The next stop on the PGA Tour is the Quicken Loans National. This is a much smaller tournament than some of the others we’ve seen recently, and that means smaller crowds at the daily fantasy sports websites. But the real fantasy golf fans will be out, and that means that the competition is going to be tougher than normal.
But that’s okay. We’re here to help you out and give you some ideas on how to draft a stronger daily fantasy golf roster. Below are some of the top draft choices that you might be considering for Thursday morning’s kickoff to the tourney, along with some brief analysis.
Rickie Fowler: Fowler has had a strong last few tournaments, with the U.S. Open being one of his strongest first three rounds we’ve seen lately. Even though he faded a bit in the final round, he was still able to grab a T5 finish. He’s averaging 70.1 strokes per round and has made 11 out of 13 cuts, with 6 top ten finishes. Fowler’s salary is the only thing holding us back from saying he’s an easy draft pick. At $12,000, it will be hard to justify including him on your roster. If you do draft him, you will want to find a few good value picks down at the bottom of your roster.
Justin Thomas: Thomas is the number three pick overall according to DraftKings, with a salary of $10,900. That’s a small price based on what Thomas is capable of, but at this point, we are not seeing the performances that we’d like to back up such a steep salary. After an amazing round 3 at the U.S. Open, Thomas fizzled. That’s often an indicator of issues, and we ignored those last weekend when we shouldn’t have. He was cut after a couple lackluster rounds. Thomas is a strong golfer, but this funk that he’s currently in should be a warning sign to those considering drafting him. If his salary were $1,000 lower, he’d be a decent value. But we’re fading him without hesitation here.
Marc Leishman: Leishman isn’t a big name on the Tour yet, and his price tag of $9,800 is going to be a surprise to a lot of people. But look at his stats: he has made 13 out of 15 cuts, he has an average stroke count per round of 70.3, and he has a win to his credit. He finished T27 at the U.S. Open, and T17 at the Travelers Championship last weekend. Both of those tournaments had much stronger fields than this one. He is a top ten threat, and the $9,800 is actually a good deal against the current competition. He could be a strong number two choice on many rosters, or a decent number one pick on others.
Brendan Steele: Steele is having a strong season, even if his averages are a bit low. He’s made 13 of 13 cuts so far this season, and has 3 top ten finishes. His stroke average per round stands at 70.7, which is a bit high, but in this field, that shouldn’t be a huge issue. He had a T14 finish at Travelers last weekend, and this field is a bit lighter than that one. We expect him to finish in the top 15 with ease, and to be a threat to the top ten. His salary of $8,900 seems really low in that light.
Byeong-Hun An: Let’s get An’s biggest weakness out of the way first: his stroke count per round is high at 71.1. But, if you can look past that, you will see that he has made 14 out of 15 cuts, has made the top ten 3 times, and has a high fantasy point average per tournament at 65.4. His stroke count might be high, but he has shown a great deal of consistency this season. And with a salary of $8,600, he might be the best value play you make this weekend.
