DFS PGA PLAYBOOK - TRAVELERS CHAMPIONSHIP
Published: Aug 03, 2016
What a finish to the PGA Championship! How can you not love seeing the best in the world doing best on Sunday at a major? That 2-iron on 18 was just unreal but it still wasn’t enough for Jason Day to collect his second consecutive Wanamaker Trophy. You also have to feel good for a player like Jimmy Walker earning his first major victory.
After the high of such an awesome finish to the season’s last major, the reality is starting to set in that it was indeed the LAST major of the season. We have to wait nine months to participate in another DFS PGA Millionaire Maker on DraftKings. April can’t get here soon enough!
Let’s talk Travelers Championship which usually follows a major, just not the PGA Championship. Since 2007, we have seen this tournament take place the week after the U.S. Open in June but the Olympics have messed everything up.
TPC River Highlands gave itself a face-lift for the 2016 edition of the Travelers. They removed 50 bunkers while upgrading the remaining 69. Several trees were removed, fairways were narrowed, greens were redone and a whole lot more. The course remained 35-35 for a Par of 70 and still measures out to just 6,841 yards. They have added a lot of risk-reward opportunities for these golfers, which means the better course managers will have an added advantage this week. There will be a learning curve but not for long with the best players in the world.
The course is not a long one which means more short hitters can throw their hats in the ring this week. This theory does go out the window when you see how dominant Bubba Watson has been in this tournament. The key to victory this weekend is getting on the green in two and giving yourself as many birdie opportunities as possible. I have filled the playbook with strong SG:TG (Strokes Gained: Tee to Green) players, these are the best ball strikers in the world. I’ve also targeted proximity as well because what’s getting on the green in two if you are 30 feet from the cup. Putting is always important but these greens are not known to be incredible difficult which is why a player like Russell Knox makes the list despite his putting struggles.
I am going to continue to give my One-And-Done selection each week but damn I can’t believe the luck I have had when I’ve picked a top player. Rory McIlory, Justin Rose, Phil Mickelson, and Hideki Matsuyama have all missed the cut when I’ve finally decided to play them. Aaron in the comment section made the right call last week by fading my Rory pick. I apologize, it has been a rough season.
Oh sidenote, I mentioned in the playbook Jon Rahm’s girlfriend, who is an 11 … Well, judge for yourself …
And finally, we can’t go a playbook without mentioning our spiritual guide, Paige! She is in a great mood after a terrific weekend at the PGA Championship. There was a lot of good in the playbook last week from a value play like Tyrrell Hatton to a top tier play like Branden Grace. I don’t know many people who had Jimmy Walker in their write ups, much less winning the darn thing, but we live to fight another day …
GOOD LUCK THIS WEEK!
DFS PGA PLAYBOOK:
| PLAYER | ACES | DRAFTKINGS | BREAKDOWN |
| Bubba Watson | $6,100 | $12,300 | The Good: 2 Wins, a T2 & a 4th Here. The Bad: 1 Top 15 in last 6 Starts. Making cuts but crapping out over the weekend |
| Branden Grace | $5,900 | $11,500 | Love this guy's game. GREAT Ball Striker! T4 at the PGA Last Week (Led the field in Proximity). 6 Top 10s in 15 Starts. |
| Zach Johnson | $5,500 | $10,200 | 8/10 Cuts Made with 5 Top 25s (6th last year). He's finished in the Top 20 in 4 Straight Starts. He's better on shorter tracks |
| Webb Simpson | $5,100 | $10,000 | 6/6 Cuts Made at the Travalers (2 Top 15s). 4 Top 15 finishes since the end of May. T13 last week at Baltusrol. GPP ONLY |
| Jon Rahm | $5,500 | $9,800 | Everyone is talking about the kid broke most all of Mickelson's records at ASU! T2 in Canada, 2 weeks ago. Girlfriend is an 11. |
| Gary Woodland | $5,100 | $9,100 | T12 at the Byron Nelson woke him up. He's Made 5/7 Cuts since with 2 Top 5s, 2 Top 12s & 1 Top 25s. 28th in Greens Hit |
| Francesco Molinari | $5,100 | $8,900 | T22 last week at the PGA & T25 at the Travelers last year. He is 20th in SG:TG & 32nd in Scoring Average. Don't LOVE the price. |
| Russell Knox | $4,900 | $8,600 | 6 Top 25s in last 10 starts (2 Majors & the Players included). 4th in GIR & T9 in Proximity. Just hope the putter holds up! |
| Brendan Steele | $4,900 | $8,500 | The Majors crushed him but move on. He has 4 Top 25s in 5 Trips to the Travelers (68 scoring avg). 5 Top 20s since Late April |
| Marc Leishman | $5,050 | $8,200 | Won the Travelers in 2012 & is 5/5 in Cuts Made. He has also cashed in his last 7 events. CASH or GPP Playable |
| Martin Laird | $4,750 | $8,000 | T21, T7 & T2 in his last 4 Starts coming in. Finished T15 at the Travelers last year. He should make for a nice GPP play |
| Ryan Moore | $4,800 | $7,800 | Finished Top 15 in 5 of his last 6 Trips to the Travelers BUT no Top 30s in his last 7 Starts. Course History or Current Form? |
| Soren Kjeldsen | $4,750 | $7,700 | 16/19 Cuts Made (4 Top 10s - T9 at The Open). 12th in Driving Accuracy, 40th in SG:Putting, & 56th in Scrambling. |
| Tyrrell Hatton | $4,750 | $7,700 | Hope you listened & used him last week (T10) & T5 at The Open. The Brit is on FIRE! 9 Top 20s Worldwide since February. |
| Padraig Harrington | $4,950 | $7,400 | 5 Cuts Made in last 6 Weeks (3 Top 25s - T13 at Baltusrol). 5/6 Cuts Made at the Travelers with a T5 & T11. |
| Fredrik Jacobson | $4,650 | $6,800 | Won the Travelers in 2011 & is 4/4 Cuts Made since (Par or Better in all 20 rounds). Quiet this season but reliable |
| Russell Henley | $4,700 | $6,400 | No one expected a T22 at the PGA after Back-to-Back MCs. Travelers Debut but we like his 35th in GIR & 22nd in Proximity. |
| Michael Thompson | $4,550 | $6,200 | Streaky player with a T4 & T14 in his last 2 starts. Finished 4th here in 2011. T13 in Proxomity & No One is Talking About Him |
| Brendon De Jonge | $4,450 | $6,000 | TERRIBLE start but turning it around, T11 & T26 recently. 2 Top 10s at the Travelers (2010 & 2012). Nice under the radar play. |
| Si Woo Kim | $4,500 | $5,700 | WAY too good of a player to be priced this low. Throw him in a few GPPs w/out fear. Played well despite MC at the PGA |
DRAFT KINGS OPTIMAL LINEUPS:
| DRAFT KINGS CASH | PRICE |
| Zach Johnson | $10,200 |
| Gary Woodland | $9,100 |
| Brendan Steele | $8,500 |
| Marc Leishman | $8,200 |
| Ryan Moore | $7,800 |
| Si Woo Kim | $5,700 |
| DRAFT KINGS GPP | PRICE |
| Bubba Watson | $12,300 |
| Webb Simpson | $10,000 |
| Marc Leishman | $8,200 |
| Tyrrell Hatton | $7,700 |
| Brendon De Jonge | $6,000 |
| Si Woo Kim | $5,700 |
FANTASY ACES OPTIMAL LINEUPS:
| ACES CASH | PRICE |
| Zach Johnson | $5,550 |
| Gary Woodland | $5,100 |
| Marc Leishman | $5,050 |
| Branden Steele | $4,900 |
| Fredrik Jacobson | $4,650 |
| Si Woo Kim | $4,500 |
| ACES GPP | PRICE |
| Bubba Watson | $6,100 |
| Webb Simpson | $5,100 |
| Marc Leishman | $5,050 |
| Tyrrell Hatton | $4,750 |
| Si Woo Kim | $4,500 |
| Brendon De Jonge | $4,450 |
ONE-AND-DONE OPTIMAL SELECTION:
| ONE AND DONE PLAY | FINISH |
| Hyaundai: Patrick Reed | 2nd - $688,000 |
| Sony: Harris English | T56 - $12,818 |
| CareerBuilder: Bill Haas | T9 - $162,400 |
| Farmers: Nick Watney | Missed Cut |
| Phoenix: Ryan Moore | T11 - $149,500 |
| Pebble: J.B. Holmes | T11 - $143,500 |
| Northern Trust: K.J. Choi | T5 - $258,400 |
| Honda: Luke Donald | T61 - $13,115 |
| WGC-Cadillac: Dustin Johnson | T14 - $120,000 |
| Valspar: Kevin Na | T22 - $52,959.09 |
| Arnold Palmer: Francisco Molinari | T9 - $170,100 |
| Puerto Rico: Scott Brown | T5 - $109,500 |
| Shell Open: Charley Hoffman | T33 - $36,720.00 |
| The Masters: Phil Mickelson | Missed Cut |
| RBC Heritage: Matt Kuchar | T9 - $147,500 |
| Valero: Billy Horschel | T4 - $233,740 |
| Zurich: Justin Rose | Missed Cut |
| Wells Fargo: Gary Woodland | T24 - $62,232.50 |
| Players: Sergio Garcia | T54 - $24,150 |
| Byron Nelson: Ryan Palmer | Missed Cut |
| Colonial: Chris Kirk | T15 - $117,250 |
| Memorial: Hideki Matsuyama | Missed Cut |
| St. Jude: Retief Goosen | T12 - $125,550 |
| U.S. Open: Adam Scott | T18 - $120,978 |
| Quicken Loans: Jim Furyk | T21 - $64,773.75 |
| Bridgestone: Zach Johnson | T10 - $167,750 |
| British Open: Martin Kaymer | T36 - $42,900 |
| RBC: William McGirt | T59 - $13,039 |
| PGA Champ: Rory McIlory | Missed Cut |
| Travelers: Bubba Watson | ??? |
Player News
Justin Thomas arrived at the Travelers Championship amidst a bit of a slump but left with 25 birdies to manage a T9 finish, his first top 10 since March.
Brian Harman tossed together a 6-under 64 on Sunday at the Travelers Championship, posting a piece of second place on the final leaderboard (-20).
Chez Reavie started the day just one shot off the pace but stumbled with a 1-over 71 to drop back to a share of fourth place on the final leaderboard.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler steadied a 5-under 65 on Sunday at the Travelers Championship, ending the week on 19-under 261, good for a slice of fourth place.
Rory McIlroy raced out of the gate on Sunday at the Travelers Championship before slowing his pace to record a 6-under 64, ending his week in a share of seventh place (18-under 262).
Patrick Cantlay gave the leader a small scare down the stretch was swallowed two late bogeys to finish on 19-under this week at the Travelers Championship, four shots off the winning tally of Keegan Bradley.