The Fantasy Golf Insider Crystal Ball: 2017 Report Card
It was an outstanding 2017 for The Crystal Ball Series of articles and we have had such tremendous feedback, so thank you for that. Each year, the article has does better than the previous years edition, so the bar is quite high and I find myself putting in more and more research every year in fear that I let Team FGI down. I look pretty closely at every player in the world and take everything I can think of into consideration when determining who I think will exceed what they have done in the past. In 2017, of the 20 players in the article, 17 improved their world ranking, most of them substantially, and a staggering 11 of them posted victories. Below is a grade that I gave to my pick and summary of each player’s 2017. I am currently working on the 2018 edition and will have that out in a couple of weeks.
Hideki Matsuyama– I am going to preface this by saying that I started this article in late November and wrote Matsuyama’s part before his dominating performance at the Hero World Challenge. Two years ago we had the “big three”, with Day, Spieth, and McIlroy. Last year we had the “big four” with the addition of Dustin Johnson. I believe this year, we will have the “big five” as Matsuyama will make a strong case for player of the year. I featured Matsuyama in last year’s edition of this article and he certainly did not disappoint with wins at The Phoenix Open and WGC HSBC along with six other Top 10s including at The Players Championship, PGA Championship, and The Masters. As is customary, he won the two Japanese Tour events that he played in during the Fall as well. Matsuyama is as elite of a ball striker as we have in the game of golf today, the only area that is of concern in his game is putting, where he actually lost strokes to the field last season. The events in which his putting was not poor are the events we have seen him dominate. Although it feels like he has been around forever, Matsuyama is still only 25 years old. I will predict we see Matsuyama winning the FedEx Cup Championship in 2017 and his first major victory.
Grade: B+ It was looking like we were going to see Hideki have the type of Player of the Year kind of year that I predicted early on when he finished runner-up at the Tournament of Champions and then three weeks later won the Waste Management Phoenix Open. Then he had a very poor stretch of golf for his standards the next two months and could not muster a Top 10 finish. At Erin Hills for the U.S Open I thought my prediction of a first major was going to come to fruition, but it was not to be as Brooks Koepka stormed to victory and Matsuyama had to settle for a runner-up finish. Then in early August at the WGC-Bridgestone, we saw what he is capable of as he obliterated to field in route to an easy victory. When all was said and done for the year Hideki recorded seven Top 10 finishes, two wins, finished with Top 15s in all majors, including a T5 at the PGA Championship. So why then not an A grade? Well, I predicted a Tour Championship and he finished 8th, I predicted a major championship and he didn’t accomplish that, and frankly I want to have a pretty tough grading scale. Close but not the incredible year that I thought.
Rickie Fowler- 2016 was pretty much a season to forget for Fowler, especially with as high as expectations were coming off of 2015. His best finish at a major was T33 at The PGA Championship and missed the cut at The Masters, U.S Open, and The Players Championship. He started the season strong with Top 10s in four out of his first five events played, but very little good happened after that, which amounted to a zero-win season. This Fall, Rickie has shown a little life with a T6 at the WGC HSBC and T3 at The Hero World Challenge (albeit only an 18-person field). There really is no explanation why Fowler had such a down year, but I would bet he will not be going on a high-profile spring break again, because everything seemed to go downhill after that. I do not believe Fowler is going to have the phenominal type of year that I am predicting from Matsuyama, but a win or two, including being in contention in a couple majors will happen. I will go ahead and say he will finish right behind Matsuyama in the FedEx Cup race as well.
Grade A- If I could find a sportsbook willing to offer me a prop bet whether Rickie Fowler will ever win a major in his career, I would take every dime that I have ever saved and bet yes. After a down year in 2016, where Rickie’s best finish at a major was T33, he returned to greatness in 2017. In the 4 majors Rickie finished T11- Masters, T5- U.S Open, T22- The Open, and T5- PGA Championship. He will get there, I promise. Fowler’s season was a model of consistency with 16 Top 25 finishes in 21 events played, and 10 Top 10s. He had Top 5s at Waste Management, Shell Houston Open, The Memorial, Quicken, BMW, and the two majors I mentioned earlier, plus a win at Honda. He finished 7th in FedEx Cup points after finishing 31st the year before. It seems like Butch Harmon has had a very positive effect on his swing and his game is really solid in every facet . A really great season has Rickie ranked #10 in the world and I would not be surprised if he continues to ascend to Top 5 this year.
Russell Knox- I became a Russell Knox fan last year when an interviewer asked him if he was tired and worn down from playing so many events. Knox responded, with something like, “I have the opportunity to play on the PGA Tour, with the best players in the world, on the best courses on the world, I am here to work”. In a day and age, where I don’t think most of the players appreciate the opportunity in front of them, I found that extremely refreshing. Knox certainly showed his commitment in 2016 by only missing four cuts and none after July. A win at the WGC HSBC in the Fall of 2015, a win at the Travelers in 2016, and seven worldwide Top 10s, Knox has shown that he is the real deal. Still, his salary in DFS does not rank among the game’s elite yet, which I believe offers us an opportunity. Soon he will be priced in the top ten or even five week in and week out so take advantage while you can. Another player that is an outstanding ball-striker and deadly accurate hitting greens, but struggles with the flat stick. Like with Matsuyama, I think he gets the putting figured out, at least enough to allow his irons separate him from the field. I expect Knox to move into the Top 15 in the world by the end of 2017.
Grade: D- This was a big, fat whiff and it is not even debatable. I really thought that we were going to see Knox become an elite player in the world consistently, but that did not happen in 2017. Knox started the year strong fine with a T17 at the Tournament of Champions and then T11 at Sony, but overall missed a staggering 13 cuts throughout the rest of the year. The crazy part is we saw glimmers of greatness a few times with a T11 at RBC Heritage, T5 at WGC Bridgestone, and T9 at OHL Classic that all gave me hope that things would turn around, but they never did. As much as I would love to say that he will snap back to the player I thought we would see in 2017, I can’t do that. The best we can do is monitor him and if we see a few solid performances in a row then be ready to make a move, because we know the talent is there.
Thomas Pieters- The 27-year old from Belgium is flat-out dynamic. He plays mostly on the European Tour, but most people do not know that he actually attended Illinois University, where he won the 2012 individual NCAA Division I Championship in his second year. In 2015 Pieters showed just how dynamic he can be by winning back to back European Tour events with the KLM Open and D&D Czech Masters. In 2016 he won the Made in Denmark Open and added four other Top 10 finishes. In addition, he finished fourth at the Summer Olympics as he represented his home country, Belgium. Despite the success early in his career, Pieters still is far from a household name and currently ranks #44 in the world. Pieters is long off the tee, averaging 302 yards, and is also an excellent putter. If there is a flaw in his game, it has been his accuracy off the tee. I predict that we see Pieters add some big finishes in majors and WGC events in 2017 and become the household name that I think his game deserves.
Grade: B: I think the last line in my summary was pretty accurate “I predict that we see Pieters add some big finishes in majors and WGC events in 2017 and become the household name that I think his game deserves.” as Pieters posted a T5 at WGC Mexico, T4 at The Masters, T14 at BMW Championship, and 4th at WGC Bridgestone. In between those elite finishes was a ton of inconsistency from an extremely talented player. Seven missed cuts and four other finishes of 50th or worse are far too many. He began the year ranked 47th in the world and now stands at 36th, so he is working his way up and I am not giving up on the now 28-year old and expect him to keep climbing.
Matthew Fitzpatrick– You might remember that I featured the young Englishman in my Crystal Ball: 2016 Edition, and he gave as a mixed bag throughout 2016. He did have a win at the Nordea Masters, but he also missed twelve cuts. That kind of volatility can be expected from a 23-year old player however and I think his upside is tremendous. Fitzpatrick did have three other worldwide Top 10s, including a 7th place finish at The Masters last year. We will begin to see more and more of Fitzpatrick as he will be playing in all the majors, WGC events, and a few PGA Tour events. As you would expect with his 5’10” 150 pound frame, he is not very long off the tee, but his very accurate, especially with his irons and is an above average putter. Fitzpatrick currently ranks #51 in the world and I would expect to see him in the Top 25 in the next three years.
Grade: A: I really like this kid and not just because when I met him at the Ryder Cup he was the coolest, nicest, most polite guy (right next to Snedeker), but because his game is becoming elite in the world in a hurry. A few of his highlights for 2017 included a runner-up at the Nordea Masters, T9 at the WGC HSBC, T8 at Nedbank Challenge, T13 at Arnold Palmer Challenge, T5 at Omega Dubai, and a win at Omega European Masters. To close out the year he went- win, T11, T15, T15, T9, T11, T8, 12th. That is the type of consistency that we did not get out of Fitzpatrick in 2016. When I wrote this article last year he was ranked #51 in the world and not he sits at 30th. He is only 24 years old and I think he continues to climb. I still do not think a ton of folks playing DFS, especially for majors know just how good this kid is, so we will capitalize on that in 2018.
Aaron Wise- After winning the 2016 individual national championship for Oregon, Wise played most of 2016 on the Canadian Tour before playing on the PGA Tour in the Fall. While on the Canadian Tour, Wise recorded Top 15 finishes in every event he played, including a third-place finish and a win. On the PGA Tour we have seen him post a T16 at the John Deere, missed cuts at the US Open, Safeway, and Sanderson Farms, a T10 at Shriners, and T55 at OHL Classic. I am not predicting that Wise starts tearing up the PGA Tour or has any wins this season for that matter. What I am predicting is that he consistently provides value for his pricetag in DFS, which has been in the $6,000 price range on Draftkings so far. As a matter of fact he was the lowest priced guy in the field when he took 10th at Shriners in the Fall. I would recommend that you monitor Wise closely and take a few chances with him in GPPs in 2017.
Grade: Incomplete: I don’t think we saw enough of Wise in 2017 to put a definitive grade on him. He played most of his year on the Web.com Tour where he had a ton of success including a win, but for us DFSers our only chance to roster him was for the Career Builder, Farmers, and four events this Fall. I will say, for those six events he made five cuts including three Top 35s in the Fall season, which isn’t bad for someone priced in the low $7k range every week. You can certainly slap a grade on him, but I will do that after next season where we see him 20 or so times (Hint: he is in the Crystal Ball 2018). Wise started the year ranked #491 in the world and is now #218. I think he reaches the Top 100 within the next couple of years.
Emiliano Grillo- Another player that I liked heading into last year, another guy that lived up to expectations, and another guy that I expect to have an even bigger 2017 campaign. After his win at the Frys.com, fresh off the Web.com Tour, Grillo showed outstanding consistency throughout the year although did not post another victory. Those of you who play DFS know how difficult it is to have all of your selected players make the cut, well Grillo only missed two cuts all of 2016. In addition, he tallied fourteen top 25 finishes, which is an incredible reflection of his consistency. Being in the mix week in and week out, I believe it is only a matter of time before Grillo gets back into the winner’s circle and likely does it with frequency. The young Argentinian has a ton of upside and I think he gets a win this season.
Grade: D: This grade might be a bit harsh, but I was high on Grillo and he never really materialized and maybe my expectations were just too high. In 2017 Grillo only managed three Top 15 finishes (although he did have great finishes in two loaded field events at The Players and Arnold Palmer. He only had six missed cuts, which isn’t the worst, he just didn’t have many big finishes as he consistently finished outside the Top 25. Not a good season for Grillo and not a good pick from me.
Bryson DeChambeau- Pretty much right out of the gates, the decorated collegiate star became a DFS darling as he posted a T27 at Arnold Palmer, T21 at The Masters, and T4 at RBC Heritage. It appeared that there was not stopping this young stud from, then he hit a wall and missed his next four cuts and nine in total the rest of the season. One eruption at the DAP Championship on the Web.com Tour where DeChambeau tallied a win, was his only Top 10 finish after RBC Heritage. The biggest problem in 2016 was his putting, where he lost nearly three strokes to the field, which I found very strange. I watched a bit of DeChambeau when he played at SMU and then obviously once he became a professional and his putter is much better than it was most of last season. Sometimes it is a small tweak that changes everything in the putting game and I think we will see that this season. DeChambeau will be a top player on the PGA Tour and I think that ascension starts this season.
Grade: B: This is a tough one to grade because the first half of Bryson’s season was a train wreck. 11 missed cuts in his first 16 events had me ready to fail Mr. Dechambeau, but then something clicked and he became the stud that I thought he would be. Better late than never I guess. Starting at The Travelers through the rest of the year Bryson only missed two cuts and in that time won at the John Deere, and had six Top 20s including a T17, T7, and T14 to close the year. I am not sure how you go from non-competitive to really good instantaneously, but I am glad he did. He started the year ranked #120 in the world and now sits at #96. The one question mark in his game is his putter. He seems to have figured it out, but we will have to see. If he can putt, he will have a chance to win again on the PGA Tour.
Luke List- A return to the PGA Tour last year after a couple year hiatus, was a rocky road for the 31 year old List. Six Top 25 finishes, including Top 10s at The Career Builder and Honda Classic were the only highlights, making twelve cuts and missing fifteen. The Fall season however he seems to have found something in his game going five for five in made cuts, while finishing T7 at OHL Mayakoba and T2 at Sanderson Farms. In that stretch of events his entire game was solid, ranking 23rd in strokes gained putting and 34th in strokes gained tee-to-green. List’s price on Draftkings started the Fall at $6,400, but had a meteoric rise and ended at $9,400 for the RSM Classic. Part of the reason for this huge increase was the success he was having, but also because of the week fields of the Fall season. I would expect to see him available in the $7k to low $8k range in 2017 when the fields grow stronger. Given the fact that not many people are paying attention to golf in the Fall, I am guessing List will not be as popular as maybe he should be, come the new year. I am predicting a season where List provides a ton of value for his price and doubles his Top 25s and Top 10s from last year.
Grade: B: If you need Luke List to be amazing during the Fall swing season, he will be amazing in the Fall swing season. If you need Luke List to be amazing during the rest of the year, he will be amazing in the Fall swing season. We have seen this before from Luke List and now it has become a clear trend. Fall 2016 List was 5/5 in made cuts with four Top 15 finishes. Fall 2017 he was 4/5 in made cuts with three Top 20s. The rest of 2017 was far from bad for List, it just wasn’t the excellent play that he brings during autumn. Some highlights included a T17 at Arnold Palmer, T13 at Sony Open, T18 at FedEx St Jude, and a T3 at the Shell Houston Open. Some of the lowlights included 11 missed cuts, including at the PGA Championship and The Players. Going forward, we will clearly target list in Fall 2018, but also on easier courses when there are eagle opportunities and Par 5 scoring is an important statistic.
Si Woo Kim- The 21 year old South Korean is a ridiculous talent who is going to have an exceptional 2017. Last year in his first full season on the tour, Kim recorded 23 made cuts in 34 events, but an outstanding 16 Top 25 finishes. He also added a runner-up at Barbasol and a win at the Wyndham Championship. He started the Fall season with a T10 at the CIMB, but then was forced to withdraw from the OHL Mayakoba with back issues after 10 holes. He then missed the cut at the RSM, likely because of those same lingering back issues. It will be interesting to see how he starts the year and if the back is an issue. I will assume everything is good after a couple months off and load up on him early and would recommend you do the same.
Grade: C: This was a difficult one to grade, because Si Woo missed an incredible amount of cuts in 2017 paired with a handful of withdrawals. However, he won one of the most prestigious events of the season in The Players Championship. There is no doubt his back is hindering this young talent and holding him back from any sort of consistency. We saw brief glimpses of his incredible talent with his win at Sawgrass as well as a T13 at the U.S Open, but his incredible fails exceeded his great performances and thus become only a GPP option and lost us money more than he won it. Those of you who put outrights on him to win at The Players will disagree strongly, but I can’t say this was an outstanding pick.
Whee Kim– From one young South Korean to another, we are going to be seeing both Kims atop leaderboards this season. A rocky 2015 and 2016, this is now his third full season on tour, and it will easily be his best. Starting out the Fall season strong, Kim tallied two Top 25s while making the cut in all three events he played. The last two seasons Kim’s putting has been atrocious, but he looked much improved in that area this Fall. One of the great things about rostering Kim in DFS is his ownership is generally really low. Outside of Sanderson Farms where his ownership exploded, you can pretty much bank on under 5% most every week.
Grade: B- As my friend Pat Mayo says, “Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Kim”. I think that is so appropriate for Kim, because he is a virtual roller coaster ride. 2017 included six Top 20s, including a T5 at Puerto Rico, T2 at FedEx St Jude, T12 at Genesis, T4 at CJ Cup, and T2 at Shriners. It also included 14 missed cuts and two withdrawals. It is truly boom or bust with Kim and as long as you accept that he is a huge upside GPP play and not a cash game lock, you will be fine with Kim. He started the year ranked #263 in the world and ended #117. He has a ton of talent and upside, you just have to accept the rock bottom downside. He is not for the faint of heart, so if your stomach gets queasy you might want to steer clear of Whee Kim.
Cameron Smith- A professional since 2013, Smith has played in his homeland Australia, the Asian Tour, and now on the PGA Tour. Smith had a season to forget last year, which was surprising given the end to his 2015, which was highlighted by a T4 at the U.S Open. Eleven missed cuts in 24 events played in 2016 with only three Top 25s and zero Top 10s. From my understanding, Smith was plagued by multiple injuries last year and they reaked havoc on his game. This Fall, he seems to be healthy and the results show. Four straight made cuts with a T11 at Sanderson Farms and T10 at Shriners. Smith is only 23 years old and has a tremendous amount of upside and is one of my favorite players coming into 2017. He is going to be extremely cheap in DFS golf and his ownership will be low, at least until people start catching on to just how good this guy is. Roster him early and often, especially in the Texas events where there tends to be a lot of wind, which he is no stranger to, being from down under.
Grade: B: Another win from the Crystal Ball albeit it was the Zurich Classic, which we could not play for DFS. UGH. We just talked about the roller coaster that is Whee Kim, well Cameron Smith is not much different. Your stomach might turn just looking at his results throughout 2017. It felt like we would get a couple really good performances out of Smith, then he would inexplictedly miss a cut and looking at the results now that is exactly what happened. A T6 at Valero, T7 at Wyndham, and T12 at the BMW Championship along with a bunch of Top 35s and ten missed cuts sprinkled in. Check out his end to 2017 however- T12, T5, and 3rd. Is that a sign of things to come for Smith? He went from #114 in the world to start the year to 99th to end it. I love Smith for GPPs because nobody ever owns him, but he has the chance to finish Top 10 any given week, especially on shorter courses where scoring is rewarded. He is young and I expect him to continue to improve and most likely be more consistent in the future and how can he not be more consistent than 2017.
Keegan Bradley- It pains me to mention Bradley in this column, because I have faded him so many times in DFS golf, but I truly think he has figured out putting without the anchor and he will have a very good season. The start of 2016 for Keegan was absolutely brutal and looked like he wasn’t going to be able to adapt to the new putter changes. Then in the middle of the summer, something clicked, he took 8th at the Memorial and then finished the season making seven consecutive cuts. Bradley kept up the success through the Fall season, recording a T22 at Safeway, 6th at CIMB, T7 at Shriners, and T15 at OHL Mayakoba. It is not that his putting has been so good (still losing strokes to the field), it just is good enough to not kill him. I am not saying that I think Bradley is going to win multiple events this season, or even one for that matter( although maybe he will). What I am saying is that I expect a cut-made percentage about 80% about 10-15 Top 25s, and a few Top 10s, which would be outstanding considering he will be priced in the $7,000-$8,000 range on Draftkings.
Grade: A: I specifically laid out the requirements that would satisfy me for the Bradley pick and they are as follows- “cut made percentage= 80%”- CHECK; “10-15 Top 25s”- CHECK; “A few Top 10s”- CHECK. Bradley did everything we asked of him and his price was consistently in the $7k range the entire year, so we have to consider this a very successful pick. He is not an easy guy to like because he is kind of funny looking and his obnoxious pre-shot routine is almost intolerable, but he is a great cut maker with some upside if his putter can do anything at all. He went from #108 in the world at the end of 2016 to #69 right now. I am not convinced he is a Top 50 player in the world, so we need to keep our expectations realistic with Keegan.
Grayson Murray- One of the guys coming off the Web.com Tour that think will have a lot of success on the PGA Tour this season. I predict it will be a rollercoaster with missed cuts, because he is a young player, but for GPP purposes in DFS, he has a tremendous amount of upside. Murray closed out his time on the Web.com Tour with a 3rd place finish and a win. In his three appearances this past Fall, Murray had two missed cuts and a T8 at Sanderson Farms, which is just how I expect his entire season to go.
Grade B+ The season started might rough for Murray as he missed the cut in 6 of his first 8 events of 2017. Hard to believe but things were even worse off the course as Murray become extremely outspoken on Twitter and even down right offensive in some cases. After he missed the cut at Arnold Palmer, his season did a complete 180 and he made his next 10 straight cuts and only missed three the entire rest of the year. Murray also flashed some upside as well with a T11 at Zurich, T18 at FedEX St Jude, and of course his win at Barbasol. Consistently priced in the $6k range and avoided by people who refused to roster him because of his outspokenness provided a very solid play for us for most of the season after the Arnold Palmer.
C.T Pan- Another young player fresh off the Web.com tour, who has a ton of upside. He started slow with missed cuts in his first two PGA appearances, but then made his last three cuts, with a T6 at the RSM in the last event of the Fall. Pan dominated the Web.com tour in 2016 with seven Top 10s. Much like Grayson Murray, I am expecting some high finishes, but also some frustrating missed cuts, which means he is more of a GPP play than cash games in DFS Golf.
Grade: B- I would say C.T Pan’s 2017 was fine, but not as good as I expected. He moved from #200 in the world to #165, but we did not have many big finishes from him. A T2 at Farmers got his season going in the right direction, but then he missed a bunch of curs and had no other big finishes for two months. The Travelers we saw him turn in a T8 finish and for the remainder of the season he was actually good as he only missed 1 cut over his last 12 events. He recorded a T14 at RBC Canadian, a T17 at CIMB, and T13 at RSM to close the year. A young guy with potential, I just thought we would get better from him in 2017.
Dylan Frittelli- We won’t see any of Frittelli on the PGA Tour, but if you are playing European Tour DFS, which I recommend (and sign up for our European Tour Package), you need to know who this guy is. Frittelli actually played his college golf at the University of Texas, where he won the decisive match to lead the Longhorns to victory at the 2012 NCAA Championship. Since then he has spent much of the time playing on the Challenger Tour and some European Tour appearances. He recorded thirteen Top 10 finishes, mostly on the Challenger Tour. In his most recent European Tour appearance, he posted a T25 at the Alfred Dunhill. You will be able to get him for a real cheap price in European Tour DFS with minimal ownership, so take advantage of it.
Grade: A: I would venture to say that even the most avid golf fans would have been hard pressed to know who in the world Dylan Frittelli was at the start of 2017. Although the mainstream golf fan still might not be that familiar, us DFS folks certainly are well aware of how good this kid is after his outstanding 2017. Not a guy you are going to lock into your cash games and bank on a made cut, but for GPP purposes, Fritelli made a lot of Euro DFS players who rostered him very happy. He was able to post a T5 at the Shenzhen International, runner-up finishes at Turkish Airlines and Volvo Chins Open, and a win at the Lyoness Open. Overall he had nine Top 25 finishes. Fritelli started the year ranked 152nd in the world and ended it 76th. For a guy who was priced in the $6k-$7k range, he turned out to be an exceptional pick for us last year.
Adam Hadwin- In my opinion, Hadwin is one of the more under-rated DFS golfers. Almost always available in the $6,000 price range on Draftkings and rarely heavily owned, he should be a strong consideration for your lineups most weeks in 2017. His biggest asset is his putting (ranked 12th on Tour in 2016) and he is about average in his tee-to-green game. Where Hadwin shines in DFS is his cut-making ability where he made 20 of 27 cuts last season and 3 of 4 during the Fall season. His upside has shown some limits however only recording two Top 10s last season. This season I am predicting that he doubles that number and maybe even triples it. There are specific places that fit his game better than others and the tournaments that I will be targeting him include The Memorial, Dean & Deluca, John Deere, and the RBC Canadian to name a few. We will see him at the Sony Open in Hawaii right away in January and he will be on my short list.
Grade A: One of the very best picks of the year, Hadwin started the season ranked #191 in the world and ended it #53. He went from a cut-maker in 2016 to a really solid player that contended multiple times throughout the year. Hadwin started strong with a runner-up finish at Careerbuilder, then a T12 at Waste Management, and then a win at Valspar. He also added a 6th at Arnold Palmer and T5 at WGC Bridgestone. Hadwin did have a stretch between Quicken and Northern Trust where he missed five cuts, but snapped right back at the Dell Championship with a T13. The crazy part about Hadwin in 2017 was his price on Draftkings, where no matter how good he was, it did not go up. We consistently were offered Hadwin in the $7k range and for that reason he become a chalky pick many weeks.
Hudson Swafford- As my partner at FGI Zach says, there are few things for certain- death, taxes, and Hudson Swafford lets him down. Although he has shown very little upside, Swafford does currently own one of the longest cuts made streaks on tour (17). This is great for DFS purposes as it is very difficult to find a guy you can count on every week, but still for GPP purposes we need more than a Top 50. As matter of fact in 30 tournament last year, Swafford only recorded one Top 10. It is usually one terrible round over the weekend that plagues him, but I believe that changes in 2017. Swafford is one of those players that has actually gotten longer off the tee as he gets older. If he can putt as successfully as last year, he is going to have a really solid year. We are going to see several Top 10s in 2017 from the Georgia Alum and I think he has a great shot at getting into the winners circle this year as well.
Grade: A: A really fine season from Swafford and he actually came through for me when he got into the winners circle at CareerBuilder. He also had great finishes at Arnold Palmer (T10), Shell Houston Open (T6), WGC Bridgestone (T10), and Dell Technologies (T13). Swafford did have a stretch of missed cuts (4) between The Players and FedEx St Jude, which was unusual for him. He did however close out his season with only one missed cut in his last 13 events played, which makes him an outstanding cash game choice in DFS. Swafford took his #222 world ranking all the way down to #92 in 2017. Hopefully you had an outright wager on Swafford to win the CareerBuilder as I did, because you would have pocketed a nice chunk of change.
Wesley Bryan- If you have not watched Bryan’s trick shot videos on youtube, I would highly recommend them. It is not only his trick shots however that I like, it is his entire game. Bryan ripped up the Web.com Tour last season with several wins. Most of his PGA appearances were disappointing however. He did have a T8 at the John Deere, but has missed four cuts in his last seven events played. There was much fanfare surrounding him when he came on the scene last year, which resulted in a price-tag in the $9,000 range, but has since dropped down into the low $7,000, which is very appealing. It is not consistency that we will get from rostering Bryan, because we are going to see a bunch of missed cuts, but it is upside rather, so mostly target him in GPPs this season and shoot for a big score.
Grade: B+ Bryan started out 2017 like a house on fire with a T4 at Genesis, T4 at Honda, T7 at Valspar, and a win at RBC Heritage (another outright win for us). After that point he struggled to find that same amazing form and actually only posted two other worldwide Top 10s after that. Its not that he missed a ton of cuts, he just didn’t have high finishes. I think the best time to play Bryan is on the Southern swing through Florida and the Carolina’s on shorter courses and where he is comfortable with the Bermuda. A solid B+ I think is a reasonable grade for Bryan in 2017
Richard Bland- Easily one of my favorite European Tour players as he provides value for his price in DFS almost every single week. Bland currently has made thirteen consecutive cuts, but unlike someone like Hudson Swafford, he has shown tremendous upside as well. In 2016, Bland posted seven worldwide Top 10s, four being Top 5s. Despite being very close, he was unable to post a victory in 2016, but it is only a matter of time as we will see him get a title this season. We will also start seeing more of Bland in WGC events and majors in DFS, so make sure he is on your radar even if you are not playing European Tour DFS. Bland is one of those rare guys who is able to step up his game in his forties. I am expecting another great season from Bland this year.
Grade F: For as solid as a 2016 as Bland had, 2017 was a disaster. In 2016 Bland was the consummate cut maker and I thought he would take the next step and become a contender and I could not have been more wrong. Bland missed 9 cuts, which was 7 more than he did in 2016. He was able to pull a runner-up finish at the BMW International Open out of his backside, but other than that there weren’t any other highlights. Not much else to say on Bland, but I missed and he sucked.
Follow Us
