DJ to miss another tourney with COVID-19

The PGA TOUR heads to the Sunshine State this week for the first leg of its Florida swing. The venue in play this week is a classic as the players will be visiting PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, a Jack Nicklaus redesign that features “The Bear Trap,” one of the toughest and most famous three-hole stretches in pro golf. The course plays as a par 70, measuring at approximately 7,048 yards, and ranked as the third-toughest venue on the PGA TOUR in 2020-21. We’ll also be switching to Bermuda greens this week, a regular feature of the Florida venues. Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $1M Pitch + Putt [$250K to 1st] STRATEGY Those teeing up at The Honda Classic include Sungjae Im ($11,000), who is coming off a T33 finish at the Genesis. He’ll be joined by Louis Oosthuizen ($10,800), Brooks Koepka ($10,100) and Joaquin Niemann ($10,600), who is also coming off a win last week. The field at The Honda Classic maxes out at 144 golfers and will again feature a regular PGA TOUR cutline with the top 65 and ties making it to the weekend. We should expect lower totals though for our DraftKings daily fantasy golf lineups as PGA National typically plays as one of the hardest venues of the year. Last season, the scoring average at PGA National ballooned to 71.9, or +1.904 strokes over par, and we rarely see winners at this event get to double digits in scoring. The greens at PGA National are some of the hardest to hit on the PGA TOUR as we often see green in regulation rates trend 5-10% lower at this event than the PGA TOUR average. Scrambling around PGA National is also difficult, as saving par from off the green typically trends 5% lower than average for the field as well. Good approach games and around the green play are what to focus on this week as power at PGA National is de-emphasized for the most part—perhaps more than any other course on the PGA TOUR. Driver isn’t a club players need to hit regularly and that shows by the fact the average driving distance for this venue often comes in a full 10 yards less than the average Driving Distance on the PGA TOUR. Big hitters can still compete though, and the likes of Gary Woodland ($8,200) and Keith Mitchell ($9,100) are two players in the field this week who are good proof of that. Still, this event has been a friendly home to crafty veterans like Ian Poulter ($7,600) and Matt Jones ($9,000). GOLFERS TO CONSIDER Alex Noren ($9,300 on DraftKings) I mentioned above how this venue truly favors veteran players who can grind out pars with good iron play and around the green work. Alex Noren’s entire game is predicated on just such a formula and he comes into this week just two starts removed from a T6 finish at the Phoenix Open. Noren’s best assets are his around the green play and putting, but his approach game has popped in recent starts too and he gained +3.4 on Approach alone last week, his best week in that metric since exactly a year ago at the 2021 Genesis. Noren also has a history of producing for daily fantasy golf at The Honda Classic as he grabbed a solo third-place at this event back in 2018. His price this week is the most expensive it’s been for a while, but as a player with four top-10s in his last 13 starts, the low $9K-salary isn’t as outlandish as it seems. The weaker field and A+ setup for Noren make him a target in daily fantasy golf on DraftKings. Chris Kirk ($7,500 on DraftKings) You’ll see a trend forming quickly in these picks and that’s experience paired with solid recent form in approach and around the green play. Chris Kirk comes into this event having gained strokes around the green in each of his last eight starts. The American has been a little sluggish with his ball-striking to begin 2022 but he’s gained strokes on Approach in each of his last two starts and was hanging around the top-10 for much of the weekend at the WM Phoenix Open (T14). Kirk has played this event numerous times in the past as well, with this year marking his 11th appearance at PGA National for The Honda Classic. He’s clearly a fan of this setup (or he’d not show up this much) and has finished as high as T12 in 2014. The four-time winner looks underrated at this price on DraftKings, especially with similarly skilled players such as Brian Harman ($8,700) and Mackenzie Hughes ($8,300) priced far above him. Kirk is a good mid-tier value to target this week in daily fantasy golf. Lucas Glover ($7,400 on DraftKings) Almost all of the analysis I laid out above for Kirk can also apply to Glover. The 42-year-old grabbed his first win in over a decade last year at the John Deere Classic and has started 2022 nicely, already landing a top-10 finish at the Sony Open (T6). Glover has excelled at tough venues throughout his career so we shouldn’t be shocked to see that he’s found consistent success around PGA National. Glover has finished T21 or better at this event in four of the last five seasons and ranks 15th in SG: Approach stats over the last 50 rounds. The price on Glover also looks too low as he comes in $100 lower than Kirk, despite having out-performed him this season. Looking above him, we see out-of-form players like Ryan Palmer ($7,900) and Rickie Fowler ($7,600) available at much higher prices. It all makes Glover a great mid-tier target to build around for daily fantasy golf lineups this week. Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $1M Pitch + Putt [$250K to 1st] Put your knowledge to the test. Sign up for DraftKings and experience the game inside the game. Place your golf bets at DraftKings Sportsbook or by downloading the DraftKings Sportsbook app. All views expressed are my own. I am an employee of DraftKings and am ineligible to play in public DFS or DKSB contests. The contents contained in this article do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) (IL/IN/MI/NJ/PA/WV/WY), 1-800-NEXT STEP (AZ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO/NH), 888-789-7777/visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-BETS OFF (IA), 1-877-770-STOP (7867) (LA), 877-8-HOPENY/text HOPENY (467369) (NY), visit OPGR.org (OR), call/text TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN), or 1-888-532-3500 (VA). 21+ (18+ NH/WY). 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ORLANDO, Fla. — The long ball helped Bryson DeChambeau outlast Lee Westwood on Sunday to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, only the key shots were as much with his putter as his driver. RELATED: Leaderboard | Winner’s Bag: Bryson DeChambeau DeChambeau holed a 40-foot birdie putt on the front nine and a 50-foot par putt early on the back nine. He closed it out with a nervy 5-foot par putt for a 1-under 71 and a one-shot victory over the 47-year-old Westwood. It matched the low score of the day, one of only three rounds under par in the toughest final round at Bay Hill in 41 years. DeChambeau and Westwood were never separated by more than one shot over the final 15 holes, a fascinating duel of generations that came down to the last shot. For the second straight day, DeChambeau revved up thousands of fans on the par-5 sixth hole by smashing driver over the lake and leaving himself 88 yards away on the 565-yard sixth hole. Westwood was 168 yards behind him, and raised both arms to jokingly mimic DeChambeau’s reaction from the day before. They both made birdie. DeChambeau appeared to be in trouble on the 11th when he narrowly missed going in the water off the tee, caught a plugged lie in the front bunker and gouged it out to 50 feet. He made that for par to stay ahead by one. Westwood tied him with a 30-foot birdie putt on the par-5 12th, only to give it back with a three-putt on the 14th. The tournament turned on the par-5 16th, where it was Westwood who had the advantage. DeChambeau’s drive went up against the lip of a bunker and he had to lay up short of the water. Westwood had 158 yards and hit a poor short iron that came up short of the green. He chipped nicely, except that it rolled out 6 feet by the hole on the lightning-quick greens and he missed the birdie for a chance to tie. DeChambeau was one ahead going to the 18th when he hit his most important drive of the day — in the fairway. Westwood’s tee shot settled in a divot, and he did well to get it on the green and two-putt from 65 feet. DeChambeau’s birdie putt slid by some 5 feet and he shook his arms in celebration when the par putt dropped. Westwood closed with a 73, not a bad score considering the average of 75.49 was the highest for a final round since 1980. Corey Conners stayed in the mix until the very end. The Canadian holed a 15-foot eagle putt on the 16th to get within one shot, only to find a bunker on the par-3 17th and miss a 6-foot par putt. With a bogey on the final hole, he shot 74 to finish alone in third. Jordan Spieth was part of a four-man race on the front nine and briefly tied for the lead with a birdie on the par-5 sixth. That turned out to be his last birdie of the day. He took bogey on three of his last four holes for a 75, dropping him into a three-way tie for fourth with Andrew Putnam (71) and Ricky Werenski (73). For Spieth, it was his third top-five finish in his last four events. DeChambeau said he received a text Sunday morning from Tiger Woods, who is recovering from serious leg injuries from his car crash in Los Angeles. He said Woods, an eight-time Bay Hill winner, told him to “keep fighting.” He also considered the words from Arnold Palmer to “play boldly.” He needed all of that with the fight Westwood gave him, and the test Bay Hill provided. “It’s been quite a battle this whole entire time,” DeChambeau said. DeChambeau rose to No. 1 in the FedExCup rankings with his ninth PGA TOUR victory, and he became the first player this season with multiple victories, to go along with his U.S. Open title in September. It matched the longest it took for a multiple winner on the PGA TOUR since 1969. Nick Price won his second title in the 21st week of the season in 1994. Rory McIlroy, who started four shots out of the lead, was never in the mix. He came undone on the par-5 sixth, where he hit two tee shots into the water and then hit the fairway, green and made the putt to salvage double bogey. He shot 76.

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Round 4 of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am gets underway today. Here’s everything you need to know for Sunday’s action. Round 4 tee times Round 4 leaderboard HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN (ALL TIMES ET) TELEVISION: Thursday-Friday, 3-6 p.m. (Golf Channel). Saturday, 1-2:45 p.m. (GC), 3-6 p.m. (CBS). Sunday, 1-2:45 p.m. (GC), 3-6:30 p.m. (CBS). PGA TOUR LIVE: Thursday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. (Featured Groups). Sunday, 10:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. (Featured Groups). GOLFTV: International fans can stream PGA TOUR LIVE coverage from Thursday-Saturday, 16:00 to 23:00 GMT. Sunday, 16:00 to 23:30 via subscription to GOLF.TV. RADIO: Thursday-Saturday, noon-6 p.m. Sunday, 1-6:30 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com). NOTABLE PAIRINGS (ALL TIMES ET) Jordan Spieth/Martin Trainer: 11:11 a.m. Tommy Fleetwood/Tony Finau/Cameron Champ/Cody Gribble: 11:44 a.m. Paul Casey/Phil Mickelson: 12:50 p.m. MUST READS Casey ready for his final exam at Pebble Beach Mickelson in contention while Spieth falls off pace Choi misses cut but leaves smiling CALL OF THE DAY

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