Fantasy Insider: PGA Championship

OLD WESTBURY, N.Y. – Bubba Watson, David Lingmerth and Harold Varner III have extended their FedExCup hopes at THE NORTHERN TRUST after playing their way into the second event of the FedExCup Playoffs, the Dell Technologies Championship. Watson began the week ranked 113th in the standings but catapulted himself all the way to 72nd thanks to a tie for 10th at Glen Oaks Club. Watson’s first top-10 since June earned him a tee time for Friday’s first round at TPC Boston. The two-time Masters champion will take the rest of 2017 off once his run in the FedExCup Playoffs comes to an end and his focus will turn to coaching the tee-ball team of his 5-year-old son, Caleb. It could be a couple weeks before Watson can don his coaching hat, though. He’s now withing striking distance of the top 70 in the FedExCup standings and a spot in the third event of the FedExCup Playoffs, the BMW Championship. Varner III was a bubble buster a week ago, jumping inside the top 125 at the Wyndham Championship. A solid T20 at Glen Oaks surged him from 123rd to 91st in the standings. He becomes just the fifth player in FedExCup history to qualify for the Dell Technologies Championship after being outside the mark at both the Wyndham and THE NORTHERN TRUST.   Only one of the previous four, Ernie Els, continued the streak all the way to the BMW Championship. “I don’t want it to end. So I just need to keep doing the things I’m doing right now and just focus,â€� Varner said. “(I) played solid today, did what I had to do. It’s hard to really fire at (the flag) when you’re not sure you’re going to play next week, but we’re going to figure it out. We’re just going to keep playing golf and keep playing well.â€� Lingmerth should have cruised in after opening the tournament with rounds of 71-68-68, but things started to tighten up after he dropped five shots in a four-hole stretch on Sunday’s front nine. He rebounded with two birdies on the back side to move from 103rd to 87th with his T29 result. When three players moving inside the top 100, three players had to fall out. Those who were replaced were Byeong Hun An (96 to 102), Robert Garrigus (99 to 109) and Seung-Yul Noh (100 to 110), who all missed the cut. ELIMINATED Michael Kim was the last man in the top 100, finishing a single point ahead of Scott Stallings, who made a crucial bogey on the 17th hole Sunday to essentially end his season. Here are the 25 players who have been eliminated from the FedExCup Playoffs: Stallings, An, Martin Flores, D.A. Points, Luke Donald, Richy Werenski, Ryan Blaum, Geoff Ogilvy, Robert Garrigus, Noh, Jimmy Walker, Brian Gay, Brandon Hagy, Vaughn Taylor, Steve Stricker, Derek Fathauer, Tyrone Van Aswegen, Harris English, Dominic Bozelli, Nick Watney, John Huh, Blayne Barber, Ben Martin, Rory Sabbatini and J.J. Henry. QUOTE OF THE DAY I don’t know what it would take. But we’ll see. Maybe if I win the FedExCup or something, I’ll go nuts, because I’ve got 10 million cash in my pocket. TOP 5 WATCH The top 5 players entering the TOUR Championship will control their own destiny at East Lake. Here’s a look at the top 5 in the FedExCup standings after THE NORTHERN TRUST. 1. Dustin Johnson (WIN): Takes over top spot after his victory at Glen Oaks, his fourth of the season and first since winning three in a row in February and March. After starting the FedExCup Playoffs at No. 4 in the standings, he is virtually assured of being in the top 5 heading into the TOUR Championship. 2. Jordan Spieth (2nd): Jumped from the 3rd seed to the 2nd seed with his playoff loss to Johnson. The 2015 FedExCup champion is likely to once again control his destiny in Atlanta. 3. Justin Thomas (T6): Thomas sits in the three seed after another nice result this week, but his place in the top five for Atlanta is not yet secured. He’ll be looking to continue his form at TPC Boston. 4. Hideki Matsuyama (CUT): Was leading the standings to start the FedExCup Playoffs, but missing the weekend proved costly for the Japanese star, who dropped three spots. He told Japanese media this week that he is suffering from a sore hip. 5. Jon Rahm (T3): The Spanish star has lifted himself into the top 5 with an impressive opening result in his first foray into the FedExCup Playoffs. Each venue is new for him, but he remains undaunted. FEDEXCUP NOTES The new bubble boys are Sergio Garcia (30th), Grayson Murray (70th) and Michael Kim (100th). Adam Scott will return to play at the Dell Technologies Championship after initially suggesting he’d miss the event for paternity leave. He fell to 73rd in the FedExCup standings after being absent this week. Scott won at TPC Boston before it was a FedExCup Playoffs event. Johnson now shares the FedExCup Playoffs records for most wins (4, with Rory McIlroy), most top-5s (9, with Jason Day and Tiger Woods) and most top-10s (16, with Jim Furyk). Two rookies advanced to the TOUR Championship last season, the first time in FedExCup history more than one rookie made it to East Lake. Nine rookies remain headed to the Dell Technologies Championship, headed by Wesley Bryan in 32nd place. 

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Ah, that new season smell. Gotta love it. It also indicates a fresh start in all full-season fantasy games. This includes PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO. In direct response to gamer experience and reaction, a new, simpler scoring system debuts at this week’s Safeway Open. Gone are most of the shot values and FedExCup bonus points. Instead, fantasy scoring largely will be determined by actual scoring with various bonuses applied. Every hole score is given a value. A par is worth 2 points, a birdie is 4 points, eagle is 6 points and albatrosses and condors are 8 points. Bogeys are worth zero, while double bogeys and worse subtract 1 point. Under-par rounds yield 1 point. Aggregate scores of 65 and lower are good for 3 points, while 60s and lower are worth 10. All field-low aggregate scores for each round net 10 points. Regardless of how many golfers may tie for low round, all golfers who sign for the second-lowest score in the same round are rewarded with 5 points. ShotLink will be used to award 5 points for hole-outs off the green from 100 yards and longer, 3 points for hole-outs off the green from inside 100 yards, 1 point for drives of 300 yards and longer that come to rest in the fairway, and 1 point for holed putts from 20 feet and longer. (To review every component of the game, read the Rules at FantasyGolf.PGATOUR.com.) Using Safeway’s two-time defending champion Brendan Steele as an example, if the new scoring system was in place last year, he would have totaled 212 fantasy points for the tournament. Comparing the extremes, his field-low-tying, 7-under 65 in the opening round would have been worth 71 points, while his third-round, even-par 72 scored at just 40. Steele’s hole-by-hole scores totaled 174 points, or roughly 82 percent of his overall. Seventeen of his drives qualified for the 1-point bonus, worth eight percent. Naturally, low scores with lots of circles on the scorecard will be of greatest value, but tournament finish won’t have as great of an impact. And while a good round will land from 55-60 points, which means that overall fantasy scoring will be lower and sustain competitive balance, absorbing zeroes will penalize just as they did in the previous iteration. Thus, the primary objective remains to have four golfers contributing in every round. The contenders will separate themselves from the also-rans in the long-term. Meanwhile, all of my weekly staples are ready for the season. The Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions and Rookie Ranking are current. Navigate to the FANTASY page or via the MENU at the top for each. You’ll also find my annual full-membership fantasy ranking that includes all kinds of important pieces of information to assist gamers and commissioners. This year’s guide includes 245 golfers. The printable Cheat Sheet will be ready on Wednesday. Finally, debuting on Twitter on Wednesday is a new fantasy show starring yours truly. We’re targeting 2:00 p.m. ET. In addition to answering gamers’ questions, assisting with lineup decisions and responding to anything else on your mind, I’ll be discussing a handful of topics that have my attention right now. The show will launch from Twitter.com/PGATOUR. PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO My roster for the Safeway Open (in alphabetical order): Patrick Cantlay Emiliano Grillo Adam Hadwin Ryan Moore Joaquin Niemann Brendan Steele You’ll find my starters in Expert Picks. Others to consider for each category (in alphabetical order): Scoring: Anders Albertson; Bronson Burgoon; Cameron Davis; Sungjae Im; Martin Laird; Phil Mickelson Driving: Bronson Burgoon; Cameron Davis; Martin Laird; Hunter Mahan; Patrick Rodgers; Harold Varner III Power Rankings Wild Card Chez Reavie … With a 4-for-4 record at Silverado that includes top 25s in the last three editions of the tournament, he presents as a no-brainer. However, uncharacteristically inconsistent form pervaded his second half of 2017-18, so there’s reason to second-guess his projection. Given the renewal of a season, his tee-to-green proficiency and his greenside touch when he’s misfiring on top of repeated success on this course, history here wins the argument. Draws Chris Kirk … Perfect for the new fantasy scoring in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO. He concluded 2017-18 with 12 consecutive cuts made and owns a 3-for-3 record at Silverado with a T8 in 2016. Bronson Burgoon … Sat T11 after three rounds at Silverado last year, but his backpedal of a 74 left him at T17. It was among a series of performances by recent Web.com Tour graduates who maintained a high level of execution in the season opener. It’s not out of the question to consider his return trip to fall into a similar vein as he opened his debut in the FedExCup Playoffs with a T11 at THE NORTHERN TRUST. It was his sixth top 20 of 2017-18. He finished the season at sixth in total driving, 54th in GIR and T17 in par-5 scoring. Brett Drewitt … If you’re keen on a flier in DFS, look no further than the Aussie. The one-time PGA TOUR member (2016-17) entered the open qualifier on a whim and co-medaled with a bogey-free 65 at Coyote Creek Golf Club in San José. He was in the area after dropping his parents off at the airport, who came to the U.S. for his wedding last week. The 27-year-old went 3-for-4 in the Web.com Tour Finals, so he’s warm. Fades Sangmoon Bae … The first winner at Silverado in 2014 didn’t return until last year due to his military obligation in South Korea. He missed the cut with two over-par scores. In his last start on the Web.com Tour, he won in Boise. It secured at worst a spot in the reshuffle this season, but he still has 10 starts on a Major Medical Extension to retain status in that category. No doubt his confidence has never been higher since returning to competition, but his recent connection with success is too much too soon for conservative gamers. Beau Hossler … Because the 23-year-old isn’t going to let us down most of the time, this is as relative as it likely will be rare. Despite logging a fantastic first season on the PGA TOUR in 2017-18 in which he missed only four cuts, Silverado wasn’t his cup of tea en route to a 74th-place finish in his debut. On paper, he offers several attractive angles, but he’s still learning which sites suit him best. It would be rushing to judgment to label him as streaky so soon in his career, but he closed out the season without a top 30 in his last five starts. Danny Willett … Making his debut at the Safeway Open, but the bigger news is that he’s renewed his PGA TOUR membership for 2018-19. The 2016 Masters champ had to sit out last season for failing to fulfill the membership minimum of 15 starts in 2016-17, but he’s sending the earliest message possible that it won’t be an issue again. He’s flashed some form in recent months, but he’s far from the world-beater we observed before he slipped on the green jacket. Injuries derailed his progress. Sam Burns … As he embarks on his PGA TOUR career officially, tiptoe into him at first. He was incredibly hot and cold during the Web.com Tour season and failed to factor in all of his last four starts. Now, that bodes well for the long-term because he’s already learned how to ride a wave, but it’s dangerous for weekly gamers. Returning to Competition Bud Cauley … Suffice it to say that this is a welcome surprise. When he had to shut it down due to multiple injuries suffered in a car crash four months ago, it was anyone’s guess as to when he’d be physically ready to compete again. He’s fully exempt for finishing inside the top 125 of the FedExCup, so he can play as often as he wants without worrying about status and long-range planning. Despite this good news and a T7 in last year’s Safeway, give him the opportunity shake off the rust and fall back into the routine. Luke Donald … Committed to the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in Scotland, it’ll be his first action since the RBC Heritage in April. He’s rested a sore back that first flared a year ago at this time. Equipped with 15 starts via a Major Medical Extension on the PGA TOUR, his restart in Europe gives us a free look at his form. He’s also expected to play in next week’s Sky Sport British Masters in England. Notable WDs None Power Rankings Recap – TOUR Championship Power Ranking  Golfer  Result 1  Justin Rose  T4 2  Justin Thomas  T7 3  Brooks Koepka  T26 4  Tony Finau  T15 5  Rory McIlroy  T7 6  Dustin Johnson  3rd 7  Bubba Watson  29th 8  Billy Horschel  2nd 9  Bryson DeChambeau  19th 10  Webb Simpson  T4 11  Francesco Molinari  T21 12  Tommy Fleetwood  T11 13  Rickie Fowler  T7 14  Hideki Matsuyama  T4 15  Xander Schauffele  T7 16  Jason Day  18th 17  Paul Casey  T11 18  Tiger Woods  Win 19  Phil Mickelson  30th 20  Kevin Na  25th 21  Gary Woodland  T11 22  Keegan Bradley  T26 23  Patrick Reed  28th 24  Cameron Smith  20th 25  Kyle Stanley  T15 26  Marc Leishman  T21 27  Aaron Wise  T15 28  Patrick Cantlay T21 29  Jon Rahm  T11 30  Patton Kizzire  T21 Power Rankings Recap – FedExCup Playoffs Power Ranking  Golfer  Result 1  Justin Thomas  7th 2  Justin Rose  1st 3  Jason Day  16th 4  Tiger Woods  2nd 5  Jon Rahm  23rd 6  Dustin Johnson  4th 7  Jordan Spieth  31st 8  Tommy Fleetwood  19th 9  Patrick Reed  22nd 10  Webb Simpson  11th 11  Brandt Snedeker  40th 12  Paul Casey  25th 13  Tony Finau  6th 14  Brooks Koepka  9th 15  Patrick Cantlay  20th 16  Francesco Molinari  T17 17  Xander Schauffele  15th 18  Rory McIlroy  T13 19  Gary Woodland  26th 20  Kyle Stanley  27th 21  Kevin Kisner  47th 22  Marc Leishman  29th 23  Beau Hossler  46th 24  Phil Mickelson  21st 25  Bryson DeChambeau  3rd 26  Bubba Watson  10th 27  Kevin Na  28th 28  Rafa Cabrera Bello  41st 29  Austin Cook  38th 30  Chesson Hadley  44th Birthdays among active golfers on the PGA TOUR October 2 … George McNeill (43); Zack Sucher (32) October 3 … Danny Willett (31) October 4 … none October 5 … Kelly Kraft (30) October 6 … none October 7 … none October 8 … none

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Brian Harman is listed at 5 feet, 7 inches tall. He would like to offer a clarification. “On a good day,â€� he said with a laugh. “With the right set of shoes.â€� True, the defending champion at this week’s Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow Club will never be an NBA lottery pick. Harman is more like former Slam Dunk Contest winner Spud Webb: small but potent. At 163rd on TOUR in driving distance (288.6 yards), the lefty from Georgia gets it done in other ways. He’s 12th in driving accuracy (69.91 percent), sixth in strokes gained: putting (.858), leads the TOUR with seven top-10s this season, and likes his game fine.  It’s just that Harman has become increasingly aware of being surrounded by giants. “There are not a lot of guys that are under six feet tall,â€� he said at Quail Hollow, where he is coming off a T23 finish at the RBC Heritage. “I saw something the other day where the average height on the PGA TOUR had gone up like four inches or something like that. Guys are bigger.â€� If it seems like players are bigger, that’s because they are. PGA TOUR Commissioner Jay Monahan, in response to the USGA and R&A’s annual distance report published in March, noted that since 2003, the average age of a TOUR member has gone down, the average height up. Chesson Hadley, who is right behind Harman with six top-10 finishes this season, is 6 feet, 4 inches tall, as are Dustin Johnson and Tony Finau, who have five top-10s. Add Phil Mickelson and Marc Leishman, who also have five top-10s, and who are 6-foot-3 and 6-foot-2, respectively, and you’ve got a formidable looking starting five for intramural basketball.   Or the middle of a baseball lineup. “Guys that would have been piddling around in minor-league baseball are out here hitting it 320 yards now,â€� Harman said. Charles Howell III, who has been on TOUR for nearly 20 years, says the change has been hard to miss. “It’s not just equipment; it’s a different athlete playing the game,â€� he said. At 5 feet, 11 inches tall and 178 pounds, Howell admits he’s no Harman, but adds, “I definitely play against the animals he’s talking about.â€� Golf has always had a place for a wide range of body types. Ben Hogan was 5-foot-9. Jeff Sluman, winner of the 1988 PGA Championship, is 5-foot-7; Ian Woosnam, who won the 1991 Masters, just over 5-foot-4. Height has never told the whole story, and it still doesn’t. Wells Fargo Championship winners Rickie Fowler (2012) and Rory McIlroy (2015, 2010) are both 5-foot-10 but flexible, strong, and fast through the ball. The same could be said for FedExCup leader Justin Thomas, who is 5-foot-9. Then again, Patton Kizzire (6-foot-5) is right behind Thomas in the standings. Jordan Spieth, the 2015 FedExCup champion, is 6-foot-1, and seven-time TOUR winner Matt Kuchar is 6-foot-4. “Everyone’s getting taller,â€� said Jason Day, who is 6 feet tall. “And even if they’re not tall, they’re under six foot, they’re athletic.â€� If Kizzire, Kuchar, Johnson, Finau and Hadley are among the tallest timber on TOUR, the most physically imposing specimens are reigning U.S. Open champion Brooks Koepka (6 feet, 186 pounds), Jon Rahm (6-foot-2, 220), Leishman (6-foot-2, 200) and Luke List (6-foot-2, 190). And we haven’t even mentioned Ernie Els (6-foot-3, 210), the 19-time TOUR winner who will captain the International Presidents Cup team at Royal Melbourne in 2019. What does it all mean? Size and strength can help a player withstand the TOUR grind: not just all the range balls but all the travel. Bigger bodies can age better. Mickelson (6-foot-3, 200), who leads all players with eight top-10 finishes at the Wells Fargo Championship, has stayed competitive well into his 40s. Kenny Perry (6-foot-2, 205), Steve Stricker (6 feet, 190) and Vijay Singh (6-foot-2, 208) did the same. Day believes taller players’ “longer leversâ€� are helpful for what every TOUR player needs: speed. “Having a wider body, big shoulders, long arms, is ideal,â€� he said. Kevin Duffy, Day’s trainer, nodded in agreement. “And the wider this part is,â€� Duffy said, pointing to his clavicle, “the better.â€� Guys that would have been piddling around in minor-league baseball are out here hitting it 320 yards now. Dru Love, a sponsor’s exemption at the Wells Fargo, is one of the tallest players in the field at 6-foot-5. His former Alabama teammate Thomas nicknamed him Bigfoot, which stuck—Dru wears a size 14 shoe—but Dru says there’s a point of diminishing returns when it comes to size and golf. “I think there’s a perfect height,â€� he said. “It’s not 5-7, it’s not 6-5; it’s somewhere in the middle. The two best players of all time were built pretty similarly: Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods are both six feet tall and very strong. Jason Day is six feet tall.â€� Is there really a magic number for height? Day says a big body is most effective combined with strength, suppleness, and a technically sound swing. Others aren’t ready to concede the point. Emiliano Grillo, who is listed at 5-foot-9 but says he’s “5-8 on a good day,â€� said he’s “not a big believer in hitting it longerâ€� and focuses instead on splitting fairways and making putts. Denny McCarthy, who said he’s “5-9 on a basketball rosterâ€� but is in fact 5-foot-8, said he’s okay with how far he hits the ball. He’s 117th in driving distance (293 yards), and has the competitive will you might expect from a guy who played four years of high school basketball (guard). “I have a good head on my shoulders,â€� McCarthy said, “and that’s more than half the battle.â€� Harman sounded a similar refrain. His game worked just fine in winning the Wells Fargo Championship at fill-in host Eagle Point Golf Club, which at 7,396 yards (par 72) was no pushover. And while Quail Hollow is one of the brawnier courses on TOUR at 7,554 yards (par-71), he still likes his chances. “You know, they’re not terribly dissimilar,â€� Harman said. “They both require you to drive it pretty well. Big, undulated greens. This course has kind of lent itself to the longer hitter, but creativity and good putting take you a long way here.â€� But what about all those taller players? Doesn’t he want to be big? Nah. That was a Tom Hanks movie, and besides, Harman’s caddie, Scott “Big Countryâ€� Tway, has the size part covered. As for big drives, when asked if he would trade accuracy for distance, Harman declined. “I don’t think so,â€� he said. “I like the way I do it.â€�

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