The U.S. Open has come and gone, with Dustin Johnson as the victor. It was a wild ride at the end, and although the final ruling was a big controversial, the champion is now forever in the record books. As get ready for the next stop on the PGA Tour, the Quicken Loans National, being able to look at the information from the U.S. Open and other tournaments will be valuable as you get your daily fantasy golf roster ready for Thursday morning. Our brief analysis will get you started in the right direction.
Patrick Reed: Reed is ranked number two in this field with a salary of $11,700. However, although Reed has strong statistics, he missed the cut over the weekend at the U.S. Open. Yes, that was a much tougher field than the one he is entered in this week, but it could be signs of trouble with the golfer. If he isn’t able to perform well where he is hoping to, the odds of him doing a great job at another tournament are not that great, especially if he has a high salary like he does here. Reed leads the field here with an average fantasy point total of 70.8 per tournament, but recent struggles suggest that you should stay away from him until things are turned around.
Rickie Fowler: Fowler is the most expensive golfer in the field with a salary of $12,000. Like Reed, he was cut at the U.S. Open, but unlike Reed, he was cut from the last two tournaments before that, too. Fowler is a strong golfer, but appears to be off his game right now. He’s made the cut 10 out of 15 times this year, and he’s made the top ten on 7 occasions, but this hasn’t helped him recently. There’s no reason to think that it will help him here, either. His average stroke count of 69.6 is pretty strong though, so there is hope for the future. We just aren’t confident enough in him to put so much money into him this week.
Ryan Palmer: Palmer is an underrated golfer, but he’s finally getting the attention he deserves. From a fantasy perspective, that’s not a great thing, but it doesn’t mean you can’t draft him. His salary of $9,900 is still pretty low for his talent level, especially considering the fact that he has the second highest average fantasy point contribution in the field with a 70.6. He’s made 14 of 16 cuts, and has made the top ten twice. We really like him, and although his salary is higher than usual, we think it’s still lower than it realistically should be. That makes him a good draft choice.
Marc Leishman: Leishman has a solid fantasy background this season. His average fantasy contribution of 69.1 makes him one of the best golfers in the field, and his salary for this tourney of $10,900 definitely reflects this. Is he worth drafting? Yes, we believe so. He finished T18 at the U.S. Open, putting him at a far better spot than all but one of the people ranked ahead of him. He has a win this season, and has made the cut 13 out of 17 times this season. We are confident that he will do so again here, and that he’s a legitimate top five contender.
Jim Furyk: Furyk is ranked number three here, and after a surprise T2 at the U.S. Open, he might even be a discount at $11,300. He has only played in 6 tournaments this season, and has made the cut in 3 of them. The U.S. Open is the only top ten finish he has this year. His stroke count is high at 72.3, and his fantasy contribution is low at 40.1 per tournament, but these things are indicative of the past. Right now, he is playing great golf, and with so many other struggling going into this tourney, he could win it all.
