The PGA Tour stays in Texas this week for the Valero Texas Open at TPC San Antonio. This is the last warm up for the golfers before they compete at the Masters next week.
Most of the top golfers in the world played in the WGC Dell Technologies Match Play last week and they are taking the week off to prepare for the Masters. The top golfers in the field this week include Corey Conners, Rickie Fowler, Tyrrell Hatton (he injured his hand last week, so he may WD), Si Woo Kim, Chris Kirk, Hideki Matsuyama (He WD last week and may do the same this week), Keith Mitchell and Taylor Montgomery. This is the last chance for many of the golfers in the field to qualify for the Masters so I expect some of the cheaper priced golfers to show up with their best game this week.
COURSE BREAKDOWN
TPC San Antonio is long (7,400 yards) with lots a large Oak trees. The golfers will have to be accurate off the tee this week or they will have trouble getting their shots out of the trees. This is one of the toughest non-major courses on the circuit. The par 5s are very long and it will be difficult for many of the golfers to reach in two shots. The course ranks 6th lowest in allowing birdies and eagles so your golfers will likely not score many points in DraftKings.
If you want to know how to find good golfers for this tournament, simply look at the results from Torrey Pines. Both courses are ridiculously long with tight fairways and a lot of wind. When we look at the past top-10 finishers at the Valero Texas Open, they all have one thing in common… they all played well at Torrey Pines.
TPC San Antonio is also a second-shot course. The golfers who scored well here in the past all have one thing in common… They led the field in Strokes Gained Approach. We need golfers with a good iron game this week.
Click here to see the course: TPC San Antonio
KEY STATS FOR TEXAS OPEN
– Strokes Gained Tee-to-Green
– Stroke Gained Approach
– Scrambling
– Strokes Gained Par 5s
– Bogie Avoidance %
TOP 30 GOLFER RANKINGS
TEXAS OPEN LINEUP STRATEGY
The Valero Texas Open has a history of producing some ugly winning lineups. Most of the golfers in this field have not been playing well this season but they know this is their last chance to get into the Masters. It is not uncommon for golfers in the $6K range to fill the top of the leaderboard at the Valero Texas Open. J.T. Poston won last year and his salary was $6,800.
I really like the $9K and $8K price ranges this week. Tyrrell Hatton and Hideki Matsuyama are two of the best golfers in the field, but I do not want anything to do with them. Both are already locked into the Masters, so they have nothing to play for other than the trophy and the money (and they already have plenty of that). Hatton is battling a wrist injury and he had to get treatment after doffing it around in the Match Play tournament last week. Matsuyama WD from a neck injury that has been bothering him all year. I expect these two golfers to check out if they get off to a slow start. I will pivot to the golfers from the $9K and $8K ranges this week.
CORE GOLFERS FOR TEXAS OPEN
DRAFTKINGS CASH CONTEST LINEUP
SI WOO KIM ($9,700): If Tyrrrell Hatton and Hideki Matsuyama are truly hurt this week, Si Woo Kim is the best player in the tournament. He has made 14 of his last 15 cuts on tour and he has made his last five cuts at the Valero Texas Open. The only problem with Kim is his putting. He has gained more strokes putting at TPC San Antonio than any other course on tour. If Kim can put this week; he can win.
CHRIS KIRK ($9,300): I want golfers who are good with their irons and it is hard to find anyone better than Kirk. He ranks No. 2 in Shots Gained Tee-to-Green, No. 11 in Shots Gained Approach, No. 6 in Ball-Striking and No. 2 overall in the key stats. He missed the cut at THE PLAYERS, but Kirk also won at the Honda Classic. Kirk has a pair of top-10 finishes in his last four trips to the Valero Texas Open. He should be a good, safe play in this weak field.
MATT KUCHAR ($9,200): Kuchar needs to win this week in order to get a spot in the Masters. I think he can get the job done. Kuchar finished second in this tournament last year and he played really well last week in the Match Play tournament. Kuchar ranks No. 4 in the key, mostly because of his hot putter. Pairing Kuchar with Si Woo Kim and Chris Kirk gives us a lot of firepower at the top of the Cash Contest lineup.
BYEONG HUN AN ($7,400): I am looking for steady, consistent golfers to pair with my three $9K golfers in the Cash Contest lineup. B-H An checks that box. He had to WD from the Arnold Palmer Invitational because he was sick, but he has made every other cut in 2023 (7 for 7). B-H An ranks No. 10 in Shots Gained Tee-to-Green, No. 15 in Shots Gained Approach, No. 3 in Scrambling and No. 10 overall in the key stats. That is good value for $7,400.
WILL GORDON ($7,200): I had to decide between Erik van Rooyen and Will Gordon for this spot in the Cash Contest lineup. I decided to go with Gordon because he is the more consistent golfer. Gordon has made four straight cuts, mostly because of his hot iron play. Gordon ranks No. 13 in Shots Gained Approach and No. 21 overall in the key stats. He made the cut in his only visit to the Valero Texas Open in 2021. He should make the cut and score well this week.
BEN MARTIN ($7,100): The most underpriced golfer on DraftKings is Martin. He has made his last five cuts, with three of them being top-15 finishes. He also has good course history. Martin has made the cut in his last three trips to the Valero Texas Open. Over his last four rounds, Martin ranks No. 9 in Shots Gained Tee-to-Green, No. 15 in Shots Gained Approach, No. 7 in Ball-Striking, No. 17 in Shots Gained Putting and NO. 7 OVERALL IN THE KEY STATS! Martin is a lock for all Cash Contests this week.
DRAFTKINGS TOURNAMENT CONTEST LINEUP
SI WOO KIM ($9,700): I may be too heavily invested in Si Woo Kim this week, but I want golfers who have a good chance to win in my lineups. Kim is my pick to win, so I am playing him. I did not realize how well he plays this course until I ran the numbers this week. He is a good golfer to build a balanced lineup around.
MATT WALLACE ($8,500): Wallace is another golfer who can win the Valero Texas Open. He won last week at the Puntacana Championship, and he has four wins on the DP World Tour. Wallace finished third in this tournament in 2021, so he has good course history. I know the narrative in Fantasy Golf is to fade a player the week after his wins, but I will play the hot streak with Wallace.
THOMAS DETRY ($8,400): I have used Detry a lot this year and I will not fade him in this weak field. Detry is coming off an eighth-place finish last week. He was known on the DP World Tour and now on the PGA Tour as a golfer who can come close to winning, buts melts down when he gets close to the lead. The same can be said about Cameron Young and we never fade him. Detry may not win, but a top-10 finish is good value at $8,400.
CAM DAVIS ($8,300): Davis looks like a terrible pick on paper. He has missed five out of his last six cuts. He told Jason Sabel on his podcast, “I was really sick the first two months of the season. Golf was the last thing on my mind. I did not practice at all, but I had to go out and try to earn some money. Really, I should not have played those events. I started to feel better at the end of March and started practicing again. It all clicked when I finished sixth at THE PLAYERS.” I expect a lot of people will look at his MC and stay far away from Davis. I like the upside he offers this week.
NICOLAI HOJGAARD ($8,000): I was hoping that Hojgaard would fly under the radar this week, but that does not seem to be the case. He is not being hyped by everyone, but a few of the popular “Fantasy Golf Experts” have him listed as their sleeper pick to win. Hojgaard has been tearing up the DP World Tour. He finished second last week at the Puntacana Championship. Hojgaard will have some ownership this week, but the value is too good to pass up for $8K this week.
AKSHAY BHATIA ($7,000): Bhatia is the perfect Tournament Contest play. He has the upside to win this tournament at $7K, but his floor is also pretty low. Bhatia ranks 30th in my key stats. I laughed when I looked deeper into his stats. He ranks in the top-five in Strokes Gained in a few events and outside the top-90 in others. It all balanced out to a top-30 ranking. He played pretty well last week, so I will take a chance with him and hope we get the good Bhatia this week. * You can play it safe and use Ben Martin in Single-Entry Lineups.
Here are my lineups for Multi-Entry Tournament Contest: (FantasyRacingTips)
FANDUEL CASH CONTEST LINEUP
FANDUEL TOURNAMENT CONTEST LINEUP
PGATOUR.COM FANTASY PICKS
* This is the third tournament of Segment 3. There are 11 tournaments in this segment, including the Masters and the PGA Championship. We will need our top golfers for the majors, so use your allocations wisely in Segment 3.
FANTASY GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP ONE & DONE PICK: SI WOO KIM (VALERO TEXAS OPEN)
Players in Fantasy Golf Championship One & Done so far: Tyrrell Hatton (60th), Adam Hadwin (MC), Rory McIlroy (MC), Will Zalatoris (53rd), Matt Kuchar (MC), Tony Finau (20), Xander Schauffele (10th), Seamus Power (15th), Max Homa (1st), Brian Harman (MC), and Corey Conners (12th)
SEASON LONG ONE & DONE PICK: MATT KUCHAR (VALERO TEXAS OPEN)
Players Used This Season in One & Done: Wyndham Clark (6th), Adam Hadwin (MC), Rory McIlroy (MC), Will Zallatoris (53rd), Sungjae Im (42nd), Max Homa (2), Xander Schauffele (10th), Jordan Spieth (63rd), Jon Rahm (7th), Taylor Montgomery (5th), Russell Henley (32nd), Seamus Power (25th), Brian Harman (2nd), Maverick McNealy (27th), Emiliano Grillo (42nd), Nick Hardy (28th), Terrell Hatton (13TH) Christian Bezuidenhout (29th), Cameron Davis (37th), Denny McCarthy (39th), Brendon Steele (CUT)
VALERO TEXAS OPEN PLAY BEST BETS
SI WOO KIM (22-1)
CHRIS KIRK (28-1)
MATT KUCHAR (30-1)
THOMAS DETRY (45-1)
NICOLAI HOJGAARD (50-1)
LONG SHOT SPECIAL: BEN MARTIN (90-1)
Good Luck This Week!!!!
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