Fantasy golf: Sleeper picks for the 2018 Wells Fargo Championship

KAPALUA, Hawaii – Jim “Bones� Mackay – the former long-time caddy to Phil Mickelson and now NBC and Golf Channel analyst – will carry the bag for FedExCup Champion Justin Thomas in his Sony Open title defense next week. Thomas’ regular caddie Jimmy Johnson succumbed to plantar fasciitis after two rounds at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in Kapalua and has returned home for treatment, leaving an opening for next week at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu. Mike Thomas – Justin’s father – took over duties in the third round at the Plantation Course where Thomas sits 30th through three rounds. “My legs are tired. Always nice to be able to do that with your son though,� Mike told GolfDigest.com. He will go out again with his son in the final round on Sunday in Maui before losing the job to Mackay next week. “Glad to. I’m dragging butt.� The last time Mackay worked on the PGA TOUR was the 2016 FedEx St. Jude Classic, the end of a 25-year run with Mickelson that yielded 42 TOUR wins and five majors. He has since been a successful on-course reporter. “I think the world of Justin and I’m looking forward to working with him,� Mackay said via Golf Channel. Thomas is coming off a five-win season, including his first major and the FedExCup. He has already won once this new season.

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This is one of the most fascinating weeks of the season. Whether you’re pacing or chasing, because the Wells Fargo Championship is loaded with chalk that has played well and often at Quail Hollow over the years, ownership percentages will be top-heavy. And even if you don’t play in every tournament – this is the 28th of 46 in 2018-19 – it’s highly likely that many of those choices are off your board and those of your opposition because of where we are in the season. The additional layer of intrigue is that most of the chalk will have our attention at each of the last three majors, so the tug of war between the now and the later is real. Rory McIlroy all but owns Quail Hollow, so if you need to go for the downs, take your swing. If you’re thinking about holstering, you don’t deserve the option. And after reading that remark, if you’re still considering abstaining, pat yourself on the back for waiting until now to get him in there. I’ll do whatever it takes for you to understand his value on this track. I remain bullish on Rickie Fowler’s chances in a major this summer, but he also presents smartly as a weapon if you need to cut into your deficit. Like McIlroy twice at Quail Hollow (2010, 2015), Fowler also is a former champ (2012) and his overall record is phenomenal. If you’re stuck between the two, first understand how nice of a problem that is, and then burn Fowler now and keep McIlroy in your pocket for a major. Jason Day is the defending champion. He’s never won the same tournament in consecutive editions, but he’s always on the short list of candidates to turn the trick because of his talent. I love him again this week, but consider saving for the PGA Championship or the FedExCup Playoffs (even though none of the three stops appears in his Future Possibilities). Paul Casey also is on that short list, but he’s just outside our focus in the majors, so if you’re as fortunate as I am to give him a go, pounce. You’ll note that the Travelers Championship is his top spot, but I’ve penciled in three-time champion Bubba Watson for that event the week after the U.S. Open. (The lefty is not competing at the Wells Fargo Championship.) Quail Hollow will challenge Phil Mickelson’s approach in 2019. Overseeded bermuda rough as long as two-and-a-half inches goes against his better-laid plan to avoid it, and that’s simply hard to do as he continues to tee it up in familiar spots. His results were not inspiring after he prevailed at Pebble Beach and prior to a T18 at Augusta National where the second cut isn’t penal. Target the return trip to Pebble Beach for the U.S. Open even though he’ll be chasing the career grand slam and the course should be a brute. It’s scheduled to conclude on his birthday (June 16), so maybe his wish will finally come true. Another curiosity is Justin Rose only because Quail Hollow doesn’t rank in his top tier of go-to tracks as he scrambles for form. No one would be surprised if he won, of course, but One & Doners in every situation don’t need to risk it with him. He’s one example of how the timing of the tournament benefits you. Other notables who resonate similarly coolly include Hideki Matsuyama, Patrick Reed, Gary Woodland, Tony Finau, Sergio Garcia and local resident Webb Simpson. All are usable in roster games, but we’ll turn to them in our world another time. Two-man gamers should employ the aforementioned advice for your primary, and then gives the likes of Lucas Glover, Jason Kokrak, J.B. Holmes and Luke List a look to ride shotgun. 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) Keegan Bradley … Memorial (5); Travelers (4) Paul Casey … Wells Fargo (9); Travelers (1); TOUR Championship (3) Jason Day … Wells Fargo (6 defending); PGA Championship (3); U.S. Open (10); Open Championship (9) Jason Dufner … Charles Schwab (6); Memorial (5); U.S. Open (2); Wyndham (8); TOUR Championship (10) Tony Finau … Memorial (2) Rickie Fowler … Wells Fargo (6); PGA Championship (9); Memorial (5); U.S. Open (10) Sergio Garcia … Open Championship (5); TOUR Championship (2) Bill Haas … Charles Schwab (2); Wyndham (6) Adam Hadwin … John Deere (5) Brian Harman … Charles Schwab (1); Travelers (5); John Deere (4) J.B. Holmes … Wells Fargo (5) Zach Johnson … Charles Schwab (5); John Deere (1); Open Championship (2); TOUR Championship (8) Martin Laird … Barracuda (2) Hideki Matsuyama … PGA Championship (13); Memorial (8); U.S. Open (14); Wyndham (7); TOUR Championship (5) Rory McIlroy … Wells Fargo (3); Memorial (5); Travelers (8); Open Championship (1); TOUR Championship (6) Phil Mickelson … Wells Fargo (2); U.S. Open (6); Open Championship (9); WGC-St. Jude (3) Patrick Reed … PGA Championship (4); U.S. Open (3); Travelers (7) Justin Rose … Charles Schwab (7; defending); Memorial (4); Open Championship (8); TOUR Championship (2) Webb Simpson … Wells Fargo (7); Charles Schwab (8); Travelers (9); Wyndham (1) Brendan Steele … Wells Fargo (9); Travelers (4); Barracuda (3) Henrik Stenson … PGA Championship (4); Open Championship (6); Wyndham (8); TOUR Championship (7) Kevin Streelman … Memorial (4); Travelers (7) Jimmy Walker … Byron Nelson (6) Gary Woodland … Memorial (4)

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