PGA DFS Playbook Fortinet Championship: Top DraftKings & FanDuel PGA DFS Picks
Published: Sep 13, 2023
Congratulations to Victor Hovland on winning the 2023 Tour Championship and the FedEx Cup Title. He did basically everything this season except win a major which I think is only a matter of time. We are still waiting for the announcement of the 2023 PGA Player of the Year and there’s a lot of ways you could go from Scottie Scheffler to Jon Rahm to Viktor Hovland to Rory McIlory, all would be deserving. If I was going to pick, I’d give it to Scottie Scheffler for the second straight season. I know he did not win a major but if you look at how ridiculously consistent he was all season, it’s hard to ignore and he also dominated basically every statistical category except putting. I would but mad though if any of those players took it home.
We begin a new PGA Tour season this weekend with a lot of unanswered questions. The PGA and LIV Tours are supposed to be merging but we have not heard anything about how that will look. So, we are basically in a wait and see. Onto the golf going on this weekend..
The Fortinet Championship has been the first event of the PGA Tour season for about a decade now. The fall portion of the PGA Tour schedule has been reduced from years past. We have this weekend’s event in Napa, then the Ryder Cup at the end of September followed by the Sanderson Farms in the first weekend in October.
This is the first event of the 2023-2024 PGA Tour season which means the field will not be top tier. We do have Justin Thomas, Webb Simpson, Sahith Theegala, Kevin Kisner, Cam Davis, Matt Kuchar, and more. We will get our first look at the new Korn Ferry Tour graduates at this event. A few names to keep your eye on are Eric Cole, Samuel Stevens, Carson Young, Kevin Yu and Tano Goya. It should be a fun season.
The tournament is played at Silverado Country Club in Napa, California. It is a relatively short course by PGA Tour standards at 7,203 yards and a par 72. It is tree lined with tough bunker locations, big greens and a little bit of water as well. Players must stay dry this week.
Max Homa is the two-time defending champ, Stewart Cink won this event in 2020, Brandon Steele has won on this course twice, and Cameron Champ took it down in 2019. One thing all of these golfers have in common? Great drivers of the golf ball. Along with the driver, you want to see good approach numbers and players who can avoid the big number. While putting is always at a premium on the PGA Tour, this week will not be a challenge especially with these big greens. These players will be pin hunting all weekend. Cink won this event at 21-under par but Homa won it at 19 and 16 under over the last two years. I think the winner will come in around 18 under this weekend.
We’re in Napa Valley this weekend, the weather looks absolutely perfect as you would expect. We will see temperatures in the upper 70s with partly cloudy skies throughout the weekend. These players will compete with winds tickling double digits but nothing they can’t handle.
Good luck this weekend!
Pos (Click to sort ascending) | Player (Click to sort ascending) | DK (Click to sort ascending) | Draft % (Click to sort ascending) | FD (Click to sort ascending) | Draft % (Click to sort ascending) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
G | Max Homa | 11000 | |||
I mean you can fade him if you want but it’s incredibly hard to avoid a guy who won this event in back to back years. I will have plenty of shares of Max Homa this weekend. This play is completely up to you if you want to be smarter than the crowd and avoid that ownership. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Stephan Jaeger | 10200 | |||
I’m going to ride with Jaeger over Justin Thomas who will get more ownership because of his name. Jaeger before his season ended at the FedEx St. Jude had made 13 straight cuts and 6 of those were Top 25 finishes. While he doesn’t have any high finishes at this event, the game seems to be coming around at just the right time. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Eric Cole | 9500 | |||
This guy had a terrific season and played all the way into the BMW Championship. We have seen him flash on leaderboards with his fantastic iron play especially on approach and putting. Cole made every cut from the Colonial through the end of the season and at one point he had 4 straight finishes of 31st or better. I don’t know how many people know about him or have them on their DFS radar, he should be on yours. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Beau Hossler | 9300 | |||
Hossler made the FedEx Cup Playoffs and ended at the FedEx St. Jude Championship with a 20th. It has to feel good knowing you’ve got your tour card already locked in for the next season and he will have a chance to qualify for some big events like Pebble Beach and Riviera for the 2024 season over this fall portion. Beau usually feasts on short courses like this one, which is why he has 3 straight Top 25 finishes at Silverado. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Taylor Montgomery | 8400 | |||
It was an incredibly inconsistent rookie season for Taylor Montgomery. Early in the 2022-2023 season, he looked like a shoe-in for the rookie of the year but then things went downhill. Taylor started his rookie season with five straight finishes of 15th or better including a 3rd at last year’s Fortinet. He finished the season ranked 2nd in Putting and 21st in Around the Green. I’d say he is risky because of the price tag you have to pay but I believe in his talent. Game Type: GPP | |||||
G | Chez Reavie | 8500 | |||
We’ve got another short course specialist here. There are not many people that have been better at Silverado in their career than Chez. Before his missed cut at the event last year, he had made the cut in 7 straight trips including a 3rd place back in 2020. Reavie also made the cut in 9 of his last 10 starts with a 4th place at the Travelers. He’s basically an older version of Beau Hossler, thrives on and around the greens. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Doug Ghim | 8000 | |||
The slump he suffered from early in the 2023 season cost him a chance to go to the FedEx Cup Playoffs but few guys played better than he did down the stretch. He didn’t even crack a Top 60 in any event until nearly April. The driver and approach games were sensational to finish the season and the hope is that he can keep it going into this fall portion of this schedule. He did make the cut at this event last year but finished 72nd for the weekend at Silverado. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Davis Thompson | 7900 | |||
I’ve been taking a lot of short hitter and course managers this week but I do have a feeling about Davis Thompson. Maybe I’m getting the feeling because he finished 9th in his debut at Silverado last year. He is a big hitter off the tee but what I like about him is he can keep it straightish. The positive is even if he doesn’t hit the fairway, the rough ain’t bad here. He’ll have an advantage over a lot of players in this week’s field because of his length. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Dylan Wu | 7600 | |||
If you were reading my playbook down the stretch of the regular season, he was in there a lot. He was continually a great value in the 6K range but this week, we’ve gotta play a bit more. Wu had 7 Top 25 finishes last season and finished 86th in the FedEx Cup Standings, which would have been good enough to make the playoffs the year before. What makes him elite in a field like this one, he finished last season ranked Top 60 in both Tee to Green and Approach. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Garrick Higgo | 7700 | |||
Here is another guy who can hit the ball a ton but it is not always straight, actually it’s often all over the place. I spoke about how the rough at Silverado is not very difficult for these players. This is another guy who finally started finding his groove at the end of the season with 4 straight finishes of 35th or better before a missed cut to finish the start at the Wyndham. While he missed the cut in his debut last year at this event, I see positive signs for his game. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Matti Schmid | 7000 | |||
Schmid ended the 2022-2023 PGA Tour regular season with two Top 25 finishes at the 3M Open and Wyndham. Unlike a lot of these guys after their PGA Tour season ended, he actually kept playing by teeing it up on the DP World Tour. He notched another Top 25 at the European Masters and made the cut at the Irish Open just last week. Schmid made the cut in his debut at this event in 2022. He is elite off the tee (60th) especially in this field and on the greens (57th) for the season. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Preston Summerhays | 6800 | |||
This 21 year old from Arizona State has all the tools to be a star on the PGA Tour. The 12th ranked amateur in the world and just represented Team USA at the Walker Cup where he went 2-1-1 at St. Andrews. This is a nice DFS flier play with tons of upside. Game Type: GPP |
G | Max Homa, G | 11000 | |||
I mean you can fade him if you want but it’s incredibly hard to avoid a guy who won this event in back to back years. I will have plenty of shares of Max Homa this weekend. This play is completely up to you if you want to be smarter than the crowd and avoid that ownership. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | 10200 | ||||
I’m going to ride with Jaeger over Justin Thomas who will get more ownership because of his name. Jaeger before his season ended at the FedEx St. Jude had made 13 straight cuts and 6 of those were Top 25 finishes. While he doesn’t have any high finishes at this event, the game seems to be coming around at just the right time. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Eric Cole, G | 9500 | |||
This guy had a terrific season and played all the way into the BMW Championship. We have seen him flash on leaderboards with his fantastic iron play especially on approach and putting. Cole made every cut from the Colonial through the end of the season and at one point he had 4 straight finishes of 31st or better. I don’t know how many people know about him or have them on their DFS radar, he should be on yours. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Beau Hossler, G | 9300 | |||
Hossler made the FedEx Cup Playoffs and ended at the FedEx St. Jude Championship with a 20th. It has to feel good knowing you’ve got your tour card already locked in for the next season and he will have a chance to qualify for some big events like Pebble Beach and Riviera for the 2024 season over this fall portion. Beau usually feasts on short courses like this one, which is why he has 3 straight Top 25 finishes at Silverado. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | 8400 | ||||
It was an incredibly inconsistent rookie season for Taylor Montgomery. Early in the 2022-2023 season, he looked like a shoe-in for the rookie of the year but then things went downhill. Taylor started his rookie season with five straight finishes of 15th or better including a 3rd at last year’s Fortinet. He finished the season ranked 2nd in Putting and 21st in Around the Green. I’d say he is risky because of the price tag you have to pay but I believe in his talent. Game Type: GPP | |||||
G | Chez Reavie, G | 8500 | |||
We’ve got another short course specialist here. There are not many people that have been better at Silverado in their career than Chez. Before his missed cut at the event last year, he had made the cut in 7 straight trips including a 3rd place back in 2020. Reavie also made the cut in 9 of his last 10 starts with a 4th place at the Travelers. He’s basically an older version of Beau Hossler, thrives on and around the greens. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Doug Ghim, G | 8000 | |||
The slump he suffered from early in the 2023 season cost him a chance to go to the FedEx Cup Playoffs but few guys played better than he did down the stretch. He didn’t even crack a Top 60 in any event until nearly April. The driver and approach games were sensational to finish the season and the hope is that he can keep it going into this fall portion of this schedule. He did make the cut at this event last year but finished 72nd for the weekend at Silverado. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | 7900 | ||||
I’ve been taking a lot of short hitter and course managers this week but I do have a feeling about Davis Thompson. Maybe I’m getting the feeling because he finished 9th in his debut at Silverado last year. He is a big hitter off the tee but what I like about him is he can keep it straightish. The positive is even if he doesn’t hit the fairway, the rough ain’t bad here. He’ll have an advantage over a lot of players in this week’s field because of his length. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Dylan Wu, G | 7600 | |||
If you were reading my playbook down the stretch of the regular season, he was in there a lot. He was continually a great value in the 6K range but this week, we’ve gotta play a bit more. Wu had 7 Top 25 finishes last season and finished 86th in the FedEx Cup Standings, which would have been good enough to make the playoffs the year before. What makes him elite in a field like this one, he finished last season ranked Top 60 in both Tee to Green and Approach. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | 7700 | ||||
Here is another guy who can hit the ball a ton but it is not always straight, actually it’s often all over the place. I spoke about how the rough at Silverado is not very difficult for these players. This is another guy who finally started finding his groove at the end of the season with 4 straight finishes of 35th or better before a missed cut to finish the start at the Wyndham. While he missed the cut in his debut last year at this event, I see positive signs for his game. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | Matti Schmid, G | 7000 | |||
Schmid ended the 2022-2023 PGA Tour regular season with two Top 25 finishes at the 3M Open and Wyndham. Unlike a lot of these guys after their PGA Tour season ended, he actually kept playing by teeing it up on the DP World Tour. He notched another Top 25 at the European Masters and made the cut at the Irish Open just last week. Schmid made the cut in his debut at this event in 2022. He is elite off the tee (60th) especially in this field and on the greens (57th) for the season. Game Type: CASH & GPP | |||||
G | 6800 | ||||
This 21 year old from Arizona State has all the tools to be a star on the PGA Tour. The 12th ranked amateur in the world and just represented Team USA at the Walker Cup where he went 2-1-1 at St. Andrews. This is a nice DFS flier play with tons of upside. Game Type: GPP |