RADIO
Joe Nicely's under-the-radar DraftKings, FanDuel PGA DFS picks for the 2023 U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club. His PGA TOUR Horse for the Course for daily fantasy golf based on course history.
Hello, folks! Welcome back to "Horse For The Course." The RBC Canadian Open appeared destined to take a back seat to golf's monumental merger last week, but sports has a way of creating riveting drama in unexpected places, and that's just what happened at my man Geoff Fienberg's home course of Oakdale on Sunday, as Nick Taylor had a weekend performance for the ages to become the first Canadian to win the country's national open in 69 years.
After the unexpected drama of Canada's national championship, it's America's turn, and while a PGA Tour player might not be tackled on the 18th green this week, we can expect some interesting storylines to emerge for the U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club. Can't wait to dive in with you!
"Horse For The Course" is an article that highlights players in this week's field with elite course history and is part of our free PGA DFS content here at RotoBaller. For my favorite DFS plays of the week, check out my Core Four article here at RotoBaller every Wednesday. It's part of our excellent PGA Premium package that includes an all-new PGA Research Station, Lineup Builder & Optimizer, and some of the best articles in the PGA DFS industry! You can sign up now using Promo Code: NICE for an extra discount at checkout!
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2023 U.S. Open
As we head into the year's third major championship, it seems like a good time to reflect on just how terrific this golf season has been. From elite major championship winners, Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka, to a blockbuster merger between the PGA Tour and LIV, 2023 has been a banger for those that love the game of golf.
Because the U.S. Open is an event that utilizes rotating venues, there won't be any direct course history for Los Angeles Country Club available to us this week, as the mysterious LACC has rarely hosted events. So in the absence of LACC results, we'll break down which players in this year's field have fared well at U.S. Opens in previous appearances.
Matt Fitzpatrick emerged from the pack last year at The Country Club and he's set to defend against an elite field that will include not only 2023's first two major champions - Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka - but also the LIV contingent, as well as those brave souls that will be teeing it up after making it through the difficult qualifying process.
You can also find out who the smart money is on by checking out Spencer Aguiar's PGA DFS: Vegas Report every week. Be sure to read all of our other top-notch weekly PGA DFS articles to help you win big!
The Course: Los Angeles Country Club
Par 70 - 7,421 Yards, Greens: Bentgrass, Designed By: George Thomas w/ William Bell (1928), Renovations By: Gil Hanse (2010)
This is normally the section of the article where we discuss everything we know about the week's golf course. However, this week's breakdown is more about what we don't know about Los Angeles Country Club, as the notoriously private club has rarely let the greater public catch a glimpse of their beloved North Course.
What we do know is that LACC is a George Thomas design, just like Riviera, the annual host of the Genesis Invitational. Despite the same architect, the North Course is undoubtedly unique, and a 2010 renovation by Gil Hanse - who also handled some major championship layouts we've seen recently such as Brookline, Southern Hills, and Winged Foot - has the L.A. classic up-to-snuff for modern golfers.
By all accounts, fairways will be a bit more generous than most traditional U.S. Opens, though we shouldn't mistake that for ease, as finding the right parts of fairways will be crucial to have the proper angle on approach. The North Course will throw plenty of challenges at this week's field, including length, severe elevation changes, local "barrancas" (ravines), and doglegs. LACC's bentgrass greens are protected by layered bunkering, as well as closely-mown runoffs. It's Los Angles in June, so we can expect things to be firm and fast.
Recent U.S. Open Winners & Scoring Info
- 2022: Matt Fitzpatrick (-6)
- 2021: Jon Rahm (-6)
- 2020: Bryson DeChambeau (-6)
- 2019: Gary Woodland (-13)
- 2018: Brooks Koepka (+1)
The Horse
Xander Schauffele
- U.S. Open Scoring Average: 70.42 (Six career starts)
- Notable U.S. Open History: T7 (2021), 5th ('20), T3 ('19), T6 ('18)
- DraftKings Price: $9,600 FanDuel Price: $11,100
The Californian heads to this year's U.S. Open still chasing the first major championship title of his career, but if his track record is any indicator, he should once again be firmly in the mix at Los Angeles Country Club.
Since 2017, Schauffele has made the cut in 21 of his 24 major championship appearances and recorded an eye-opening 10 top-10 finishes. The 29-year-old has especially thrived in the difficult conditions of the U.S. Open, as he's remarkably logged top-seven finishes in five of his last six starts in golf's toughest major championship.
Unsurprisingly, the X-Man comes into the 2023 edition in rock-solid form on the strength of a superb all-around skill set that places him third among this week's entrants in SG: Total over the last 24 rounds. He's notched top-25 finishes in six consecutive starts, highlighted by a runner-up result in last month's Wells Fargo Championship.
The Ponies
Scottie Scheffler
- U.S. Open Scoring Average: 71.13 (Five career starts)
- Notable U.S. Open History: T2 ('22), T7 ('21)
- DraftKings Price: $11,400 FanDuel Price: $12,100
The talented Texan's recent struggles with the putter have been well-documented, which only serves to make his accomplishments this year all the more impressive.
Scheffler's most recent start at the Memorial is a telling microcosm of his season, as he gained a mind-blowing 20.7 strokes on the field from tee to green, only to lose a massive 8.5 strokes on the greens. Unfortunately for those on "Team Scottie", it's been a common theme, as he's lost an average of 2.5 strokes putting over his last five starts, which makes the fact that he hasn't finished worse than tied for 12th in any tournament since last October an absolutely jaw-dropping tidbit.
Over his last 24 measured rounds, Scheffler grades out either first or second in this week's elite field in SG: T2G, Ball Striking, OTT, and Approach. It's sometimes easy to overcomplicate things in PGA DFS - we analysts do like making ourselves sound smart, after all - but let's keep this one simple: if Scheffler finds any level of comfort with the putter this week, he's going to be very hard to beat.
Brooks Koepka
- U.S. Open Scoring Average: 70.68 (Nine career starts)
- Notable U.S. Open History: T4 ('21), 2nd ('19), Win ('18), Win ('17)
- DraftKings Price: $10,800 FanDuel Price: $11,900
Brooks is back! After battling injuries and confidence issues for the better part of the last three years, Koepka has reestablished his dominance in major championships in 2023, nearly slipping on a green jacket at the Masters and then getting the job done at the PGA Championship.
The 33-year-old's reputation as the game's preeminent "Big Game Hunter" has been restored in 2023, and as we know from his past exploits, a confident Brooks Koepka is a very dangerous thing.
He's a two-time U.S. Open champion with both the length and mental toughness needed to thrive in golf's toughest examination. For all the hype that's always surrounded Koepka, he's never been what most would consider an explosive player, and if we're being honest, he can be extremely boring to watch when he's playing his best golf. The thing is, boring golf works in U.S. Opens, and we can expect the five-time major champion to have a patient and methodical approach at LACC this week.
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End of the Season Totals: @rotoballer @BettorGolfPod
2017 +54.26 Units
2018 +55.88 Units
2019 +27.743 Units
2020 + 37.015 Units
2021 + 68.846 Units
2022 +67.485 UnitsTotal Winnings: +311.229 Units
Total Outright Wins Since 2017: 36
H2H Totals Inside Thread… https://t.co/pNQrSK1rFE
— Spencer Aguiar (@TeeOffSports) December 12, 2022
Justin Rose
- U.S. Open Scoring Average: 72.27 (17 career starts)
- Notable U.S. Open History: T3 ('19) T10 ('18), Win ('13), T7 ('07)
- DraftKings Price: $7,700 FanDuel Price: $9,700
In a tough environment like the U.S. Open, sometimes you just want a steady hand on the wheel. That feels like what we're getting with the veteran Englishman here, as Rose brings 17 U.S. Open starts worth of experience to the table this week - appearances across which he's recorded a win (2013) and four additional top-10 finishes.
The 42-year-old had become almost an afterthought as recently as a year ago, but Rose has experienced something of a career renaissance in 2023, locking in a victory at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and playing inspired golf in subsequent months. This resurgence can be traced directly to a sharp spike in iron play. Rose has gained an average of 3.9 strokes on Approach over his last five tournaments and grades out fifth in this week's field in SG: Approach over his last 24 rounds.
Harris English
- U.S. Open Scoring Average: 72.18 (Seven career starts)
- Notable U.S. Open History: T8 ('21), T5 ('17), T3 ('14), T19 ('13 *At Oak Hill)
- DraftKings Price: $7,200 FanDuel Price: $8,900
Harris English's game log and statistical output tell the story of a talented player that's struggling to put everything together, but playing well enough to still put together spike performances on occasion, as over his last eight starts the UGA alum has as many top-three finishes (two) as missed cuts with those high-end results coming on two of the schedule's toughest golf courses - Bay Hill and Quail Hollow - against elevated-event fields.
While we're not normally going out of our way to target players that have displayed this much recent volatility, we also must consider price and ownership when building DFS lineups. Those are the areas where we can gain some very real leverage with English on this slate.
For all his recent ups and downs, English has been concrete solid in U.S. Opens over the years. Remarkably, he's never missed a cut in golf's toughest test across seven career U.S. Open starts. Those appearances include back-t0-back top-four finishes in 2020-21. While his current form might not match where he was during those runs, we've seen enough positive signs over the past three months to consider him as a high-upside GPP option.
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