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Hello RotoBaller PGA family! You guys probably don't want me to bring it up, but last week's 3M Open was a bloodbath for many DFS players, with roughly as many 0/6 lineups as 6/6 lineups!
It shouldn't be a problem to get 6/6 through this week, as we head to Memphis for the no-cut WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational. This is a small, elite field, and we'll have to be creative in order to avoid duplicate lineups. We'll also want to target players that can produce solid scores for all four rounds. In this article, we'll discuss some of the standout PGA DFS plays available on FanDuel for the WGC-FedEx St. Jude. While it's impossible to hit on every player, we'll touch on some different plays across all price ranges.
Like always, the purpose of this piece is to help you put together your optimal daily fantasy golf lineups for FanDuel, whether that be from a GPP perspective or a cash-game mentality. Be sure to also read all of our other top-notch weekly PGA DFS and betting articles to help you win big!
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WGC FedEx St. Jude Invitational - PGA DFS Overview
TPC Southwind
7,237 Yards - Par 70 - Greens: Bermuda
Doglegs, bunkers, and water hazards...oh my! That's what awaits players at this former Memphis dairy farm. TPC Southwind winds through lakes, streams, and ponds with the danger of water always lurking...especially on the par-3 11th hole that is almost a 'baby brother' to the famous 17th island green at TPC Sawgrass. Many of Southwind's par-4's have dogleg tendencies, which forces the bombers to throttle down a bit, though we have seen long hitters like Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka play very well here. Precise ball striking will be key, as the water hazards and almost 100 bunkers in play demand accuracy. Southwind is a long-ish Par 70 and ranked as one of the tougher tracks on the PGA Tour last season.
Both these fairways and greens are tough to hit, so I will primarily be targeting ball strikers with sharp iron games. Since this is a WGC event with no cut, I'll be willing to sacrifice consistency a bit in order to target players that can rack up birdies. We have eight par-4s that are 450 yards or longer, so I'll lean towards guys that fair well on long par-4s.
Let's Look At The Stats
| Stat | TPC Southwind | Tour Average |
| Driving Distance | 286 | 283 |
| Driving Accuracy | 54% | 61% |
| GIR Percentage | 59% | 65% |
| Scrambling Percentage | 59% | 57% |
| Average Three-Putts Per Round | 0.44 | 0.54 |
Key Stats
- Strokes Gained: Approach
- Strokes Gained: Tee to Green
- Greens In Regulation Gained
- Strokes Gained: Ball Striking
- Bogey Avoidance
- Par 4 Efficiency: 450-500 yards
Fantasy Golf Lineup Picks for FanDuel (PGA DFS)
We have tons of great weekly PGA articles, DFS analysis, tools and DFS advice. Be sure to read our other fantastic articles regarding this week's event including DFS lineup picks for DraftKings/FanDuel, betting advice and DFS prop picks.
High-Priced FanDuel DFS Players
Jon Rahm ($12,000)
The world's new No. 1 player after a win at the Memorial, Jon Rahm sits atop the salary scale this week. The young Spaniard initially looked sluggish coming out of the COVID-19 layoff, but has steadily found his groove. We thought there were signs that things were coming together after a final-round 64 at the Workday, and sure enough, Rahm played flawlessly at Memorial, gaining a ridiculous 15.5 strokes T2G en route to the biggest win of his young career.
He doesn't have much experience on this layout, but recorded a top-10 in last year's WGC-FedEx. Rahm historically feasts on long Par-4s and ranks sixth in this week's field in Par-4 Efficiency on holes measuring 450-500 yards (he'll see eight of them this week) over long-term measurements.
As evidenced by his performance at Muirfield Village, Rahm is rounding into form nicely and will be a formidable presence both this week and during the upcoming major championships.
Justin Thomas ($11,700)
JT may very well be the most popular DFS play on this week's slate, but he's a scary fade in his current form. Outside of a random missed cut on cold putting weeks, Thomas has been immaculate throughout 2020, winning the Sentry TOC early in the year and narrowly missing another victory at the Workday a few weeks ago.
He ranks third in this field in SG: T2G over his last 12 rounds and that mastery of every facet is what makes him so enticing this week on a TPC Southwind layout that will test every area of a player's game. JT doesn't really have any weaknesses at the moment and also brings his unbelievable birdie-making ability to the table in a no-cut format. Give me all the JT this week (and next).
Collin Morikawa ($10,900)
It's kind of shocking to see Collin Morikawa starting to become routinely priced with all the "elite" players on the salary scale, but that's the reality of this kid's talent. The only knock you can level against Morikawa this week is his lack of experience on this layout, though that hasn't been a problem for him since turning pro, as he's already recorded two victories in about a year's time.
He has a chance to be a truly generational iron player and that sort of sharp ball striking is just what this TPC Southwind layout demands. I've been a believer since Day One and I'm not gonna start doubting the kid now.
Brooks Koepka ($10,700)
Trying to peg Brooks Koepka in non-major events has proven to be something of a fool's errand, but this ol' fool is getting back into the Brooksy business for the next two weeks. Koepka is one of the few players in the field that actually regularly played this event prior to it being bumped up to WGC status and he's on record saying that he's very comfortable on this layout. His history at TPC Southwind reflects that, as he won this event last year and also has two additional top-three finishes on his FedEx St. Jude resume. It's a fair question to ask if Brooks is physically "right", but after a much-improved ball striking display in Minny last week, it feels as though he's beginning to "flip the switch" with the year's first major championship on the horizon.
Viktor Hovland ($10,600)
Fair or not, Viktor Hovland, Collin Morikawa, and Matthew Wolff are often mentioned in the same breath...so I didn't want to write-up Morikawa this week without talking about my guy V-Hova. After a brilliant post-layoff run in which Hovland ran off five-straight top-25 outings, he finally ran out of gas over the weekend at Memorial and tumbled into a T48 finish.
Hovland finally had a week to rest and should head into this week feeling ready and recharged. His numbers have been phenomenal since the restart and he ranks first in this super-elite field in SG: Ball Striking over short-term measurements. Like Morikawa, the knock is that he doesn't have any course experience, but his elite ball striking should translate perfectly to TPC Southwind and his birdie-making ability (third in the field in Birdies or Better Gained) is hard to ignore when he's guaranteed four rounds.
Daniel Berger ($10,500)
Many will quickly throw Berger in the "Course History" category this week because he's won on this course twice (2016 & '17). That's obviously some nice background, but I'm actually more on the Berger train due to his current form. Yes, he missed the cut his last time out at Memorial after taking a well-deserved multiple week break, but he actually gained ground both off the tee and on approach at Muirfield Village, and he still stands second in this elite field in both SG: Total and Birdies or Better Gained over his last 12 rounds even with that lackluster outing factored in. Some will be turned off by that missed cut and his price tag, but I look for Berger to resume what has been a tremendous 2020 at his old stomping grounds this week.
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Mid-Priced FanDuel DFS Players
Matthew Fitzpatrick ($10,200)
The Englishman is another player that's been in excellent form since the restart, having made the cut in four of five post-layoff starts, with a third-place finish in his most recent outing at the Memorial. Fitzpatrick is a player that relies heavily on his putter, but his ball striking numbers have been trending in the right direction. He gained 5.6 strokes T2G at the Memorial and has been on the positive side with his irons in four of his last five tournaments. He gained five strokes T2G en route to a T4 on this layout in last year's WGC St. Jude and is a tremendous Bermuda-grass putter that could go a bit overlooked this week.
Tony Finau ($10,100)
Shewww...Tony 🙁
No one is more frustrated with Finau's inability to win than me and he let another one slip away in Minnesota last week. While his failure to close is kinda soul-crushing from a pure fan standpoint, he's still a very nice DFS option this week. He heads to Memphis in razor-sharp form and leads this week's field in both Birdies or Better Gained and SG: Approach over his last 12 rounds. If we want to take a positive outlook on his last couple of weekend debacles, we can at least say that he's playing well enough to put himself in position consistently.
Tommy Fleetwood ($9,900)
We didn't expect much from Fairway Jesus in his first post-layoff start in Minnesota last week and it's a good thing we took the wait-and-see approach, as the Englishman did look a bit rusty en route to a missed cut at the 3M Open. We can view that disappointment as a nice knock-the-rust-off outing and I expect Tommy to look much sharper this week in Memphis on a TPC Southwind layout that suits him perfectly as evidenced by his T4 outing in last year's WGC St. Jude. Fleetwood is always extremely popular with DFS players, but we might see his normally-high ownership slip a bit due to his lackluster outing last week. Great bounce-back spot.
Billy Horschel ($9,500)
Rostering Billy Horschel always brings with it a certain level of anxiety, as he undoubtedly runs hot and cold. We're catching Horschel in what appears to be the beginning of a warm stretch, as he heads to Memphis on the heels of two strong performances at Muirfield Village that resulted in impressive finishes at both the Workday (T7) and the Memorial (T13). It would makes sense for him to keep that positive momentum going on a TPC Southwind layout where he's historically played well. Horschel posted a T9 in last year's WGC St. Jude to go with two additional top-10's from back in the old St. Jude Classic days. He's a terrific Bermuda-grass putter and has a sneaky amount of upside, even in this elite field.
Matthew Wolff ($9,000)
Matthew Wolff doesn't seem like a great fit for this course on paper, but I'm intrigued by his explosive scoring ability over four guaranteed rounds. He squeaked out a top-25 finish in last year's WGC St. Jude and comes to town on the heels of some strong recent outings, including a near-miss at the Rocket Mortgage and top-25s at both the Memorial and 3M Open. The rising star has gained strokes T2G in each of his last four starts and stands 14th in this field in Birdies or Better Gained over his last 12 rounds. If this were a standard event with a 36-hole cut, I'd be a little leery of Wolff's volatility, but the no-cut nature of this week gives us a chance to shoot for some high-upside fantasy points with the youngster.
Low-Priced FanDuel DFS Players
Paul Casey ($8,800)
His recent results are very poor by his standards, but man, Paul Casey feels cheap here. The Englishman logged a semi-shocking missed cut at the 3M last week thanks losing a comically-bad 6.1 strokes putting. Casey actually gained strokes both OTT and on Approach for the second-straight week in Minnesota, so things aren't really as bad as they appear on the surface. Obviously, he'll have to figure the flatstick out to some extent in order to succeed this week, but I'm willing to gamble on a player that is a reliable ballstriker and has gained strokes T2G in six of his last eight starts dating back to January...especially at this price.
Joaquin Niemann ($8,800)
What can I say? I'm a sucker for good ball strikers! I'm willing to fall for the trap with Joaquin Niemann this week, as - like the aforementioned Paul Casey - he's routinely turning in crisp ball striking performances only to be undone by bad putting numbers, such as his -5.7 mark on the greens at the Memorial. In a field full of stars, Niemann grades out second in SG: Approach over his last 12 rounds and comes in fifth in the field in SG: Ball Striking over the same time frame.
Corey Conners ($8,400)
The ball-striking parade continues with Corey Conners at $8.4k. The Canadian has morphed into one of the most dependable iron players on the PGA Tour to the point that he's only lost strokes on Approach twice in this calendar year. He heads to Memphis on the heels of gaining 5.1 & 4.8 strokes T2G in back-to-back events at Muirfield Village. Conners held his own against the big boys on this layout last year by recording a T27, while gaining strokes T2G. I expect him to once again be sharp from tee to green and we'll simply cross our fingers for a decent putting week on these Bermuda greens that are historically his "least worst" surface.
Bubba Watson ($8,400)
Bubba is never a go-to DFS play for me, but I'm willing to fire him up under the right circumstances. This layout - at this discounted price tag - feels like a decent spot to consider the mercurial lefty. Watson disappointed his backers with a missed cut at the 3M last week, but he actually gained strokes in Minnesota...and looked extremely sharp en route to gaining an impressive 7.8 strokes on Approach at the Memorial two weeks ago. Bubba posted a top-10 in this event last year and Southwind's many doglegs suit his ability to work the ball in all directions.
Chez Reavie ($8,200)
A very nice blend of course history and recent form with Chez Reavie this week. He heads to Tennessee off back-to-back top-25 finishes at the Workday and Memorial, and has now gained strokes T2G in three-straight starts. Reavie posted a T27 in this event last year, as well as a T6 ('18) and a T4 ('17) prior to the tournament being bumped to WGC status. We've seen the veteran post some strong results against elite competition (a T3 in last year's U.S. Open) when his putter cooperates and his putting stroke has look much-improved over the past month.
