This weekend, the PGA Tour stops in Avondale, Louisiana, for the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. As we start getting closer to the rest of the Major Championships for the season, it’s going to be very important to keep watching tournaments like this so that we can get a feel for how the regulars will perform in bigger fields. As you get your daily fantasy golf roster ready to go, here is our take on five of the top entered golfers that you may be thinking of drafting.
Justin Rose: Rose won this tournament last year, and he’s the number two ranked entrant this year. His salary of $11,800 might seem a little high, but between him being the defending champion and a strong start to the season, and a strong T10 finish at The Masters, Rose is having a much better season than most people predicted him having. Honestly, we’d like to pay a lot less for him, but in this field, this price seems right. Rose is a top three threat, and that is undoubtedly going to have a premium place on it. He has been averaging 78.9 fantasy points per tournament, has made the cut 7 out of 8 times, and has made the top ten on 4 occasions. We like him a lot here, but if you don’t want to pay for him, we understand and empathize.
Charley Hoffman: After Hoffman’s exciting win last weekend in Texas, he needs to be included on this list. According to DraftKings, he’s the number four ranked golfer in this field with a salary of $10,500. Hoffman is a talented golfer, and he did have a good season last year, but we’re not sure if he’s ready to compete at the top yet. He’s made 9 out of 12 cuts this year, but his average fantasy point value per tournament is a little low at 60.4. That is with him scoring over 110 last weekend, too. His stroke count per round is a bit higher than we’d like at 71.2, and last week was his first top ten finish. He’s good, but he’s far too expensive right now for what he’s capable of if you exclude last week. We’re passing on him, but will be looking at him throughout the season.
Jason Day: Day is the number one ranked golfer here, and he’s the most expensive at $12,500. That’s extremely expensive, but this is a pretty weak field, and Day is one of the most consistent golfers in the field. He is averaging 76.6 fantasy points per tournament, has an average stroke count of 70.5, and has made 6 of 7 cuts. He has 3 top ten finishes, one of which was a win. Day is pricey and we will pass on him because of this, but he’s a justifiable purchase in most cases, as long as you account for this with the rest of your lineup.
Rickie Fowler: For us, Fowler is the best choice in the field. He’s ranked number three with a salary of $11,100. But he has the highest fantasy point total of any of the top ten golfers at 82.4. He has an average stroke count of 69.6, and has made the top ten on 8 of 10 occasions. He’s made the top ten 6 times. He’s at a discount this week because he missed the cut last week, but that’s fine with us. We’ll take cheap talent any time.
Smylie Kaufman: Kaufman is an underrated golfer, but one you should still strongly consider. His salary of $9,500 is attractive considering he’s made 12 of 14 cuts and has an average fantasy score of 72.5. His T29 at The Masters was far more impressive than it sounds, too. He had a horrid Sunday, finishing 9 over par for the day, but 7 over total. That would have put him in possible top ten contention if he had finished stronger. This is a weaker field, and Kaufman has potential to shine here.
