The Byron Nelson tournament is the next stop on the PGA Tour. After a big weekend with The Players Championship last weekend, the field is a bit thinner. But that doesn’t mean that drafting a daily fantasy golf team is going to be a no brainer. Because of that, we’ve put together our own fantasy analysis on some of the top ranked golfers that are entered for the event. Give it a read before you finalize your roster in order to give yourself a better chance of winning your league.
Jordan Spieth: Spieth is easily the top ranked golfer going into this event, with a salary of $12,500. This is a weak field, but Spieth is a mystery to us this year. He has underperformed in most of his big tournaments, except for The Masters, where he faded fast in the last round of play. He has only won once this season, and has made the top ten 4 times. Spieth’s strength is that he has a low stroke per round total with his 70.1, and that he has made the cut 8 out of 10 times this season. That’s a good sign going into this field, but when you’re spending this much on someone, you want a guaranteed top ten performance. We don’t have that with Spieth, so we need to pass on him. If you’re going to draft him, know that he has potential, but not enough for us.
Dustin Johnson: There is far better value in this field other than Spieth, and the top contender is Johnson. His salary of $11,900 makes him seem like he’s a ways off of Spieth’s potential, but he is only .1 of a stroke behind Spieth with an average of 70.2, has a higher fantasy point average per tournament with his 87.9, and has made the top ten 5 times. When it comes to the cut, he’s a perfect 10 for 10. He’s $600 cheaper than Spieth and a far better candidate for your roster. We recommend him as your top draft pick.
Matt Kuchar: Kuchar is ranked number four in this field, but he’s number two in our minds. He has an average stroke count of 70.3 per round, is averaging 70.7 fantasy points per tournament, and has made the cut 12 out of 13 times. He has 3 top ten finishes, which is a bit low, but he’s been consistent when it comes to scoring fantasy points. His salary is $10,500, which is what you should be expecting from a top to mid tier golfer, and that’s exactly what he is. There’s not a ton of hidden value here, but rather straight up consistency. That’s fine with us.
Ryan Palmer: Palmer’s been pretty quiet this year, but his stats are impressive. He’s made the cut 12 out of 13 times this season, has 1 top ten finish, and is averaging 71.5 fantasy points per tournament. That’s really consistent, even if he has been low profile. He is putting up mid to top tier stats, but at a low tier price of $8,900. His stroke count of 70.5 per round is one of the most competitive in the field. If you’re looking for value, this is a golfer that you should be strongly considering. He’s probably not top ten material, but he’s going to give you points. At this price, it’s hard to pass him by.
Charl Schwartzel: Schwartzel is priced at $10,100, which is just about perfect for him. He has made the cut 6 out of 7 times, has 2 top ten finishes, and is averaging 70.5 fantasy points per tournament. His stroke count of 70.6 per round is a bit higher than we’d like, but no one is under 70 for this tournament, and this isn’t as big of a deal as it would be against tougher competition. We think Schwartzel has top ten potential for this one, especially after taking so much time after The Masters. He did poorly there, but he should be ready to perform now.
