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For the first time this season, I faced the classic dilemma in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, and if you play long enough, you will, too, if you haven't already. Just like THE CJ CUP @ SHADOW CREEK the week before it, the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP @ SHERWOOD was a 78-man competition with no cut. So, barring mid-tournament withdrawals and disqualifications, all gamers went eight rounds without any zeroes. Movement in the ranks was projected to be slight during the fortnight, which is why I labeled the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open as a position week. The difference-makers in each of the last two tournaments were the bonus points awarded the starters in the final round. They receive one-tenth of the FedExCup points earned. This is where philosophy meets long-range strategy. I've never espoused a rule of gaming that would advise you to bite on burning the last start for a golfer if he's in contention entering the final round, but I tend to lean that way with my own decisions. RELATED: Power Rankings | Sleeper Picks Jon Rahm rode my bench during the first three rounds at Sherwood. After opening with respective scores of 68 and 67, he sat T22 and five strokes off Justin Thomas' 36-hole pace. With only one start remaining on the Spaniard, I figured that my plan to holster it for the Masters would come to fruition, but I couldn't forget why I rostered him last week in the first place. Lo and behold, Rahm spun a field-low 63 in the third round to scale to outright second through 54 holes. I already had JT starting in every round, so I had visions of a massive Sunday, but that didn't deter me from my plan for Rahm. No matter how well I expect Rahm to play at the Masters (for which there are no shot-level bonuses but where there's a slight increase in bonus points because it's a major), he still has to execute. With that in my mind in real time before his final round this past Sunday, he had only one round to play at Sherwood and he had the most momentum. If I play him for the same possibility at the Masters, he's going to need to submit the same kind of performance that compelled me to roster him in the first place at Sherwood. So, I went for it, benched Tiger Woods (who finished T72) and Rahm landed in a two-way T2 worth 25 bonus points. The same finish at the Masters would yield 27 bonus points, so the decision paid off. Of all of the majors, the Masters has the easiest cut to survive, so I'm confident that I'll get four to the weekend at Augusta National. (Famous last words in fantasy; I get it.) Should Rahm prevail and offset the recent gain that no one can take away from me, I'll tip my visor because that's the way the ball bounces. Until then, as referenced in Monday's Power Rankings, ShotLink is not used at the Bermuda Championship, so fantasy scoring will be down about 8-15 percent overall. Therefore, the focus sharpens to target overall finish regardless of prowess off the tee that might otherwise influence you to build a lineup when ShotLink is plugged in. Although five events remain in Segment 1, only next week's Houston Open will be using shot-level scoring. ShotLink is not utilized at the Masters and the Mayakoba Golf Classic, and because the Plantation Course at Sea Island Resort is not lasered for The RSM Classic, shot-level scoring on the Seaside Course will not be used, either. The same setup is adopted for all three multiple-course tournaments on West Coast Swing in Segment 2. PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf My roster for the Bermuda Championship (in alphabetical order): Emiliano Grillo Denny McCarthy Adam Schenk Brendon Todd Kristoffer Ventura Will Zalatoris You'll find my starters in Expert Picks Others to consider for each category (in alphabetical order): Scoring: Wyndham Clark Charley Hoffman; Beau Hossler; Peter Malnati; Brian Stuard; Justin Suh; Cameron Tringale; Harold Varner III Driving: n/a POWER RANKINGS WILD CARD Henrik Stenson ... I fear (or respect, depending on your point of view) that newer fans of the sport won't appreciate how he's contributed to league championships over the years because he's evolved into a social media savant more than a leaderboard lurker. His concluding contribution to the European Tour's Mannequin Challenge essentially walked off the unofficial competition for his home circuit. Seriously, I didn't remember another one after that. More relevantly in our world, he's tailing off fast at 44 years of age, but the theory is that he'd be quicker to reconnect with his former self than others, so you might as well stow him on your bench in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf for this week at least. DRAWS Pat Perez ... I've been to his well and back with and without taking a sip that I can't remember where we are with him. He fulfilled the expectations of others on the paspalum at Corales (T21), which piggybacked a T9 at Silverado, itself in the wake of consecutive mid-tournament withdrawals due to a sore right ankle, but he's 0-for-2 since his last trip to an island. That said, he hasn't played poorly, only poorly enough not to cash. So, in the construct of the field on Bermuda and with enough on which to rely for something positive, it's time to refill the bucket. Cameron Tringale ... Among the most successful without a victory in 285 career starts, but he's been a steady contributor among the rank and file since regaining fully exempt status. Making his Bermuda debut but he's a great fit from tee to green and he's rested since a T21 at TPC Summerlin where he ranked T5 in greens in regulation and fourth in Strokes Gained: Putting. Beau Hossler ... He's not lighting stages on fire but he's still connected five paydays upon arrival with a top 25 baked in. Also placed T24 here last year while leading the field in both putting and converting scoring chances into par breakers. Ollie Schniederjans ... The Korn Ferry Tour's best putter is angling hard at a return to the PGA TOUR. In his last 12 starts, he's recorded five top 10s and a T12 to sit 35th in points. Work him in liberally in DFS. Wyndham Clark Maverick McNealy Scott Stallings Brian Stuard FADES Hudson Swafford ... As much as it must be respected that he ended his victory drought a month ago at Corales, it's necessary to revisit the fact that he authored a dynamite performance with his putter ... which failed him in two starts since with consecutive 75-71=MCs in Mississippi and Vegas. It's especially frustrating for full-season owners, but it's also a reminder why wins are bonuses, not expectations. Continue to assume the position of his baseline, which is to consider continuing to abstain. Danny Willett ... When he recorded the T4 at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in early July, the fear was that it was a one-off. Sho'nuff. Since, he's just 3-for-8 without a top 30. Russell Knox ... Not so much streaky as consistent over time, his T11 here last year was a reflection of that profile. It's the opposite phenomenon now despite a T9 at Silverado to open the season because of the months-long slump that has defined his 2020. He's also 0-for-2 since that surprise performance. Jhonattan Vegas ... Reopened 2020 with three cuts made, but he's gone just 1-for-7 with a T52 at Silverado since. Brian Gay ... Originally on my short list for the Power Rankings, he was the first to get the axe, and it's as obvious as to why as it is hard to believe. Placed T3 here last year and T14 two weeks later at Mayakoba, but since is just 4-for-19 without a top 25. Vaughn Taylor ... Now a combined 0-for-7 since the Travelers, the last three shortfalls after sitting out five straight starts with a sore rib. Andrew Putnam ... This will be interesting. In advance of the birth of his first child - a girl in early March of 2019 - he rolled together a number of strong results before struggling immediately before and after Pepper arrived. Now, the 31-year-old is making his first start since the birth of his second child - a boy(!), Paxley, on Oct. 20 - but without a top-35 finish in over nine months. If the Nappy Factor takes hold, he'll rekindle the kind of form that lifted him inside the top 50 of the Official World Golf Ranking early last year. Ryan Armour Rafa Cabrera Bello Will Gordon Branden Grace Matt Jones Tom Lewis Troy Merritt Kyle Stanley RETURNING TO COMPETITION Shawn Stefani ... Presents as an intriguing play in DFS because the Texan has performed very well in the wind multiple times during his career, including a T11 at Port Royal last year. He's been out a month since calling it quits after one round at Corales with a sore back, but he's worth the dive, at least fractionally. However, given his conditional status, he's not a commended long-term own. Robert Garrigus ... Maybe the third time's the charm. He hasn't competed since withdrawing during his second round at Corales on Sept. 25 due to heat exhaustion. He had committed to a pair of Korn Ferry Tour events since, but withdrew early from both. Saddled with Past Champions status on the PGA TOUR, he doesn't have any fantasy value. NOTABLE WDs Zac Blair ... Just 1-for-4 with a T70 at Corales this season. Also no better than a T35 at Barracuda in his last 15 starts, a stretch that predates the hiatus. Sebastian Cappelen ... Currently 89th in the FedExCup despite only one cut made in three starts because it was a T11 at Corales. As a result, he's well-positioned to climb in the Reshuffle if the next reorder happened right now. Martin Trainer ... He's 0-for-4 this season and has gone 13 consecutive starts without a payday. Chad Campbell ... The 46-year-old is 0-for-3 since testing positive for COVID-19 in late June. He's in his second consecutive season on Past Champion status. POWER RANKINGS RECAP - ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP @ SHERWOOD Power Ranking Golfer Result 1 Xander Schauffele T17 2 Matthew Wolff T50 3 Webb Simpson T17 4 Justin Thomas T2 5 Tyrrell Hatton T28 6 Rory McIlroy T17 7 Patrick Reed T14 8 Jon Rahm T2 9 Joaquin Niemann T17 10 Collin Morikawa T50 11 Jason Kokrak T17 12 Viktor Hovland T47 13 Harris English T28 14 Russell Henley T4 15 Bubba Watson T4 Wild Card Phil Mickelson 76th SLEEPERS RECAP - ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP @ SHERWOOD Golfer Result Gunn Charoenkul T54 Joel Dahmen T8 Ryo Ishikawa T63 Takumi Kanaya T41 Cameron Smith T4 BIRTHDAYS AMONG ACTIVE GOLFERS ON THE PGA TOUR October 27 ... Fabián Gómez (42) October 28 ... none October 29 ... none October 30 ... none October 31 ... Mark Wilson (46) November 1 ... none November 2 ... James Hahn (39); Adam Hadwin (33)
Billy Payne, who took over leadership at the home of the Masters in 2006, will be replaced by former USGA president Fred Ridley.
THE OVERVIEW By Ben Everill, PGATOUR.COM How much better can it get for Justin Thomas? That’s the biggest question posed towards our current FedExCup Champion and gives us plenty of reason to watch him closer than ever. His 2016-17 season was off the charts as Thomas won five times, including his maiden major championship and of course the season-long FedExCup. Oh, and he shot a 59 in Hawaii and a 63 at the U.S. Open. Given the benchmark is so high, how will he guard against a letdown? Already he has win No. 1 for the new season after a playoff victory over Marc Leishman at THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES in Korea. TOP 30 PLAYERS TO WATCH IN 2018: We counted down one new player each day in December. Click here for full list. MORE: Top 30 explanation and schedule So, it appears as if his star will continue to rise and perhaps shine even brighter. But given he’s prone to wearing his emotions on his sleeve, will he cope well with added scrutiny and expectations? Having struck up a friendship with Tiger Woods, who backed up multiple-win seasons over and over again, Thomas has at least one confidant he can garner advice from. Another is good friend Jordan Spieth, who found himself unfairly wielding off criticism when he didn’t back up his first five-win season with similar results. But at the end of the day Thomas is his own man. He grew up in golf, lives and breathes golf, bleeds golf — he wants nothing more than to push himself as far as possible in the sport. He strives to be the greatest and won’t give in until he gets there. If he could improve anything it would be driving accuracy – he was T162 last season at 55 percent – but given he bombs it so far down there, he’s usually able to get at the greens anyway. Thomas keeps his goals close to his chest but we are going to guess that winning another major, getting to world No. 1 and being the first player ever to defend the FedExCup title are on the list. We’re not going to bet against him ticking all of those boxes off in 2018. BY THE NUMBERS How Justin Thomas ranked in Strokes Gained statistics during his last full season on the PGA TOUR. FEDEXCUP Current 2017-18 position: 7th Playoff appearances: 3 TOUR Championship appearances: 2 Best result: Reigning FedExCup Champion. He is the second-youngest FedExCup champion, trailing only Jordan Spieth. INSIGHTS FROM THE INSIDERS PGATOUR.COM’s Insiders offer their expert views on what to expect from Justin Thomas in 2018. TOUR INSIDER by Cameron Morfit There’s only one thing to do when you get on a roll like Thomas did last season: Keep it going as long as possible. So far, so good, with his victory at THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES, the first-year tournament in South Korea. Thomas will have to manage his own expectations after running the table last season, perhaps redefining success. He’ll want to somehow dig deep and summon his absolute best if and when he goes eye-to-eye with his pal Jordan Spieth. And keep an eye on Thomas’ Strokes Gained: Putting numbers. He was in negative numbers and 131st on TOUR in 2016, but last season he jumped up to +.289, 47th best on TOUR. Click here to follow Cameron on Twitter FANTASY INSIDER by Rob Bolton Yes, he earned this spot after a five-win season that included his first major, but there’s a dose of week-to-week inconsistency that all but makes him unownable in DFS where his price tag can also cost you depth. Perhaps he’ll continue to explore the less-is-more formula and keep shaving starts as he’s done since breaking onto the PGA TOUR with 30 in 2014-15, or perhaps he’ll stick with something close to 25 because that total yielded the FedExCup last season. Either way, to earn this position in draft leagues, he’ll need two or three more seasons of similar production to convince us about taking a pass on Jordan Spieth at No. 1. Click here to follow Rob on Twitter EQUIPMENT INSIDER by Jonathan Wall Thomas switched from Titleist’s 917D3 driver to 917D2 to pick up extra forgiveness and distance. Plays a custom set of 718 MB irons with no offset. A traditional blade putter user for most of his life, Thomas switched to a Scotty Cameron Futura X5 Flow Neck mallet during last year’s FedExCup Playoffs. Has “Radar” stamped on his wedges due to his ability to get the ball near the target with regularity. Click here to follow Jonathan on Twitter STYLE INSIDER by Greg Monteforte JT has established himself as one of the best-dressed players on TOUR. His fun prints, vibrant pops of colors, and old school brogues turn heads for all the right reasons. He also accessorizes his looks exceptionally well with exotic skin belts and old brogue-style shoes in custom colorways that perfectly sync up with his outfits. Don’t change a thing in 2018, Justin. Click here to follow Greg on Twitter
