200): He’s a winner at every level he plays at. Already picked up a PGA TOUR win, it’s time to reach for that first major. At this price, I’d settle for a top 20.
DraftKings Picks:
Brooks Koepka ($9,600): Already has more majors than his good buddy and World No. 1, Dustin Johnson.
Paul Casey ($8,000): Underperformed last week after flying straight from Germany. I’d look for him to get back to his top-20 ways this week.
Xander Schauffele ($8,200): Elevates his game on the biggest stage. Won the TOUR Championship, has runner-ups at THE PLAYERS and Open Championship. Also has a pair of top 10s at the U.S. Open. Time to add his first top-heavy PGA Championship finish to that list.
Charley Hoffman ($7,200): Was allergic to majors to start his career but he’s finally comfortable on the big stage, now that he’s 41. Has finished T22 or better in six of his last seven major appearances.
Kyle Stanley ($7,100): Firestone CC is usually a good pointer to success for the PGA Championship. That’s good news for Stanley who opened with a 7-under 63 last week and found himself inside the top 5 after every round, finishing solo 2nd on the week.
Tony Finau ($8,100): I have 9,900 left to spend but drafting Finau will be sure to keep this lineup unique. I don’t usually leave $1,800 on the table but with soft pricing this week, I’m not afraid to.
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2018 Fantasy Race to Dubai
Dave Tindall is our main man in Europe. In addition to his weekly previews of European Tour events on Mondays, he’ll share his selections and analysis for the Fantasy Race to Dubai at EuropeanTour.com.
Format: Pick 6 golfers. Players accumulate points based on Race to Dubai (R2D) points earned. Captain’s points are doubled. Unlimited team changes can be made each week.
Team Tindall (Team name: YESSIR!)
Last week: Gain of 200. Wanted to add a zero to that.
Pos: 7631
Rory McIlroy (captain): Frustrating final round again but T6 and T2 in the last two big events and this course should be a great fit.
Matt Kuchar: I need to be contrarian this week where possible so let’s play the Kooch card. Steady players have done well on this track and Kuchar has a fine PGA record. T9 at Carnoustie.
Justin Rose: Hoping WD last week was because he wanted to give himself the best chance of success in the final major of the year. If fit, he must go close.
Henrik Stenson: Absolutely loves this major so I’m willing to close my eyes and hope for the best when it comes to his elbow problem. Beware the injured golfer and all that.
Thorbjorn Olesen: Superb final round to post T3 at Bridgestone, the Dane has played some super golf in recent months. All set for a Ryder Cup debut.
Louis Oosthuizen: T2 in 2017, T12, T16 and T28 in the majors this year and T24 at Firestone. Ideal pick for those seeking huge upside from a player with low ownership.
Matt Cooper is part of our European team. He contributes to player news, and he’ll share his selections and analysis for the Fantasy Race to Dubai at EuropeanTour.com. He was the winner of the Ladies European Tour’s Fantasy League in 2011.
Team Cooper (Team name: NormanStanleyFletcher)
Last week: A tiny gain. Nothing more, nothing less. Last opportunity for significant points for quite a while.
Position: 1,267th
Rory McIlroy (captain): Soft greens, a track suited by a long and high ball flight; this place looks made for McIlroy to finally re-establish himself as a major contender.
Patrick Reed: Horrible first round at Carnoustie but turned it around and made the top 30. Otherwise has three top fours in his last four majors starts. Looks hungry.
Xander Schauffele: I like the way he goes about work in the big events, seems very controlled and I like that he won at East Lake.
Tommy Fleetwood: Getting to grips with major championship golf and another week in contention seems entirely possible.
Francesco Molinari: Half expected a hangover after the big Open win, but every reason to think that it will have done him some good.
Jon Rahm: There is not much doubt that he is still struggling with major championship preparation, never mind staying calm in them, but this one should be less testing that those he has experienced in the past.
