Shriners Open - Fantasy Picks
It was an exciting finish to the first event of the season last week, with Emiliano Grillo taking the crown in his first official start as a member of the PGA Tour. Rolling in a birdie on the second playoff hole to defeat veteran Kevin Na, Grillo instantaneously identified himself as a force on Tour. With a couple solid finishes in Tour events last year, he earned his Tour card just a few weeks ago while capturing the Web.com Tour Championship. He comes into this week’s event, The Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, riding a wave of confidence, ready to tackle TPC Summerlin.
TPC Summerlin has been described as follows:
“TPC Summerlin’s PGA TOUR layout was carved from a magnificent swath of rugged desert terrain by renowned golf course architect Bobby Weed, with Fuzzy Zoeller serving as Player Consultant. The course meanders through arroyos and canyons, with lush bentgrass greens, striking flora, numerous water features and an abundance of honey mesquite and pine trees contrasting dramatically with undisturbed desert washes and other raw landscape features – creating one of the most visually stunning tests of golf in Nevada.”
What makes the course even more unique is the fact that fans are able to enjoy all the finishing action while bathing in the facility’s outdoor pool adjacent to the 18th green. Let’s just hope we don’t see beach balls flying across the finishing green come Sunday afternoon. It’s clear that TPC Summerlin creates a unique and very enjoyable atmosphere to enjoy some great PGA Tour golf.
Rickie Fowler - Coming off a very successful FedEx Cup playoffs. Currently ranked number 5 in the world making him the highest ranked player in the field this week.
Ryan Moore - Finished T10 last week and coming to an event which his has won in 2012 and T9 the following year. A great fantasy pick considering he is coming in playing well and has played well in this event in the past.
Webb Simpson - Missed cut last week at Frys.com, but finished T4 at this event in 2014 and won in 2013. Webb isn’t a player you usually bet against.
Tony Finau - Finished T7 last year at this event. It seems like just a matter of time before Tony breaks through and gets his first win.
Jimmy Walker - Often plays well early in the year. Strong finish at this event last year, finishing just five strokes back from winner Ben Martin.
Daniel Berger - Showed last week that his play in the FedEx Cup playoffs was more than just a hot streak. This young man continues to perform and is gaining more and more confidence with each event.
Patrick Rodgers - T6 finish last week to begin the season. Played his way on Tour with conditional status last year and is beginning to show that his play last season was more than just a hot streak.
Kevin Na - Played some of the best golf of his career mid-season last year, and is continuing to build off his success with a great finish at the Frys.com last week. Made a clutch birdie on the final hole to get into the playoff, but failed to match Grillo’s birdie on the second playoff hole.
Brooks Koepka - Coming off T41 finish at Frys.com Open. Struggled in final round posting 75, but a solid third round 66 shows his game is close. Finished T4 at this event last year.
Brendan Steele - Good week at Frys.com despite difficult final round. High finishes at TPC Summerlin in the past.
Emiliano Grillo - Is on quite the hot streak after winning the Web.com Tour Championship, earning his Tour card, and then capturing the Frys.com Open in his first official start as a member of the PGA Tour.
Sleepers Picks:
Jason Bohn - Coming off a very solid finish at the Frys.com where he finished T3 (one shot out of the playoff), and returning to TPC Summerlin where he has finished T18, T2 & T8 over the last three years.
Adam Hadwin - Played well last year in this event, finishing T10. Finished T41 last week, but showed signs of promise over the course of the event. A young man whose game has shown a lot of promise for a couple of years now.
David Hearn - Finished T7 last year. Has quieted slightly since he came so close to becoming the first Canadian in years to win the RBC Canadian Open back in July, but he is one who came close a couple times to winning last season, and I wouldn’t be surprised to continue seeing him near the top of leaderboards this year.
And now a look at my DraftKings lineups for this week.
Starting Lineup:
Rickie Fowler - $12,200
Kevin Kisner - $8,100
Graham DeLaet - $7,900
Ben Martin - $7,500
Stewart Cink - $6,900
George McNeill - $6,900
Alternate Lineup:
Brandt Snedeker - $10,100
Jason Bohn - $9,500
Patrick Rodgers - $9,200
Russell Henley - $8,100
Jonas Blixt - $7,500
Andres Gonzales - $5,600
This week’s lineups consist primarily of players who I think are “due” for big weeks. The one exception may be Fowler, who is coming off a strong playoff season. His price tag is high, but I’d be very surprised to see him perform anything but well at TPC Summerlin. Another player with a hefty tag is Jason Bohn at $9,500. It’s understandable that he has such high value considering his superb record at this event over the last few years, and he is coming off a great finish last week, but he is not typically a player whom you would spend so much to draft. I see him as a make or break pick. Two players who I think are steals are Stewart Cink and George McNeill. Both gentlemen can be drafted for $6,900 and both are good for top 15 finishes on any given week.
About the Author
This article was written by Jonathan Carr (@jonathanwcarr) as part of our weekly #FantasyGolf series. Each week we preview the upcoming PGA Tour event and highlight some of the players we'll be keeping an eye on. As a scratch golfer himself, Jonathan has a keen eye for what it takes to be successful on and off the golf course. His passion for golf is surpassed only by his passion for his faith and his family. Read some of Jonathan's other articles here.
About DraftKings
DraftKings is a leading provider of online fantasy sports. Our core product is a 1-day Fantasy Sports Contest, where users compete against each other to win cash prizes. The game works similarly to how season-long contests on ESPN or Yahoo operate, with the key difference being that instead of season-long commitments, our users only need to commit to playing for a single day at a time. Free and entry-fee-based games are available. Featuring daily fantasy sports contests and same-day settlement, DraftKings makes playing fantasy sports simpler and faster for both seasoned and casual players.
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