Tiger Woods climbs into contention at Quicken Loans National

PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO If you ever wondered how many of you aren’t paying attention, the answer might be 5.7 percent. That’s Phil Mickelson’s ownership percentage at the U.S. Open. It ranks 19th-most overall. Of course, he was a threat to withdraw before the tournament started, and that’s what happened on Thursday morning. Gamers who rostered the lefty won’t be charged a start because he pulled out before his tee time, but that’s superfluous in the context of PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO since Segment 3 concludes at next week’s Travelers Championship. The more relevant and potential self-inflicted damage rests in the fact that the U.S. Open cut is arguably the toughest in golf. Only the low 60 and ties play the final two rounds, which means that as many as 96 will be done after 36 holes. So, even if Mickelson was stowed away on 100 percent of the benches of the 5.7 percent on board, this is the last tournament in which you want to play with fire. This is especially poignant in a tournament when only actual scoring and bonus points are measured. It presents the opportunity to be aggressive instead of relying on strategy when ShotLink is turned on. In other words, those gamers would have needed Mickelson not only to play but to contend to pay off the risk. Among the dignitaries who aren’t represented below, Paul Casey ranks 16th at 6.3 percent, Henrik Stenson is 17th at 6.1 percent, Brooks Koepka slots 18th at 5.8 percent and FedEx St. Jude Classic winner Daniel Berger checks in at 21st at 5.0 percent. NOTE: Rob’s Rating refers to where our Fantasy Insider slotted a golfer in his Power Rankings. Golfers in the Power Rankings and outside the top 10 in most owned PGA TOUR Fantasy One & Done presented by SERVPRO It’s been 28 years since Curtis Strange was the last to successfully defend a U.S. Open title, but that drought didn’t deter 21.5 percent of you from pouring your faith into Dustin Johnson at Erin Hills. Before you rush to defend DJ’s chances this week, consider that since Tiger Woods won his first of three U.S. Opens in 2000, he’s the only champion to finish inside the top 10 in his title defense. His T6 in 2009 is best among 11 of the 16 who survived the cut as the defending champion. Of course, even if Johnson repeats, he may eventually outscore himself in the FedExCup Playoffs when points are quadrupled. So, gamers invested this week pretty much need him to defend. As the fantasy columnist for the website, I know that I have influence on the decisions gamers make. That includes when you disagree, which also achieves the objective of making a decision. While I never pretend to manipulate thinking or go into any tournament with expectations that even one gamer will be impacted, I can’t help but wonder if my unilateral devotion to Rickie Fowler at the U.S. Open swayed many of you into plugging him in. Note that Fowler slots three clicks ahead of Rory McIlroy in ownership percentage. Before reviewing the data, I expect McIlroy to rank second behind DJ, but that he’s behind Fowler at all is one of the most surprising takeaways of the season. And so far, so good, too! Fowler opened with a bogey-free, 7-under 65 to assume the clubhouse lead. Notables outside the top 10 include Louis Oosthuizen (12th, 2.2 percent), Hideki Matsuyama (13th, 1.8 percent), Henrik Stenson (17th, 1.2 percent), Brooks Koepka (21st, 0.9 percent) and Tommy Fleetwood (one gamer). Phil Mickelson ranks 24th at 0.7 percent. Because he withdrew before his tee time in the opening round, he will remain available to the gamers who thought that the risk was worth it but are instead swallowing a zero.

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Round 2 of the Corales Puntacana Championship takes place Friday. Joel Dahmen looks to defend his breakthrough PGA TOUR title. The field includes major winners Graeme McDowell, Jimmy Walker, and Danny Willett, as well as 2011 FedExCup winner Bill Haas. Dahmen looks to become the first repeat winner while Rafael Campos of nearby Puerto Rico will be buoyed by local fan support. The winner will receive 300 FedExCup points. Leaderboard Tee times HOW TO FOLLOW Television: Thursday-Friday, 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday-Sunday, 2 p.m.-5 p.m. (Golf Channel) For outside of the U.S., click here for GOLFTV powered by the PGA TOUR MUST READS Ben Martin leads by one at Corales Puntacana Championship The First Look Power Rankings Expert Picks

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Ask any tournament setup staff how it wants a golf course to play and two goals will command the response: fair and consistent. No matter the level of difficulty, fairness is universal. Consistency, on the other hand, factors in only the 18 holes presented. Variables such as the speed of the greens, both for practice and across the course, as well as the height of the rough, are baseline expectations for a singular host. This says nothing of a course’s evolution over time, however. It can be consistent exclusive of how it scores year to year. Yet, even if a host track for a PGA TOUR event tried, it would have a hard time replicating what TPC Deere Run has accomplished for the John Deere Classic. Since 2009, the field scoring average hasn’t varied more than one-half stroke from the highest to the lowest. Last year’s clip of 69.896 on the par 71 marked the toughest the course has played during any of the last eight years. Angling hard at his next title. A solo eighth at the U.S. Open and T3 at the Travelers Championship in his last two starts are among five top 10s in 2017. Debutant who checks all of the other boxes. Usually a standout on Bermuda greens, lost in a playoff at TPC River Highlands (bentgrass) after a T5 in his debut there last year. The 2014 champ is in a career-defining stretch that includes a close call at Erin Hills. Eighth on TOUR in strokes gained: putting and 17th in birdie-or-better percentage. He’s risen 16 spots to 18th in Presidents Cup points with seven consecutive paydays, four of which for a top 10. T9 at Greenbrier. T3 in last appearance at the Deere in 2015. Rested since winning the Quicken Loans National, which punctuated a season’s worth of impressive showings. Among the best ball-strikers. Four top 25s in seven tries here. He’s been trading memorable performancs with those he’d rather forget for three months, but he’s earned benefit of the doubt. Averaged 68.38 in last eight rounds at the JDC. Returns not only to defend his title but also after five weeks sidelined with a strained tendon in his left shoulder. Scoring average in last 20 rounds at TPC Deere Run is 67.20. The three-time champ and tournament’s all-time earnings leader has enjoyed a noisy 2017 that’s included a T7 at Colonial and a T16 at the U.S. Open. Chased P2 at QLN with steady-not-spectacular T45 at Greenbrier. Penchant for red numbers plays at Deere, but it’s been six years since he put four rounds together for T5. Perfect in nine trips (2002, 2008-2015) with four top 15s. Fresh off a T9 at Greenbrier where he was ninth in strokes gained: putting. Co-leads the TOUR in scrambling. His phenomenal record here speaks for itself, but he’s going to need to tap into its strength to reverse a continually disappointing season. Just 103rd in FedExCup points. Thoroughbred for TPC Deere Run since 2014. He’s gone T7-T5-T5 with a scoring average of 66.92 since. Tied for fifth two weeks ago at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm. Surging. Season-best T3 at The Old White TPC. He’s 4-for-4 at TPC Deere Run, but his final-round scoring average is at least four strokes higher than any of the first three. Arguably most comfortable on bentgrass greens, evident again recently with a T10 at Memorial and T17 at Quicken Loans. Finished T4-T13-T8 here from 2013-2015. Nearly five months have elapsed since his last top 10 in a stroke-play event in the U.S. Snared one here last year with a T8. T13 in prior visit in 2014. Scored 14-under 270 in both. Power Rankings: John Deere Classic Rank Player Comment Bubba Watson, William McGirt and Greenbrier Classic runner-up Robert Streb are among the notables who will be included in Tuesday’s Fantasy Insider. One of the occasional narratives tossed around is that a golfer is unlikely to find his game on such-and-such a track. That’s usually due to a specific set of challenges that requires an elevated level of confidence and recently proven execution upon arrival. Almost never discussed is where he can find it. TPC Deere Run isn’t in Iowa – it’s close – but it is heaven. In 2016 and for the second consecutive edition, the 7,268-yard test yielded fairways-hit and greens-in regulation splits north of 70 percent. This supports why the D.A. Weibring design is one of the most scorable courses of the season in addition to its reputation as one of the most consistent. The entire field of 156 not only knows exactly what it needs to do to compete and contend, but there’s no guesswork in the context of how the course will play. The Confidence Factor on Tuesday will examine which elements of proficiency are projected to define the champion. Mother Nature makes no promises for glorious days in the summer in the heartland, but the weather forecast is quite favorable throughout the tournament. Plenty of sunshine will lift daytime highs well into the 80s. Light winds will help take a bite out of the thickness in the air. ROB BOLTON’S WRITING SCHEDULE PGATOUR.COM’s Fantasy Columnist Rob Bolton will be filing his usual staples leading up to this week’s event. Look for the following columns this week. MONDAY: Rookie Ranking, Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers, The Confidence Factor, Fantasy Insider WEDNESDAY: One & Done THURSDAY: Ownership Percentages in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, One & Done and Champions One & Done presented by SERVPRO * – Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO, which also publishes on Tuesdays.

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