The First Tee

Wow, what a weekend of golf. The Duel of 2016 will be inked in history as one of the greatest final rounds in major tournament history. It really showed just how good these guys can be.

Weekly Roundup– The British Open

Royal Troon really provided some great moments, and some that were not so great for the golfers. That devil of a par 3 “The Postage Stamp” was just about as fun to watch as the 12th at Augusta, or the 17th at Sawgrass, one of many challenging holes on the course. It did yield plenty of birdies and eagles but at the same time produced a bunch of “others” as well. As you’ll see from the results of the DFS player recap you did not need to have golfers placing 1-6 on your lineup to win.

My Fantasy Week Recap: I had the top four priced golfers at about 25% across the board spread evenly, so that limited my ability to roster Mickelson & Stenson at a high clip. That prevented me from having a number of lineups from top 100 finishes. I did have one good lineup with Henrik & Phil that did provide a nice return. Overall, it was not a good week for my lineups.

The Winning Strategy: Fading the most expensive golfers worked really well. Rory was obviously the best of that upper tier with a return of 83 points and a T5 finish, but had you wanted to roster him with Henrik and Phil, you would only have had $20,000 left for three players. Sergio was obviously a much better choice than Rory for a cheaper price.

Right & Wrong
• Where I went Wrong- As I mentioned in my recap, too much Big 4 not enough Henrik and Phil together.
• Where I went Right- Sergio Garcia. His ownership was almost 30%, so clearly I wasn’t the only one on him.

Player Ownership Analysis

I couldn’t believe my eyes when I was watching the Milly Maker’s results unfold. One guy had 4/10 lineups in the top 10. Wow – just an incredible week for that user who obviously will be highlighted below. Also I would like to note that this was the first time we have seen a number of contributors to this list place highly and often throughout the contests, and specifically in the $333 contest.

SaahilSud – The go big or go home approach for Saahil was back in full force as he went all in on Rory McIlroy. Not a bad guy to put all your eggs in as he ended up providing the best return out of the big 4. A 66% weighting on J.B. Holmes also helped the results.

Results:
o $3- 150 Entries entered: Best Finish- 655th
o $33- 150 Entries entered: Best Finish- 442nd
o $333- 60 Entries Entered: Best Finishes- 8th, 9th, 17th, 22nd, 29th, 30th ,36th, 43rd. 50th 54th ,84th 22/60 Lineups cashed. It was definitely a profitable contest for Saahil.

• Players Used-
o $3- 25 Players used
o $33- 25 Players used
o $300- 22 Players used

• Player Own %-
o Rory McIlroy- 97%
o J.B Holmes 66%
o Adam Scott- 58%
o Ryan Palmer- 53%
o *Hideki Masuyama- 50%
o *Brandan Steele- 42.7%
o Charley Hoffman- 31%
o Bubba Watson- 27%
o Henrik Stenson- 22%
o Justin Rose 22%
o Phill Mickelson- 7%

*Denotes MC

Jetblackx – A normal contributor to this list, scaled way back as I only saw him participating in the $333 Club Pro Contest. He had some good results, so we will see if that filled the till back up for this user, or if the trend will continue this week. He was back on Rickie Fowler by the way.

• Results:
o $333- 48 Entries: Best Finishes- 15th, 17th, 35th, 58th, 65th, 86th, 98th. 16/48 entries cashed with a few top 25’s may have earned him a little bit of profit in this contest.

• Players Used-
o $333- 45 Players used

• Player Own % 3$- 33$
o Henrik Stenson- 56.3%
o Rickie Fowler- 54%
o *Callum Shinkwin- 35.4%
o Rafa Cabrera-Bello- 33%
o Emiliano Grillo-33%
o Jason Day-25%
o Sergio Garcia- 25%
o DJ-23%
o Rory- 20%

• *Denotes MC

PriestsApp – Another solid performance from what could be our rising star in the industry. This user continued his streak with 3 straight profitable performances. Having top 50’s in all three contests, it goes to show what using the same lineups can do.

Results:
o $3- 150 Entries entered: Best Finishes- 40th, 46th
o $33- 150 Entries entered: Best Finish- 34th, 36th
o $333- 45 Entries Entered: Best Finishes- 4th, 25th, 47th only 5/45 were able to cash, but the 4th place finish paid for all the rest.

• Players Used-
o $3- 51 Players used
o $33- 51 Players used
o $300- 38 Players used

• Player Own %-
o Dustin Johnson-43%
o Matt Kuchar-40%
o Jason Day-37%
o Char Schwartzel-35%
o Henrik Stenson- 25%
o Rory McIlroy & Sergio Garcia-23%
o Adam Scot-22%
o *Brendan Steele-18%
o Phil Mickelson-16.7%

*Denotes MC

Csuram88– Back on the list after a few weeks off, this user was back at it and had some pretty good finishes.

Results:
o $33- 150 Entries entered: Best Finish- 110th
o $333- 20 Entries Entered: Best Finishes- 8th, 77th, 80th 5/20 lineups cashed. The 8th place finish paid for the rest of the entries. So it looks like a profitable contest for the Ram Fan.

• Players Used-
o $33- 41 Players used
o $333- 35 Players used

• Player Own %-
o Henrik Stenson- 51%
o DJ- 49%
o Sergio-46%
o Francesco Molinari-39%
o Matt Kuckar-33%
o Martin Kaymer-32%
o Adam Scott-31%
o Charl Schwartzel-30%
o Charley Hoffman-28%
o Emiliano Grillo-27.3%
o Phil Mickelson-15%

*Denotes MC

AEJones– Back on the list after a few weeks off, this user continued the strong trend of users I talk about dominating the $333 contest. I’ll give you the interesting statistics at the end.

Results:
o $33- 150 Entries entered: Best Finish- 275th
o $333- 25 Entries Entered: Best Finishes- 11th, 27th, 28th, 31st, 58th, 61st, 74th. 13/25 lineups cashed so it was a profitable contest for the user.

• Players Used-
o $33- 49 Players used
o $333- 37 Players used

• Player Own %-
o Matt Kuchar-91%
o DJ-54%
o Henrik Stenson-54%
o Francesco Molinari-49%
o Sergio Garcia-38%
o Phil Mickelson-29%
o Rory McIlroy-26%
o Emiliano Grillo-20%

*Denotes MC

JAE686– Back on the list as 1 of 2 users that were maxed across the three contests. (SaahillSud being the other) Let’s take a look at how he did.

Results:
o $3- 150 Entries entered: Best Finish- 17th
o $33- 150 Entries entered: Best Finish- 20th
o $333- 60 Entries Entered: Best Finishes- 44th, 49th, 51st, 54th 13/60 lineups were able to cash, so it may be the other contests would have had to help pay the bill for this one.

• Players Used-
o $3- 53 Players used
o $33- 53 Players used
o $333- 22 Players used

• Player Own %-
o Jason Day-33%
o Rory McIlroy- 32%
o Henrik Stenson-30%
o Matt Kuchar-26%
o DJ-22%
o Spieth & Rose- 21%
o Bubba & Sergio- 18%
o Phil Mickelson-16%

AshyL4rry– Last week’s breakthrough performer of the week didn’t fare as well this week.

• Results:
o $3-150 Entries- Best Finish- 450th
o $33- 150 Entries- Best Finish- 292nd
o $333-3 Entries- Best Finish 220th

• Players Used-
o $3- 51 Players used
o $33- 51 Players used
o $333-

• Player Own %
o Henrik Stenson & DJ- 25%
o Phil Mickelson- 25%
o Rory & Adam Scott-23%
o Jordan & Brandon Grace-22%
o Kuchar & Day- 21%

Mazwa– The obvious choice for breakthrough performer of the week, his results are just wow. Not only did he WIN the Millionaire Maker but he also placed in third AND fourth and 9th in that very same contest. Let’s take a look at how he did it. *Note he only competed in the $33.

Results:
o $33- 150 Entries entered: Best Finish- 1st, 3rd, 4th, 9th

• Players Used-
o $33- 34 Players used

• Player Own %-
o Bubba Watson-85.3% – *Note he may have not have finished in the top 30 but he had over 70 Draft Kings points which earned him almost as many as some people that finished inside the top 10. Wow, did he get lucky Bubba slid through the cut.
o DJ- 78%
o J.B. Holmes-74%
o Steve Stricker-58%
o Sergio Garcia- 43.3%
o Justin Rose-42%
o *Brendan Steele-30%
o Jim Furyk-27%
o Bill Haas-26%
o Gary Woodland & Henrik Stenson-20%
o Phil Mickelson-19%

*Denotes MC

The RBC Canadian Open

Back on the North American continent we return to the site of Jason Day’s first win of the amazing stretch he is on. The tournament is back for the 7th time at Glen Abbey where it was last year and 2013. A Par 72 and measuring just shy of 7,300 yards, the course is relatively short for a par 72. Let’s take a look at the stats I’m focusing on this week. I will note that of the stats I focused on last week Stenson showed up in 2/6 so clearly stats can help you find players to target.

1. Birdie or Better %: Always. Participating in this Tournament: DJ-2nd, JDay-5th, Andrew Loupe-12th, GrahamDeLaet-13th, Robert Garrigus- 14th

2. Par 5 Scoring: According to a statistic I saw earlier today 43% of Draft King points (excluding bonus points) were scored on the 4 par 5’s here @ Glen Abbey. A huge statistic that I’m sure the DFS Industry will be all over it. Players Participating in this Tournament: JDay-2nd, Ryan Palmer-3rd, Harold Varner-6th, Andrew Loupe 12th, Luke List 13th, Jonathan Vegas- 13th

3. Strokes Gained Putting: We all saw what a hot putter can do this past weekend. This stat is going to be here more and more. Players Participating in this Tournament: JDay-1, Brian Harman-8th, Adam Hadwin-9th, Andrew Landry-10th, Bryce Molder-11th

4. Driving Distance: Seemed to go hand and hand with the par 5 scoring, let’s see who the big bombers are playing this week. Players Participating in this Tournament: DJ-2nd, Tony Finau-3rd, Andrew Loupe-5th, Hudson Swafford- 8th, Luke List-9th

5. Scrambling– Last week this stat showed us that Steve Stricker is the best scrambler on tour, and if you watched coverage, he definitely showed us why. An important statistic every week I think it’s important to highlight. Players Participating in this Tournament: Bryce Molder-2nd, Jerry Kelly-3rd, Chez Reavie-4th, Justin Leonard-4th, Tim Wilkinson-9th

Player Focus: RBC Canadian Open

Last week was an average week as I was only able to net 2 top 10’s (4,9) and was 8/10 overall on cuts made. Not a bad % overall, but unless you had Phil or Henrik, it was a tough test to cash big.

On the Rise:

• DJ& J-Day -$12,500-$12,300 – You can’t really make an argument to fade either of these guys. Therefore, I’m not going to cheat and use two spots for these guys. Day actually played better than his score in my opinion as the anointed “Big 3” actually all saw the worst of the conditions Thursday and Friday. It’ll be hard to roster both of these guys as you’ll only be able to average $6,300 per player for the remaining 4.
o Target Finish – Top 3

• Matt Kuchar– $10,600 – So last week on the “First Tee” I highlighted my strong dislike for rostering Kuchar (and shane lowry) and boy was I right on. Kuchar really struggles with links style courses as he has never really found great success at the British Open. With all the being said he comes here to Glen Abbey sporting a 2/3 record with two top 10’s, 7th last year and second in 2013. His recent form, besides the two majors, is still one of the best on tour. So yes I know the top 3 salaried guys are on the list this week, but I really feel like it the course set’s up very well for all of them.

• Tony Finau– $9,300 – Sadly I didn’t write about him last week, because I did mention and recommend him to a lot of people that messaged me on Twitter and Facebook. His third top 20 in a major in 3 tries as Finau had a mediocre Sunday which kept him out of the top 10. I love where his game is and expect to him to have a strong finish to the year. He’s also found success here in the past placing 22nd last year.
o Target Finish – Top 5

• Emiliano Grillo – $8,500 – A rising star on the PGA Tour, Grillo enjoyed his second straight top 15 and his best performance at a major with a 12th place finish at Royal Troon. I expect him to continue his strong form into this week’s Canadian Open. This will be his first trip to Glen Abbey, but that hasn’t stopped him before. I look for him to be near the first page of the leaderboard come Sunday.
o Target Finish – Top 7

• Graham DeLaet – $7,500 – The native Canadian, DeLaet is still in search of his first career PGA Tour victory. He has enjoyed some great success this year at tournaments like the Valspar and others where the field wasn’t very strong, much like we have this week. He also shot 63 on Sunday @ The Barbasol Championship to finish in a 8th place. A good year, solid recent form and a hometown game is the triple threat. He will get a high ownership % from me this week. He’s also ranked 13th on tour in Bridie or Better % for his top Stat I’m focused on. I’d probably suspect I won’t be the only one on him this week.
o Target Finish – Top 10

• Jonathan Vegas – $7,300 – If you were watching coverage of the Open, I’m sure you heard the announces mention Vegas’s 60 on Friday @ the Barbasol Championship. He did take a few steps back over the weekend, but still one would have to think he found something out there, and I look for him to use his power to take advantage of the par 5’s here @ Glen Abbey. He’s ranked 13th on tour in par 5 scoring.
o Target Finish – Top 10

• Daniel Summerhays – $7,000 – A late add to the field last week, Daniel was able to stick around for the weekend @ The Open in tough conditions. I expect he takes that positive experience and translates it into a good finish this week @ The Canadian Open. He has had success here carding an 11th place finish last year. A great putter ranked 18th on tour in strokes gained putting, look for Daniel to be close to the first page come Sunday.
o Target Finish – Top 15

• Chad Campbell – $6,800 – His first appearance on this list, Mr. Campbell comes back to a place where he’s found some great success. In two starts here @ Glen Abbey he’s placed 11th and 16th, so it seems Chad is familiar and comfortable here. He’s coming off a decent performance @ the Barbasol placing 35th and is 5/5 in cuts made in last 5 starts. I like the direction his game is heading, his past performance here, and I almost forgot to mention his great value @ $6,800. Look for him to stick around for the weekend for his 6th straight cut made.

• Mark Hubbard – $6,100 – Coming off a nice 21st place finish at the QLN Mark comes in well rested. He is always near the first page when it comes to total birdies on Tour, and hits the ball a long way.
o Target Finish – Top 25

• Taylor Moore– $5,800 – Having run into a bit of “Scandalous situation” in College, Moore will finally get his first start on the PGA tour. He earned is way by winning the Staal Foundation Championship this past weekend moving him up to second on the “Order of Merit*”
o Target Finish – Top 30

*Order of Merit- For those of you who don’t know this is the “money list” for the Mackenzie Tour. The Top 3 players from the Order of Merit earn an exemption into this weeks tournament.

Tour Debuts: As always I am trying to hone my skill and get better at this game as a whole. Playing it for real, or through DFS I look for trends that may help me get better. One of those trends has really shown its face as of late in the DFS-PGA tour world. As the title of this section says its “Tour Debuts”. Three times this year a golfer making their Tour debut has placed inside the top 5. Dechambeau at The RBC Hertiage, Rahm at the Quicken Loans National, and this past weekend Michael Johnson at The Barbasol Championship.

1. Taylor Moore– $5,800 – See Above

2. Hugo Bernard– $5,600* Hugo is playing this week on a sponsorship exemption. He is a native of Canada hailing from Montreal, is at a Dvision II School called St.Leo University. He won the NCCA Division II Championship and is currently ranked 255nd in the world amateur golf rankings. I’m sure he’ll have a little extra motivation for his first PGA Tour Start. (Golf Canada Exemption)

3. Jared du Toit-$5,900* Playing on the same exemption as Bernard (Golf Canada Exemption) du Toit will be making his tour debut. He started his college golf at Idaho and is now at Arizona State and will tee it up with former teammate Jon Rahm.

4. Branson Ferrier– $6,200 Earning his way to this week’s event via a regional qualifier the Alabama State grad and recently turned pro Ferrier will make his PGA Tour Debut in his native Open.

5. Adam Cornelson– $7,400 Adam is here through his #3 rank on the Order of Merit. He turned pro in 2011 but was never able to qualify for a PGA Tour event. An interesting price set by draft kings for this first time participant.

*Denotes Amateur.

Heading South – Fades
2/2 Last week as Lowry was dreadful from the start and Kuchar had a terrible weekend and wasn’t even in the Top 40. He also was one of the most owned golfers across most of the GPP contests. Let’s see who I threw shade at this week.

• Robert Garrigus– $8,300 he’s missed 3 out of 4 cuts here at Glen Abbey mixed with a relatively high price. No thanks.

• Kyle Reifers– $8,000 finished in 35th last week and is 0/2 here at Glen Abbey I’d much rather play Chad Campbell who has some good history here and also came in 35th last week. Oh and is 1200 less.

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That’s it for this week be sure to follow me on Twitter @DFSXpert23 for some fun facts info! Got a question on who to start or sit feel free to message @DFSXpert23. Good luck!