Fantasy golf is a funny game, yet too often we forget when the breaks go our way. Because it’s an analytical, third-party pastime and failure is so frequent, the majority of the successes remembered occur at or near the finish line of a season for that’s when they’re felt most. It’s the opposite of the real thing. Experience with actual clubs in your hands has taught you to be patient and temper expectations, so when you hit the latest best shot of your life, it’s with you forever. When Tiger Woods withdrew prior to the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, would-be investors in One & Dones everywhere were forced to pivot. It can’t be understated that we appreciated his early notice to allow time for other consideration at Bay Hill, but its contribution over time was just as valuable. RELATED: Power Rankings | Expert Picks | Fantasy Insider | Sleepers | Horses for Courses After Woods was out, I reached for Rory McIlroy. While I had been holstering the 29-year-old for his fifth bid at achieving the career grand slam at the Masters, I made the simple trade with Woods between tournaments. And you know what happened at Augusta National last week. Chalk one up for the good guys. We play fantasy golf for fun, bragging rights and other reasons. Our emotion almost always is connected to the results of our decision. It’s usually not wrapped around the golfer himself. But when it’s Woods and it’s his 15th victory in a major and it’s genuinely emotional prior to the bonus fantasy implication, then it’s the best of experiences. Everyone who took the plunge won’t soon forget the added layer of celebration, if ever. It was like jarring your approach on the par-4 18th hole of your favorite track to establish your lowest round … not that I’d have any idea of that feeling. Of course, all 132 in the field at this week’s RBC Heritage are reset to zero. So, too, should our expectations and emotions. Harbour Town Golf Links used to be Luke Donald’s par 71 to roam free, but he’s backpedaled into one of the most valuable tails of a tandem in two-man formats at this stage of his career. I usually save that focus for the end, but its impact is too significant to bury. With the Englishman as your guide, partner him with Xander Schauffele, Kevin Kisner, Patrick Cantlay, Ian Poulter or Jim Furyk. I’ve already burned Schauffele, but I’d endorse saving him for a major given his tenacity, knack to adapt and fear of nothing. Bryson DeChambeau is perched atop my Power Rankings, and the RBC Heritage is his most sensible site of any on the PGA TOUR, but his portfolio is fluid given his relative youth on the circuit. He has a pair of top fives in the event, and he knows how to slam the door when the opportunity presents itself, but I like his threat later in the season if for no other reason than as a defensive measure. Last season, I kept him on the board until the TOUR Championship and eked out the league title. Usual suspects including Dustin Johnson, Webb Simpson, Matt Kuchar and Francesco Molinari should factor, but each has value in other places. Review Future Possibilities below for assistance. Si Woo Kim is an intriguing option if you don’t mind holding your breath. Last year’s runner-up is smarter for chasers at Harbour Town. Use that mentality to spin the experience in a positive way regardless of what happens. No one will miss him. If you’re not touching Donald or can’t, the Poulter-Furyk ticket is a beaut. Note that neither decorated veteran appears below. Their future is now. FUTURE POSSIBILITIES NOTE: Select golfers committed to the tournament are listed alphabetically. Future tournaments are sorted chronologically and reflect previous success on the courses on which the tournaments will be held in 2018-19. The numerical values in parentheses represent the order of relative confidence of where to use each golfer if multiple sites are listed (e.g. 1 for strongest, 2 for next-strongest and so on). To present weighted confidence in real time, numerical values will not change all season no matter how many tournament remain listed for each golfer. All are pending golfer commitment. Byeong Hun An … Memorial (1) Daniel Berger … Travelers (1) Rafa Cabrera Bello … Wyndham (4) Patrick Cantlay … Memorial (3) Bryson DeChambeau … Heritage (1); Memorial (2; defending); Travelers (4); John Deere (7) Jason Dufner … New Orleans (1); Charles Schwab (6); Memorial (5); U.S. Open (2); Wyndham (8); TOUR Championship (10) Branden Grace … Byron Nelson (5); U.S. Open (4) Emiliano Grillo … Charles Schwab (3) Bill Haas … Heritage (4); Charles Schwab (2); Wyndham (6) Adam Hadwin … John Deere (5) Brian Harman … Charles Schwab (1); Travelers (5); John Deere (4) Charley Hoffman … Heritage (7); Charles Schwab (6); Travelers (1) Billy Horschel … New Orleans (3; defending); Wyndham (6); TOUR Championship (1) Dustin Johnson … PGA Championship (11); Memorial (10); U.S. Open (1); WGC-St. Jude (6); TOUR Championship (7) Zach Johnson … Charles Schwab (5); John Deere (1); Open Championship (2); TOUR Championship (8) Si Woo Kim … Heritage (1) Kevin Kisner … Heritage (3); New Orleans (5); Charles Schwab (2); Memorial (6) Russell Knox … Heritage (2) Matt Kuchar … Heritage (2); Charles Schwab (7); Memorial (1); Open Championship (8) Martin Laird … Barracuda (2) Marc Leishman … Byron Nelson (6); Memorial (4); Travelers (3); Open Championship (8) Francesco Molinari … Wells Fargo (6); PGA Championship (4); Open Championship (1; defending) Kevin Na … Charles Schwab (3); Wyndham (5) Ryan Palmer … Charles Schwab (4) Scott Piercy … New Orleans (1; co-defending); Canadian (7; last winner at Hamilton in 2012) Xander Schauffele … U.S. Open (3); Open Championship (4); TOUR Championship (1) Webb Simpson … Heritage (6); Wells Fargo (7); Charles Schwab (8); Travelers (9); Wyndham (1) Cameron Smith … Wyndham (3) Brandt Snedeker … Heritage (6); Charles Schwab (7); U.S. Open (5); Travelers (9); Wyndham (1; defending) Jordan Spieth … PGA Championship (7); Charles Schwab (5); Memorial (13); U.S. Open (4); Travelers (9); Open Championship (6); TOUR Championship (8) Kevin Streelman … Heritage (5); Memorial (4); Travelers (7)
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