1 month agoIt was a week to forget for Tom Hoge last week in Vegas, as he shot back-to-back one-over 72 rounds to miss the cut. He finished the regular season with a last-place finish at the Tour Championship before a T7 finish at the Procore Championship a few weeks ago. The positive is that the 35-year-old has a solid history at Narashino Country Club with T9 and 17th-place finishes on the resume in three total appearances. With the third-highest average on tour this season in strokes gained on approach (plus-0.795), his game can flourish at most places. But given the shaky performances in two of his last four starts, playing him at $9,900 on FanDuel carries some risk.
--Todd McGill - RotoBallerSource: PGA Tour
1 month agoIt was an acceptable season for Justin Thomas in 2024, as the 31-year-old tied for 14th in the FedEx Cup points race. However, it was far from successful given the high performance we've come to expect as he heads to Tokyo looking for his first win since his PGA Championship victory in 2022. Thomas' year was due to solid play with his irons and wedges, ranking third in strokes gained around the green (+0.439) and 11th in strokes gained on approach (+0.541) on the season. Both will come in handy this week around Narashino CC, as ball striking is a premium on greens that are smaller than the tour average. At $11,300 on FanDuel, Thomas presents an ownership leverage opportunity over other guys at the top of the board that should be considered.
--Todd McGill - RotoBallerSource: PGA Tour
1 month agoAustin Eckroat is gearing up to play in the Shriners Children's Open at TPC Summerlin this week. This will be his first tournament since the BMW Championship in August, where he finished T46. Eckroat wrapped up an excellent season by finishing 45th in the final 2024 regular season FedEx Cup standings. His track record at the Shriners Children's Open includes missing the cut in 2023 and finishing T60 in 2022. It's worth noting that over the past 12 months, Eckroat has ranked in the 40th percentile in greens in regulation percentage on approach shots from 100-150 yards in the fairway, and over 34% of approach shots at last year's Shriners Children's Open came from this distance. While Eckroat might fly under the radar this week, including him in DFS lineups carries some risk.
--Ian Christenson - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
1 month agoKevin Yu claimed his first PGA Tour victory at the Sanderson Farms Championship two weeks ago. Before this win, he had been struggling with inconsistent performances, missing the cut in three of his last four PGA Tour appearances and achieving a best finish of T73 at the 3M Open in July. Yu's track record at the Shriners Children's Open includes missing the cut in 2023 and finishing T27 in 2022. Notably, over the past 12 months, Yu has ranked in the 72nd percentile in greens in regulation percentage on approach shots from 100-150 yards in the fairway. This is significant because over 34% of approach shots at last year's Shriners Children's Open came from this distance. Despite his recent victory, Yu's inconsistency makes him a risky choice for inclusion in DFS lineups this week.
--Ian Christenson - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
1 month agoJ.T. Poston is gearing up to play at TPC Summerlin for this week's Shriners Children's Open. This will be his first appearance since he finished T33 at the BMW Championship in August. Poston had a rough end to the 2024 regular season, missing the cut in three of his last five tournaments, but ultimately, he finished 41st in the final 2024 regular season FedEx Cup standings. Poston has had varied results at the Shriners Children's Open, finishing tied for third in 2023, missing the cut in 2022, and finishing T27 in 2021. It's notable that over the past 12 months, Poston ranks in the 84th percentile in greens in regulations percentage on approach shots from 100-150 yards in the fairway. This is significant because over 34% of approach shots came from this distance at last year's event. Poston may be overlooked this week but could be an interesting addition to DFS lineups.
--Ian Christenson - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
1 month agoAdam Hadwin is playing in this week's Shriners Children's Open at TPC Summerlin. Although he had a tough finish to the 2024 regular season, he managed to finish 47th in the final regular season FedEx Cup standings. Hadwin has a good track record at the Shriners Children's Open. Apart from his second-place finish last season, he also finished tied for sixth in 2022 and T34 in 2021. Notably, over the past 12 months, Hadwin ranks in the 36th percentile in greens in regulation percentage on approach shots from 100-150 yards in the fairway. This is important to consider because over 34% of approach shots at last year's Shriners Children's Open came from this distance. Given Hadwin's past performance at this event, he could be a valuable addition to DFS lineups this week.
--Ian Christenson - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
1 month agoBeau Hossler finished T11 at last week's Black Desert Championship, marking his second straight top-15 finish and third in his previous four appearances. Hossler finished 65th in the final 2024 regular season FedEx Cup standings and will now focus on preparing for the Shriners Children's Open at TPC Summerlin. Hossler has performed well at this event in the past, finishing tied for seventh in 2023, T34 in 2022, and T29 in 2021. Over the past 12 months, Hossler ranks in the 59th percentile for greens in regulation percentage on approach shots from 100-150 yards in the fairway, and at last year's Shriners Children's Open, over 34% of approach shots came from this distance. Considering Hossler's recent form and past success at this event, he could be a valuable addition to DFS lineups this week.
--Ian Christenson - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
1 month agoDavis Thompson returns to action this week at the Shriners Children's Open at TPC Summerlin, marking his first appearance since August. In the 2024 regular season FedEx Cup standings, Thompson finished 34th. This will be his second appearance at the Shriners Children's Open, having finished T35 last year. It's worth noting that over 34% of approach shots at last year's Shriners Children's Open came from 100-150 yards. Over the past 12 months, Thompson ranks in the 68th percentile in greens in regulation percentage on approach shots from this distance in the fairway. With an outstanding 2024 season and a history of strong performances at TPC Summerlin, Thompson is an appealing option for DFS lineups this week.
--Ian Christenson - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
1 month agoMany thought last week's tournament in Utah was going to be the Adam Svensson show after the Canadian opened the event with an 11-under 60. Frustratingly, he couldn't maintain that level of form, though, as scores of 69-71-71 over the final three days ultimately pushed him down the leaderboard into a tie for 25th. Other than averaging plus-1.30 strokes gained with his irons, Svensson didn't do anything spectacular on the stat sheet and hasn't all year, other than a few good weeks with his putter. At $9,000 on FanDuel, there's plenty of chalk to eat around this price range. DFS players may as well take one guy with top-25s in three of his last four starts.
--Todd McGill - RotoBallerSource: Data Golf
1 month agoSam Stevens heads to Las Vegas this week with little to no recent form to write home about. The 28-year-old Oklahoma State alum posted back-to-back top-15 finishes back in June, but he failed to crack the top-25 in his last five starts of the season, including a missed cut at the Wyndham Championship. The OWGR No. 130 kicked of his third Tour season with back-to-back T37 finishes, including his most recent start at the Sanderson Farms Championship, despite gaining over five strokes putting. In his only start at this event last year, he lost close to five strokes putting en route to a T46 finish. With his off-the-tee advantage largely mitigated at the short track awaiting at TPC Summerlin, it appears that fantasy managers won't have much to hang their hats on when making the case for Stevens.
--Ryan HickeySource: PGA Tour
1 month agoBrendon Todd will likely find himself on the radar of many fantasy managers this week. The 39-year-old University of Georgia alum should be a solid fit for the putting contest that awaits at TPC Summerlin, as he's gained strokes putting in eight consecutive events and ranks as the eighth-best Bentgrass putter in the field over the last 36 rounds. And while this course is one of the easiest second shot courses on tour, trouble can be found around the greens, another category where Todd excels. He arrives in Las Vegas on the heels of six consecutive made cuts, including most recently a T44 in his Fall Swing debut at the ProCore Championship last month. He also posted a respectable T28 finish In his last appearance at the Shriner Children's Open in 2023. Todd profiles as a non-volatile cut-maker with top-20 upside in this year's rendition.
--Ryan HickeySource: PGA Tour
1 month agoMatt Kuchar heads to Las Vegas in the midst of some of his best golf in recent memory. Prior to his missed cut at the Sanderson Farms Championship, the 46-year-old Tour veteran finished the 2023-2024 season with a T3 at the 3M Open and a T12 at the Wyndham Championship, and he notched a T13 at the Procore Championship in his first Fall Swing start. Remarkably, that was the first time he's had three consecutive top-15 finishes dating back to a stretch of golf in April and May of 2019. Kuchar could be in line for another strong performance at the Shriners Children's Open, as he's traditional faired well on easy courses and is one of the best in the field in putting inside of 15 feet. Kuchar profiles as a high-upside golfer with win equity at the 2024 Shriners Children's Open this week.
--Ryan HickeySource: PGA Tour
1 month agoEmiliano Grillo will be a tricky roster choice for the golf community this week. The 31-year-old Argentinian made his fall-swing debut in style last week, gaining over two strokes on approach and close to six strokes putting en route to a T11 finish at the Sanderson Farms Championship. Approach and putting will be the keys to success again this week, so fantasy managers will need to decide if that performance was simply a spike putting week or if he made some flat-stick adjustments since the end of last season. Course history certainly points to a fade this week, as he's missed the cut in two of his last five starts here, with no finishes better than T34. Grillo profiles as a coin flip at the 2024 Shriners Children's Open, with a missed cut and a top-10 finish both appearing to be in the range of outcomes this week.
--Ryan HickeySource: PGA Tour
1 month agoBen Silverman could be a golfer to watch at the Shriners Children's Open this week. The 36-year-old Canadian made an inconsistent return to the PGA Tour last season, but he rounded into solid form to finish the season, making eight of his last nine cuts to go along with three top-20 finishes. In his Fall Swing debut at the ProCore Championship last month, Silverman posted his first top-10 finish on Tour, gaining over eight strokes putting en route to a T4 result. That performance, along with him gaining strokes putting in nine of his last ten starts, could be a sign of good things to come at the putting contest awaiting at TPC Summerlin. With no recent course history to rely on, fantasy managers should lean into Silverman's recent form with confidence in Las Vegas this week.
--Ryan HickeySource: PGA Tour
1 month agoDFS players who took Chan Kim in lineups since the start of July have been pleasantly surprised for much of the last few months. However, things haven't been on a positive trend as of late, with the 34-year-old having three consecutive falls in placement finishes. His T48 last week in Utah was a bit of a surprise given how well his game suited that layout on paper, and yet the suit for a place like TPC Summerlin is also viable given his usable strokes gained approach (+0.353) and off the tee (+0.249) numbers on the year. The decline in play makes him a risky target at $9,500 on FanDuel with murky upside potential.
--Todd McGill - RotoBallerSource: PGA Tour
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