What’s goin’ on fantasy golf fans?! WE MADE IT!!! Masters week has arrived! This is easily the best week in golf, if not sports. The “Tradition like no other” can only be made better by building DraftKings lineups and sweating every shot, from the opening drive on Thursday morning to the last putt on Sunday evening.
This year is shaping up to be one of the best Masters in recent memory. There are three clear cut favorites, but we cannot count out the rest of the field that is full of viable contenders. I am fully expecting to see a crowded leaderboard of elite names on Sunday. Let’s hope we can figure out exactly which golfers will be there come Sunday as we chase the big million dollar price. If I cannot take home the big pot, I hope one of you readers takes it down!
Augusta National.
Just saying the name of the course reminds you of this prestigious event. The course is always in immaculate condition, looks stunning on TV and I can’t event begin to imagine what it is like in real life.
There are things we know about the course that will affect our DFS decisions. Augusta’s rough is pretty much non-existant, so accuracy off the tee isn’t crucial. This is definitely a second shot golf course, emphasising the strokes gained approach stat. The greens are lightning fast and tough to hit. Scrambling, strokes gained around the green and putting will also be crucial. The scoring at Augusta happens on the Par 5s, so take a peek at golfers who score well on Par 5s. Chasing eagles can be very rewarding at Augusta. Course history will also play a factor when deciding on which golfers to roster as there are certain golfers who always pop up on the leaderboard at The Masters.
Alright, let’s get to the picks!
Staples
My favorite golfers for the week – for Cash and GPP contests.
Jordan Spieth – $11,500
You cannot go wrong when deciding between the top three golfers on DraftKings. All three are outstanding plays and I will not be shocked if they all finish inside the top five this week. Jordan Spieth is my staple at the top this week for a couple of reasons. First, he has played in The Masters three times and has not finished outside of the top two. We all know what happened last year. If the 2016 Masters was 71 holes, Jordan Spieth would have a second Green Jacket in his closet. Second, I believe will be the lowest owned out of the top three. Dustin Johnson has the elite form, Rory has the discount in price, and both are hunting for their first green jacket. I have the most confidence in Spieth to finish inside the top five, therefore he is my staple in cash, will be my most owned in GPPs and if I was betting on one of these top three golfers, Spieth is my pick to win it.
Rickie Fowler – $9,300
My actual pick to win The Masters this year and will be my one and done selection, is Rickie Fowler. Other than DJ, no one ranks out better statistically than Fowler who is dialed in on all facets of his game. You cannot point to a flaw in his game right now. He is coming in with the exact form you are looking for as well. He contended last week in an ugly tournament he could have easily gave up on and he has a win just four tournaments ago. Fowler at $9,300 will likely gain a lot of attention, but I am willing to put all the chips in the middle of the table with him.
Justin Rose – $9,200
Justin Rose is another guy I will be massively overweight on. He has the course history, recent form, and you guessed it, stats that fit perfectly for Augusta. Rose is such a steady golfer it is hard to imagine him not finishing outside of the top 10 this week. If the winds pick up this week like they are expected to, Rose should have no issue navigating the harsher conditions. He’s an Englishman, he is used to a bit of wind.
Daniel Berger – $7,300
Just in time for The Masters, Daniel Berger has found his form. Finally his putter didn’t carry him to a top five finish last week in Houston. Berger had the second most strokes gained tee to green last week, behind only Fowler. That form is much more predictive than trying to figure out if his putter will save him or not. Berger finished 10th here last season as a debutant, so the big stage clearly doesn’t faze him. I like Berger to continue his solid form and at $7,300, he makes for a fantastic cash game play.
Kevin Kisner – $6,900
If you find yourself with less than $7,000 and only one roster spot remaining, Kevin Kisner is the golfer you need to own. His form is great for a golfer priced this low. He made it out of his group at the WGC Match Play event and game 2nd at the Arnold Palmer Invitational the week prior. Kisner ranks 9th in the field in strokes gained approach and 19th in strokes gained around the green. He will likely be a popular pick this week, but I am confident enough in his ability to make the cut this week that his ownership doesn’t worry me.
Perfect Pivots
Identifying the chalk, and going elsewhere.
Jason Day – $10,200
All the talk this week has been about the big three. Then there is Jason Day who is priced above $10K but is getting no love this week due to his recent form and off course issues. Day only has 21 tags this week on FanShareSports.com, compared to the other $10K+ golfers who all have over 50 tags. Day could easily bounce back and use the good news about his mother’s illness as a launch pad. We know Day has a history of leading us to believe he is less than 100% and then he comes out and wins. Day is worth a look in the large GPP formats and could be on the winning millionaire maker lineup if the big three disappoint.
Charl Schwartzel – $7,900
The 2011 Masters champ is flying under the radar this week. Charl Schwartzel is being overshadowed by other golfers in his price range – Louis, Casey and Hatton are all being mentioned way more than Charl on FanShareSports. Charl is entering this week with decent form, making three straight cuts and a 6th place finish at Valspar and performed well at the match play. There are a lot worst]e options than pivoting to a former Masters winner, unless that pivot is Mike Weir.
Ross Fisher – $6,900
Ross Fisher was a late addition to The Masters field, so he will definitely be overlooked and less hyped up than other golfers. His pricing fell into a crowded range with Adam Hadwin and Kevin Kisner. Fisher is a lesser known player on the PGA Tour as he is a predominately a Euro Tour golfer, which will help suppress his ownership further. In his last three comparable field strength events, all WGCs, Fisher has results of T6, T3 and T5. Pretty damn good. I also like the fact that he is an Englishman who will be use to playing in windier conditions.
Automatic Fades
Bad course fit? Terrible recent form? Players I will have no shares of.
Justin Thomas – $8,900
It’s impossible to roster every golfer at the top this week, so Justin Thomas is getting the axe. It’s been awhile since we have seen consistent form out of JT and his wins from the early part of the season have long been forgotten about. He has missed three of his last four cuts (in cut events only) and does not have the around the green stats required to make up for his mediocre green in regulation numbers.
Branden Grace – $7,500
Branden Grace has struggled at Augusta his last three tries, after his debutant result of T18. He doesn’t have a single stat that is working in his favor this week that may give him a chance to make a run. Grace is also coming in with very poor form, with recent missed cut and withdraw in his last four events. He will likely be avoided across all contests this week with good reason. If you want to get cute with lineup construction, look passed Branden Grace.
So you got burned?
Recently got screwed by a missed cut or a poor performance? Looks like a good time to jump back on.
Henrik Stenson – $9,500
One last time Stenson. One last time. Henrik has been brutal the last few weeks and will likely be completely ignored at The Masters. His price is way too high for his recent form and course history. His betting odds are also much greater than the other golfers priced in this range. Want to really zig when everyone else is zagging? Roster Stenson, who has four straight top 25 finishes at The Masters. He could easily find his game this week, but you will must be prepared for the potential disappointment Stenson is becoming known for.
Rafa Cabrera Bello – $7,200
The love we all use to have for Rafa Cabrera Bello seems to fizzled away. There is a new Spaniard in town that had taken away all of the attention. Bello missed the cut last week at the Shell Houston Open when he was a very popular pick. Now, priced way down, RCB has only been mentioned eight times on FanShareSports. He finished T17 last year in his first trip to Augusta, not a bad result for a Masters rookie. He isn’t known as a winner, but RCB could easily finish inside the top ten this week while being owned by less that 10% of the field.
“The Price is Wrong, Bob!”
The pricing on these golfers doesn’t seem right.
Jon Rahm – $8,600
This one is a lay-up. Rahm is clearly the most underpriced golfer in the field, and if you needed to read this to figure that out then you should probably consider to lower your investment in this week’s contests. Rahm will be one of the highest owned golfers this week. We are all aware of his incredible form and skill set. He should perform very well this week even though it is his first trip to Augusta. Keep in mind that every course Rahm has played this season was the first time he has played that event. There seems to be no course that can over match this young phenom.
Marc Leishman – $7,100
Even though Marc Leishman was a late addition to the DraftKings player pool, they still got his price wrong. His odds suggest he should be priced about $500 more, as does his recent form. He won his last time out at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Leishman also has a top five finish at The Masters back in 2013. Take advantage of the obvious value Leishman provides.
Thanks for reading my Masters preview article! You can follow me on Twitter @EPattersonFS for more golf and betting talk! Also, make sure you check out @FanShareSports. They track and curate content produced across the DFS Golf industry, and highlight which players are being tagged or talked about the most.
Good luck this week everybody and enjoy the best week in golf!