Fear a factor in Joel Dahmen’s fall success

Here are nine tidbits from the final round of the Valspar Championship that gamers can use tomorrow, this weekend or down the road. Casey on Point Paul Casey fired a final-round 65 to post 10-under-par 274 to win the Valspar Championship at the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort and Golf Club in Palm Harbor, Florida. The Englishman picks up his first TOUR win since the 2009 Shell Houston Open and his first win worldwide since the 2014 KLM Open (European Tour). Casey joined the European Tour this season to improve his chances of making the Ryder Cup team. This won’t hurt! What a difference a day makes, as Casey played in the final group on Saturday with Corey Conners. The rookie beat him by three shots and Casey dropped to T11, five shots off the lead. Casey’s final round included six birdies and one bogey to tie the low round of the day (65). The key to his victory was his excellent short game. He navigated three difficult up-and-downs in The Snake Pit to close his round and post THE number. His card for the week was spectacular, as he finished in the top 10 in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green (6th), Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green (7th), Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green (3rd) and was 15th in Strokes Gained: Putting. His previous best finish at this event was T37 in four tries. Gamers have always rated Casey, minus the lack of wins, because when he makes the cut, he cashes very nice checks. He’s made 168 cuts on TOUR and 104 have cashed in the top 25. Of those 104 top-25 finishes, 51, nearly half, have painted the top 10. Of his seven starts this year, six have cashed for T19 or better. His last MC on TOUR was the 2017 Sony Open. Gamers’ Choices — PGA TOUR Fantasy Game presented by SERVPRO This group was the definition of all or nothing! If you’re not playing the chalk, you’re dead. If you’re not picking the correct chalk, you’re dying. Fantasy golf is hard! Gamers’ Choices — PGA TOUR One & Done presented by SERVPRO This one is going to sting for the Justin Rose supporters, while the #NappyFactor army will be much happier at the end of today than they were yesterday. Next week, we’ll see if Tiger Woods breaks the Dustin Johnson record for usage in this format. Close Encounters There’s no point to rehash all 1,239,398 stats revealed about Tiger Woods this week. I learned that he is not the finished article, but I was more than encouraged by his performance on a track that he’s unfamiliar with playing. He struggled on the greens to find the proper speed and line and was obviously fooled a few times. Sunday’s red shirt didn’t bring the magic with his iron game either, as he didn’t have too many makeable birdie putts. I would assume this all changes next week at Bay Hill where he’s won eight times. The momentum is real and so is the “back” in comeback. Next stop is the winner’s circle. Reed-ing Between the Lines The “other” red shirt on Sunday needed just two shots on the final green to force a playoff with Casey. Patrick Reed took three instead, including the first two from essentially the same spot, and did not force extra holes. Shot No. 1 climbed most of the hill before returning to his feet. Shot No. 2 was what he had in mind for his first attempt. Gamers in all formats exhaled regardless since this was his first top 10 since September and third at Valspar. Play Them All It’s hard to be patient, but those of you who did with #NappyFactor Sergio Garcia were rewarded. The first-time father-to-be posted 69-65 on the weekend to cash for solo fourth. His wife is due next Sunday, so he’s out at Bay Hill. His next event will be WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play in her native Austin. … Reigning champion Adam Hadwin ended up being low Canadian for the week, posting T12. His final round 68 continued his excellent play at Innisbrook and on TOUR, as he’s inside the top 12 for his third event running. The confluence of course form with recent form was an easy one for gamers this week. No Country for Old Men The 40-year-old Paul Casey wasn’t the only “old dude” who played great this week. Rory Sabbatini, who will turn 42 in April, fired 67-69 for his first top 10 since the Wyndham last summer. … Ryder Cup Captain Jim Furyk, 47, continues his legend as a course horse at Innisbrook. This was his third top-10 finish since his win in 2010. It is also his first top-10 finish in 18 events dating back to November of 2016. …  Presidents Cup Captain Steve Stricker, 51, continued his hot form, as he rode the momentum from his PGA Champions victory in Tucson to T12 this week. In three TOUR events this yea,r he’s cashed for T31 or better. … Zach Johnson, 42, has now hit the top 25 in six of seven events this season after T16. Sunday Silence Corey Conners couldn’t handle the leaderboard on Sunday and who can blame him? Those were some big boys breathing down his neck. This experience will be worth more than the T16 paycheck, his best ever, moving forward. … Sadly for gamers Justin Rose had a front-row seat in the final group to Conners’ 77. This was a disappointment for gamers, as Rose (and Conners) has had plenty of winning experience and didn’t have to worry about the circus playing with Woods. Rose will be second choice next week at Bay Hill. … Sam Burns made a bogey on the final hole that knocked him out of the top 10 (T12). He doesn’t have status on TOUR, so he loses an event moving forward. He’s in the field at Bay Hill next week and Memorial in June. There’s no doubt about his talent, as he led the field in Strokes Gained: Putting, but there is no guarantee about his schedule. Study Hall Garcia and Reed led the field in birdies with 18. … Casey only made four bogeys and a double on the week, while Hadwin had only five bogeys to lead the avoidance department. … Alex Cejka returned to action this week after WD at The Honda Classic and led the field in Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green. … Matt Wallace defeated Andrew Johnston in the Hero Indian Open. Emiliano Grillo continued his excellent play, finishing sixth. He’s in the field with jet lag at Bay Hill next week. Tweet of the day:

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If you’re just waking up, here’s what you missed during the first few hours of Thursday’s opening round of The Open Championship at Royal Portrush. PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland – Rory McIlroy, Northern Ireland’s native son and a big favorite this week, started his opening round in shocking fashion – a quadruple bogey on the par-4 first. McIlroy, who famously shot a course-record 61 at age 16 on the previous Royal Portrush layout, received a huge ovation when he was announced on the tee. But then his tee shot sailed out-of-bounds left. After his two playing partners – reigning U.S. Open champ Gary Woodland and Paul Casey – teed off, McIlroy had to re-tee, and his next tee shot found the rough. He two-putted for the quadruple bogey, tying for his worst score in a single hole in his major championship career. McIlroy followed by failing to birdie the par-5 second hole, then bogeyed the par-3 third when he missed the green with his tee shot. That left him 5 over through three holes. It was a nightmare start for the man who carries the weight of so many expectations from his countrymen this week. MEANWHILE, IN OTHER IRISH NEWS: Shane Lowry shot 3 under through his first nine holes and then birdied the 10th, giving him a share of the early lead at 4 under. Portrush native Graeme McDowell, whose home club of Rathmore is just outside the ticketed grounds, birdied the second hole and was 1 under through six. Royal Portrush member and Northern Ireland native Darren Clarke opened the tournament – Northern Ireland’s first Open in 68 years – by hitting the first tee shot and birdied three of his first five holes. He encountered trouble on the back nine, though and was even par through 17 holes. Amateur James Sugrue from Ireland, one of Clarke’s playing partners, also started well, 2 under through six holes and was even par through 17. Irishman Padraig Harrington was 2 under through five but fell back with four bogeys in his next 6 holes. GRILLO’S ACE: Emiliano Grillo aced the 194-yard par-3 13th. It’s the 33rd ace on the PGA TOUR this season. Also, it’s the first time since 2004 that at least one ace has been recorded at each of the majors and THE PLAYERS Championship. THE X MAN: Xander Schauffele, who has played so well in the majors this season – T2, T16, T3 – and was runner-up at last year’s Open, started with birdies in his first two holes and then moved to 3 under through five before suffering a bogey at the sixth. Looks like the American is headed for another good week. MAC ATTACK: Scotland’s Bob MacIntyre, who played collegiately in the U.S. at McNeese State, had the best early shot, holing out for eagle at the par-4 fifth. He was 4 under through eight holes before a bogey at the ninth. TIGER’S TEE TIME: Tiger Woods will tee off at 10:10 a.m. ET with Patrick Reed and Matthew Wallace. Check PGATOUR.COM for hole-by-hole coverage of Tiger’s round.

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Not everyone celebrates anniversaries, and not all anniversaries are worth celebrating, but the first anniversary always serves as an exercise in perspective. The Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard was the last tournament completed before the pandemic that forced a three-month shutdown in 2020. Given everything that has happened and what we know now, that the hiatus lasted only three months is a remarkable achievement. The collaboration with local communities has been paramount in sustaining a safe and competitive environment. Yet, a break from how Bay Hill Club and Lodge tested last year presented an opportunity for a different kind of recovery. Scroll past the projected contenders for details of how extreme it played and why, what the limited field can expect this week and more. RELATED: The First Look | Inside the Field POWER RANKINGS: ARNOLD PALMER INVITATIONAL The Fantasy Insider will be delayed until Wednesday. Notables reviewed will include Jordan Spieth, Max Homa, Justin Rose, Tommy Fleetwood and Hideki Matsuyama. Despite the circumstances that triggered the shutdown of 2020, those who attempted to tame Bay Hill needed a minute to lick their wounds. The stock par 72 averaged 74.106 for the week, and that included splits of 75.913 and 75.058 in the third and final rounds, respectively. It was the highest scoring average in relation to par on a par 72 in a non-major in the last four completed seasons. It also was the highest that Bay Hill averaged since it scored 75.150 as a par 71 in 1983, the first year that data was recorded in earnest. Arnold Palmer's primary objective was to have fun, but that was the furthest thing from it. Persistent gusty winds north of 20 mph throughout pummeled the field. It averaged just 9.1 greens in regulation per round, lowest of any non-major in 15 years. That seems like a misprint given that greens average a roomy 7,500 square feet, but they also run up to 13-and-a-half feet on the Stimpmeter with penalizing undulations, so precision on approach is at a premium. With nowhere to hide to swallow the pride, it's no wonder that Tyrrell Hatton's 4-under 284 was the highest winning aggregate in tournament history. He ranked outside the top 30 in both distance of all drives and fairways hit, but that's fine when the wind is a factor. The Englishman managed the rest of his game exquisitely, slotting T9 in GIR (10.5 per round), 10th in proximity, 15th in Strokes Gained: Putting and second in bogey avoidance. He also co-led the field in par-3 scoring and played the par 5s in 4.63 to rank T17. With that recap scaring everyone straight, a pivot to this week's forecast is relevant. After a relatively benign first two days with high temperatures in the mid-70s, things will turn for the worse after the 36-hole cut falls. There's a very good chance of rain on Saturday. With the threat, winds will freshen considerably and stick around for Sunday's finale when the sun returns. It might not reach 70 degrees on the weekend. The only notable modification since Hatton's victory was made on the tee at the par-4 13th hole. It's been expanded to allow for another 12 yards and can now extend to 382 yards. The entirety of that increase equals the overall bump in Bay Hill's overall length to 7,466, longest in tournament history. Wayward drives may find rough at three-and-a-half inches and longer. That helps explain why disrespecting the value of course management off the tee can lead to a bad day. As usual, the TifEagle bermuda greens have not been overseeded for the competition. The perks for winning mirror what Max Homa earned as the champion of The Genesis Invitational: 550 FedExCup points and three-year PGA TOUR membership exemption (or additional season if already exempt through 2023-24 or 2024-25). He also receives a three-year exemption into THE PLAYERS Championship. The field stands at 123 as of Monday afternoon. Former winners Robert Gamez (1990), Paul Goydos (1996) and Tim Herron (1999) are add-ons as champions pre-2000. If any withdraws before his opening round, he will not be replaced. ROB BOLTON'S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.COM's Fantasy Insider Rob Bolton recaps and previews every tournament from numerous angles. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. MONDAY: Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers WEDNESDAY: Fantasy Insider SUNDAY: Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Rookie Watch * – Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM's Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, which also publishes on Tuesday.

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