Watson eyes Vice Captain at 2019 Presidents Cup

One is an annual tournament in which the objective is to get a ball into a hole to survive and advance. The other is the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play. College basketball doesn't have a monopoly on compelling competition in March. The best golfers in the world have descended on Austin Country Club for their own version of madness. The top 16 of this Power Rankings are who I've identified as the most likely to emerge from the three-day Group Stage launched on the only Wednesday start on the PGA TOUR. With Nos. 1-4 determined logically based on my winners of the championship and consolation matches, Nos. 5-8 are a subjective rank of the quarterfinalists. The golfers in positions 9-16 are my Group Stage survivors who are eliminated in the first round of the Knockout Stage. RELATED: The First Look | Inside the Field | Play the Bracket Challenge | Print out your bracket POWER RANKINGS: WGC-DELL TECHNOLOGIES MATCH PLAY POWER RANKINGS CONTINUED 17. Rory McIlroy 18. Ryan Palmer 19. Tony Finau 20. Louis Oosthuizen 21. Patrick Cantlay 22. Brendon Todd 23. Joaquin Niemann (first-timer) 24. Max Homa (first-timer) 25. Matt Fitzpatrick 26. Lee Westwood 27. Hideki Matsuyama 28. Tyrrell Hatton 29. Jason Day 30. Ian Poulter 31. Webb Simpson 32. Russell Henley 33. Viktor Hovland (first-timer) 34. Kevin Kisner 35. Lanto Griffin (first-timer) 36. Carlos Ortiz (first-timer) 37. Shane Lowry 38. Tommy Fleetwood 39. Corey Conners (first-timer) 40. Collin Morikawa (first-timer) 41. Scottie Scheffler (first-timer) 42. Erik van Rooyen (first-timer) 43. Kevin Streelman 44. Christiaan Bezuidenhout (first-timer) 45. Matt Wallace 46. Harris English 47. Marc Leishman 48. Adam Long (first-timer) 49. Kevin Na 50. Bubba Watson 51. Matt Kuchar 52. Mackenzie Hughes (first-timer) 53. Jason Kokrak (first-timer) 54. Victor Perez (first-timer) 55. Talor Gooch (first-timer) 56. Dylan Frittelli 57. J.T. Poston (first-timer) 58. Sebastián Muñoz (first-timer) 59. Matthew Wolff (first-timer) 60. Bernd Wiesberger 61. Robert MacIntyre (first-timer) 62. Si Woo Kim 63. Andy Sullivan 64. Antoine Rozner (first-timer) Just as devotees of college buckets rush to complete their brackets every year, arguably more than anything else in professional golf, the Match Play is the best way for fans to connect emotionally and still have success relative to others as seeds are merely fact more often than friction. In the first four spins of the Match Play at Austin CC, only 23 of a possible 64 top seeds in every pod survived the Group Stage format. Sixteen advanced from the grouping ranked 17-32 upon entry, 14 moved on from the golfers seeded 33-48, and 11 from the bottom 16 played on. Perhaps the best example of the competitive balance occurred in 2018 when Dustin Johnson went 0-3-0 as the defending champion and top seed of the tournament. You can play the Bracket Challenge for bragging rights and for a fantastic prize package. It's free to play. Consider the AUTOPICK feature and select from overall seed or odds. You also can copy my bracket as yours. If you select any, you can customize as usual from there. Since it's been two years from the last edition of the Match Play, there are 22 first-time participants in the field. Only the four-man pods headlined by Tyrrell Hatton and Justin Thomas don't include at least one debutant. Anytime that match play is the format, a unique Power Rankings could be constructed for every round. Matchups and momentum are the primary components that establish expectations, so a full-tournament Power Rankings must be consumed with a grain of salt. What doesn't change is the course, naturally. Austin CC is a par 71 with three par 5s. It tips at just 7,108 yards. The only relevant change is that the bunkers have new sand (as a result of a project to update drainage). TifEagle bermuda greens are overseeded and dialed to 12 feet on the Stimpmeter. The only cut of rough framing overseeded bermuda fairways and other areas of the shortest grass is two inches, and it is not overseeded. The weather will be worse before it gets better. A delay due to inclement conditions on Wednesday cannot be ruled out. Showers will linger into Thursday morning before dry air takes over and hangs throughout the weekend. And of course, given its location, wind will be a through line for most of the week. Course knowledge and applied experience in it should have value as a result. After posing for pictures with the Walter Hager Cup, the champion will receive 550 FedExCup points and PGA TOUR membership through at least 2023-24. As usual, if a non-member prevails, his equivalent of FedExCup points collected in either of the WGCs completed this season will not contribute to his membership total if he accepts his card. 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 (Match Play) TUESDAY*: Power Rankings (Corales); 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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The PGA TOUR heads back to the Carolinas for the Palmetto Championship at Congaree Golf Club. The course will play as a par 71, measuring 7,655 yards. Congaree is located in Ridgeland, South Carolina, and will feature Bermuda greens. The move to Congaree is a one-year replacement for the RBC Canadian Open due to COVID-19 concerns in Canada. Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $700K Flop Shot [$200K to 1st] STRATEGY The pseudo-Carolina swing now has its third tournament in the state, following the RBC Heritage and PGA Championship earlier this season. The field is set at 156, and the top 65 and ties will make the weekend. South Carolina’s Dustin Johnson (+800, $11,400) and Brooks Koepka (+900, $11,100) headline the field this week, and both are looking to make any last-minute corrections to their games before the U.S. Open next week at Torrey Pines (South). A swath of young talent fresh off the NCAA’s will be competing like John Pak (+20000, $6,900), who’s won multiple times in his college career, and the University of Texas’ Cole Hammer (+25000, $6,800), both looking to play well early in their professional careers. Congaree was designed in 2017 by Tom Fazio with tree-lined fairways and a lot of sand instead of rough, similar to courses we see in Australia and other desert settings. One of the first things you notice is the length, especially on the par 4s; three on the front-nine measure over 500 yards and two on the back measuring between 465 to 500 yards. The par 5s are no walk in the park either, each measuring over 580 yards. The par 5, fourth hole is 645 yards with sand on both sides and a water hazard that guards the right side of the green. The length and advantage of hitting it out of the fairway should translate to both Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee and long-iron proximity, especially for shorter hitters, being an important stat to consider when building rosters. The course should play hard and fast if the weather remains dry, making Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green a factor as well. The course conditions could also mean it plays shorter than the entire 7,600-plus yards. Lucas Glover (+4500, $8,600), who has a connection to Congaree, mentions that we’ll see many styles of golf if the conditions remain firm and fast, giving way to multiple styles of golf potentially playing well this week. The increase in field size back up to 156 golfers after a couple of weeks of 120 golfers means a smaller percentage of lineups getting six of six golfers through the cut. With no course history, an obvious place to start when building lineups is rostering golfers who play well on similar course styles. Tracks in Australia, Texas and some European Tour events in the Middle East like The Saudi International and tournaments in Dubai are a few that come to mind. GOLFERS TO CONSIDER Tommy Fleetwood (+2500 to Win, $9,500 on DraftKings) The Euros seem to have a slight edge coming into this week with how the course sets up, and Fleetwood, who’s playing well on the European Tour, could be in for a solid week. He’s been inconsistent with three missed cuts in his previous five events on TOUR, but with most of the top golfers taking the week off pre-U.S. Open, the 32nd-ranked golfer in the world becomes an enticing option. Looking at courses that play over 7,400 yards, Fleetwood ranks 30th in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee, 11th in approach and second in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green over the past 24 rounds. His game becomes even more impressive on fast Bermuda greens, ranking just inside the top 20 in Strokes Gained: Putting, 11th around the greens and first in Strokes Gained: Total over the same timeframe. With two top 10s and a top 20 on desert courses in the Middle East this season, Fleetwood could have that elusive wins he’s been searching for on the PGA TOUR heading into the U.S. Open. Ian Poulter (+3200 to Win, $9,200 on DraftKings) His outright number may seem like a stretch, but Poulter should like what he sees this week at Congaree GC, especially on the greens. On fast, Bermuda surfaces, Poulter ranks 16th in Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green and 11th in putting over the previous 24 rounds. His short game isn’t the concern, especially when he’s gaining 4.5 strokes on the Bermuda greens like he did at the PGA Championship; it’s his ball-striking. He’s been accurate Off-the-Tee but isn’t gaining much distance on the field. His approach game is in form, ranking 29th over the last dozen rounds, and he was stellar with his irons at the Charles Schwab Challenge when he gained 3.9 strokes at Colonial CC. Even if he’s not hitting it 300-plus yards on these long holes, we should feel somewhat confident in his accuracy with his long irons on courses over 7,400 yards, ranking 18th in proximity from 175 to 200 yards and 32nd in 200-plus yards away over the past 24 rounds. Poulter has a ton of experience playing overseas in the Middle East and has some of his best career finishes on longer courses finishing third at the WGC-Mexico at Golf Club de Chapultepec in 2019 and winning the 2018 Shell Houston Open at GC of Houston. Refer a friend and get $20 DK Dollars! Head to the DraftKings Playbook Promo page for more details! Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $700K Flop Shot [$200K to 1st] Put your knowledge to the test. Sign up for DraftKings and experience the game inside the game. All views expressed are my own. I am an employee of DraftKings and am ineligible to play in public DFS or DKSB contests. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) (IL). Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ/WV/PA/MI), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (NH/CO), 1-800-BETS OFF(IA), 1-888-532-3500 (VA) or call/text TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN). 21+ (18+ NH). CO/IL/IN/IA/NH/NJ/PA/TN/VA/WV/MI only. Eligibility restrictions apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for full terms and conditions.

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