Ryder Cup 2018: Phil Mickelson won’t play on courses with ‘brutal rough’ anymore: ‘It’s a waste of my time’

How it works: Each week, our experts from PGATOUR.COM will make their selections in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf. Each lineup consists of four starters and two bench players that can be rotated after each round. Adding to the challenge is that every golfer can be used only three times per each of four Segments. The first fantasy golf game to utilize live ShotLink data, PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf allows you to see scores update live during competition. Aside from the experts below, Fantasy Insider Rob Bolton breaks down the field at this year’s Waste Management Phoenix Open in his edition of the Power Rankings. THINK YOU’RE BETTER THAN OUR EXPERTS? The PGA TOUR Experts league is once again open to the public. You can play our free fantasy game and see how you measure up against our experts below. Joining the league is simple. Just click here to sign up or log in. Once you create your team, click the “Leagues” tab and search for “PGA TOUR Experts.” After that? Pick your players and start talking smack. SEASON SEGMENT

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The PGA TOUR returns after a few weeks off and travels to the middle of the Pacific Ocean for the Sentry Tournament of Champions located on Maui in the Aloha State of Hawaii. The tournament will take place at the Plantation Course in Kapalua and will be a no-cut event. The course will play as the only Par 73 on the PGA TOUR with just three par 3s, measure just over 7,500 yards and feature grainy, Bermuda greens. The field will consist of only those who qualified by winning last season, which includes members of the winning U.S. Presidents Cup team like Patrick Cantlay, Rickie Fowler, Dustin Johnson and defending champion Xander Schauffele, who shot a 62 in the final round last year to beat out Woodland by just a stroke. Those who won last season, but haven’t committed include players like Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods, Brooks Koepka and the Open Champion Shane Lowry. The Plantation course ranked as the sixth easiest course in scoring relative to par last season and routinely plays as one of the easiest every year. Finishing scores at Kapalua have totaled as high as 30 under back in 2016 with the lowest winning score at 22 under over the past four years. The main reason we see scores get this high? Extremely wide and easy to hit fairways as well as accessible par 5s, which are all birdie and eagle opportunities. The course’s main defense is the wind, but it shouldn’t be too much of an issue as we’ve seen guys still go low like Dustin Johnson, who won back in 2018 shooting 24 under in extremely windy conditions. The normal key stats apply here like Par 5 scoring, birdie or better average and Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green, but this week we should also be focusing a little more on Bermuda putting and Approaches from 100 to 125 yards. There are six par 4s measuring under 400 yards, which are just as important to score on as the par 5s. Justin Thomas ($11,200) It’ll be tough to fade Thomas this week with how well he’s currently playing and how well he’s played at the Plantation Course over his career. He’s ranks second to only Dustin Johnson in Strokes Gained: Total since 2015 and is one of only three players to qualify for the Sentry Tournament of Champions in four of the past five years. Thomas has the all-around game to win anywhere, gaining an average of 6.3 strokes Tee-to-Green over his past 10 tournaments. Ride the momentum. Patrick Cantlay ($9,800) Cantlay played amazing last season, making 11 straight cuts leading up to the TOUR Championship and gained an average of 2.6 strokes with his irons over his past 10 tournaments. Cantlay ranks 12th in Par 5 scoring average over his past six tournaments and if we look closer at his statistics over his past eight rounds with shot tracker he ranks fifth in approaches from 100 to 125 yards, ninth in birdie or better percentage and first in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green. Collin Morikawa ($8,600) If you’re looking for value, Morikawa should be a solid play this week. It’ll be his first start in Kapalua, but what he lacks in experience, he more than makes up with his iron play, ranking second in the field dating back to the last 50 rounds coming into this tournament. It’ll be hard to trust his putting on Bermuda, but he’ll rely on his strong wedge play ranking fourth in Approaches from 100 to 125 yards over his past three tournaments. Put your knowledge to the test. Sign up for DraftKings and experience the game inside the game. I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is reidtfowler) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.

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Want to take a friend for a round of golf with Justin Thomas at Medalist Golf Club right after getting a lesson from his father Mike? How about taking on Lake Nona with Ian Poulter? Or Pinehurst with Webb Simpson? California more your scene? How does the ultimate Pebble Beach experience, hosted by Jim Nantz, sound? All of these and more incredible and unique golf experiences are available via the “Chipping Inâ€� COVID-19 Relief Charity Golf Auction and Sweepstakes but time is running out. April 30 is the final day to get involved. Click here for the auction, and here for the sweepstakes before 9 p.m. ET on April 30. The Acushnet Company stable of brands – Titleist, FootJoy, Scotty Cameron, Vokey Design, Links & Kings and KJUS along with their brand ambassadors have combined to offer these awesome prizes. One hundred percent of the proceeds are set to benefit the CDP COVID-19 Response Fund, the Golf Emergency Relief Fund, and the United Way chapters of Greater New Bedford and San Diego County where the majority of Titleist and FootJoy associates work. It continues the efforts from Acushnet to help out during the pandemic which has included donating more than 100,000 masks and other PPE supplies to hospitals and those in need and retrofitting processes in their Massachusetts manufacturing facilities to produce PPE items and components, including protective face shields. The company is also donating 15% of all purchases made Titleist.com, FootJoy.com, ScottyCameron.com, Vokey.com and Kjus.com, from April 8-30, to the CDP COVID-19 Response Fund. Auction experiences include: Ultimate Pebble Beach Experience – You and three friends head to Pebble Beach for a personalized adventure from local resident Jim Nantz. Includes breakfast at The Gallery, a pre-round putting contest, personalized live and recorded introductions from Nantz on the first hole of 18 at Pebble Beach Golf Links. Concludes with visit to Nantz’s home to hit balls on his now famous par-3 hole – a replica of Pebble Beach’s seventh, a special “Our Tribute” bottle from Jim’s wine brand The Calling, and numerous opportunities to add a plaque in your name to “The Rock of Fame” – where only the 16 who have aced the hole are permanently enshrined. The winner of the ‘closest to the hole’ competition will also receive a custom set of Titleist clubs. Ian Poulter Experience – Lunch and golf for you and two friends with Poulter at Lake Nona Golf & Country Club. Mike & Justin Thomas Experience – You and a friend enjoy a lesson from PGA Master Professional Mike to prepare you for 18 holes at Medalist Golf Club with him and his son, Justin. Brad Faxon Experience – You and three friends get private putting lessons from eight-time PGA TOUR champion and FOX golf analyst Brad Faxon at Old Marsh Golf Club. Michael Breed Experience – You and a friend get lunch, world-class instruction and golf with this renowned teacher at the Michael Breed Golf Academy at Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point. Butch Harmon Experience – You and two friends get two hours of lesson time, lunch and nine holes with Harmon at the Butch Harmon School of Golf at Rio Secco in Las Vegas. Peter Kostis Experience – You and two friends get personal Kostis swing analysis at the Peter Kostis Golf Academy at Grayhawk GC that also includes Peter’s son, John, a Golf Digest “Best Young Teacher Under 40.â€� Includes a round at Whisper Rock. Cameron McCormick Experience – You and two friends can learn from McCormick at Trinity Forest GC in Dallas, where he will provide lessons, join you for lunch and round out your foursome for 18 holes. James Sieckmann Experience – You and two friends will join the No. 1-rated short game coach in the country for three hours of private instruction before 18 holes at either Shadow Ridge in Nebraska or at a Phoenix golf course arranged by James. Scotty Cameron Experience – Enjoy the TOUR treatment and get fit at the Scotty Cameron Golf Gallery in Encinitas, Calif. Includes a Scotty Cameron meet and greet, a personally selected Cameron gift bag, a two-hour world-class fitting, a one-of-a-kind prototype Scotty Cameron carry bag and your own custom-fit Scotty Cameron MOTO putter. Bob Vokey Experience – You and two friends work with their own fitter at the world-class Titleist Performance Institute in Oceanside, Calif., as Vokey, shares his expertise about bounce fitting, yardage gapping and wedge selection. Includes three hand ground, hand stamped, custom made Vokey Design wedges and 18 holes with Vokey rep Aaron Dill at LaCosta Resort & Spa. If the auction items prove out of your reach you can join the sweepstakes that give you a chance to play with major champion Webb Simpson at the legendary Pinehurst No. 2. The winner and two friends join Simpson for the round plus lunch and the experience includes a one night stay for each at the Carolina Hotel; a round at The Cradle, Pinehurst’s 9-hole short course; and a gift certificate for dinner at the Pinehurst Brewing Company. There will be four additional winners, who will receive valuable gift packages from each of the participating brands, including: a Titleist Dream Bag Set-Up; a complete Head-to-Toe FootJoy offering; the newest rain suit technology, Gemini from Kjus; and a luxurious Links & Kings gift package.

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