Homa claims first PGA Tour title at Quail Hollow

The invitation-only event hosted by Tiger Woods takes place at Albany Golf Course for the fifth straight year in New Province, Bahamas. The good news is the tournament will be a no-cut event, but with just 18 players in the field, your margin for error will have to be close to zero. The field will not include world No. 4, Dustin Johnson, who withdrew due to injury. Meanwhile, Rickie Fowler will be making his first start since the TOUR Championship. Albany Golf Course, similar to many courses we’ve seen this fall, will be subject to windy conditions, if in fact, the gusts start to ramp up. The course plays as a par 72 but will play very different than most on TOUR with five par 5s, five par 3s and eight par 4s. The exposed course layout is similar to links golf with mounds up to 30 feet tall along with a ton of bunkering throughout the course. Albany will measure anywhere between 7,300 to 7,400 yards this week and the golfers who can hit it far may have a slight advantage over the shorter hitters being able to avoid those trouble areas off the tee and reach the par 5s in two. Other than par 5 scoring average, players who stat out highly in birdie or better percentage and those who’ve played recently are golfers we should be targeting in our lineups. Managers should also take roster construction into account. With 18 players in the field, there will be a large number of duplicate lineups, so not using your entire salary should be a good strategy to differentiate yourself this week. TOP VALUES XANDER SCHAUFFELE ($9,800) Schauffele finished eighth last year and his history in no-cut events is stellar, earning a win and a runner-up finish in recent World Golf Championship (WGC) events, winning the Sentry Tournament of Champions as well as the TOUR Championship over the past few years. He’s also playing extremely well, ranking first in birdie or better percentage and first in par 5 scoring average over his past three tournaments. Schauffele finished second at the WGC-HSBC last month, which is the lead-in form we’ve seen from Jon Rahm when he won last season (finished T4 in the 2018 DP World Tour Championship, Dubai), Rickie Fowler when he won in 2017 (finished second at the 2017 Mayakoba Golf Classic) and Hideki Matsuyama in 2016, which was his fourth win in five starts. PATRICK REED ($6,900) Similar to Schauffele, Reed’s also recorded solid finishes in no-cut events over the past few seasons with a top 10 at the 2019 TOUR Championship and wins at both a World Golf Championship event as well as at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in 2015. If Reed happens to find one of the many bunkers, he should be fine ranking third in sand save percentage over his past 12 rounds and even though he’s not known for his length, he ranks 10th in driving distance over his past three tournaments and is inside the top 10 in par 5 scoring if we extend those stats over his past six tournaments. Reed also has solid course history, ranking top-three in Strokes Gained: Total with a couple of top-five finishes and a runner-up in Albany dating back to 2015. Put your knowledge to the test. Sign up for DraftKings and experience the game inside the game. About the writer: “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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Carlos Ortiz (+10000) … He’d like a do-over, thank you. The native of Mexico will forever be forgotten as the 54-hole co-leader of the 2021 Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines because he blew up for a 78 to finish T29 while the other 54-hole co-leader, Patrick Reed, went on to prevail by five (with a closing 68). Despite four previous seasons with a PGA TOUR card, Ortiz really didn’t splash onto the scene until the experience generated his breakthrough victory in Houston last November, so he’s now on the ascent of the learning curve in the majors. The 30-year-old has the power and the precision not to be overwhelmed anywhere, including at Muirfield Village where he placed T16 in his last start. Chan Kim (+40000) … As it concerns American golfers who don’t compete on the PGA TOUR regularly, at T83 in the Official World Golf Ranking, he’s at the front of the pack with avid fan favorites John Catlin (82nd) and Kurt Kitayama (107th). All played collegiately in the United States – Kim at Arizona State University – but only Kim qualified for the 2021 U.S. Open. The 31-year-old was born in South Korea and he’s done the majority of his damage on the Japan Golf Tour where he’s a five-time winner, including once during the 2020-21 season. He’s 0-for-3 in this major but he’s on an international heater with a 2nd-T9-T15-T23 run upon arrival, the finale of that foursome at Kiawah Island. Currently fourth on the JGTO’s Order of Merit, fourth in scoring average, second in both distance and total driving, second in greens in regulation and first in ball-striking. Rikuya Hoshino (+10000) … He was the runner-up to fellow JGTO member Chan Kim at the U.S. Open sectional qualifier in California. That was Hoshino’s backup plan if he didn’t qualify automatically, which is what happened when he missed the cut in his PGA Championship debut at Kiawah Island. Like Kim, the 25-year-old from Japan also has five victories on his home circuit, but with three this season, he’s perched atop the Order of Merit. He ranks third in scoring. He also shares a notable birthday (May 12) among professional golfers with major champions Mike Weir and Jim Furyk, both of whom famously were born in 1970 (as well as two-time European Tour winner and current Sky Sports analyst, Andrew Coltart). Another emerging talent also born on that date was none other than Palmetto Championship at Congaree champion Garrick Higgo, who is three years younger than Hoshino. Guido Migliozzi (+30000) … The lean six-footer from Italy is making his PGA TOUR debut this week. He’s one of the 10 automatic qualifiers via the special three-event series on the European Tour during which he recorded a pair of runner-up finishes. With three silvers on the season, he’s ninth in the Race to Dubai. Just 24 years of age but already twice a winner on his home circuit and thrice a champion on the Alps Tour before that, he’s put it all together this season by ranking 30th in distance off the tee, 13th in greens in regulation and fourth in scoring average. Matthias Schmid (+10000) … It’s been 88 years since Johnny Goodman was the last amateur to win the U.S. Open, so ignore that line for Schmid to win. Rather, pivot to the easier task to make the cut. Since Tiger Woods prevailed at Torrey Pines in the 2008 U.S. Open, at least one amateur has made the cut in every edition. In fact, 34 have survived in the last 13 U.S. Opens combined. (Chambers Bay boasts the most with six in 2015.) Schmid qualified this week as a co-medalist at the Dallas sectional on May 24. The following week, he closed out his collegiate career at the University of Louisville with a T29 in the NCAA Men’s Championship. Then, while riding the wave of opportunities but undoubtedly running on fumes, the 22-year-old returned to his native Germany and missed the cut by a significant portion at the Porsche European Open. He’s the two-time reigning champion of the European Amateur Championship, an annual competition at which, notably, Viktor Hovland was a recent two-time runner-up (2016, 2018). Odds were sourced on Tuesday, June 15 at 5 a.m. ET. For live odds visit betmgm. NOTE: Sleeper is a relative term, so Rob uses unofficial criteria to determine who qualifies. Each of the following usually is determined to be ineligible for this weekly staple: Winners of the tournament on the current host course; winners in the same season; recent major champions; top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking; recent participants of team competitions.

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