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DraftKings Fantasy Preview: RBC Heritage

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If you want to learn more about a way to make me look stupid, read below.

But first: We move past the year’s first major into the RBC Heritage, which has a storied history and a great atmosphere.

As usual for non-major championship events, DraftKings is offering a robust contest with a hefty $100,000 prize pool. First place cashes $10,000, and the top 7,850 positions are paid.

ENTER THE CONEST HERE!

But there’s a new twist this week!

The contest only requires a $3 entry fee, but if you sign up after reading this article and you beat my main lineup’s score, DRAFTKINGS WILL GIVE YOU YOUR $3 BACK.

That’s right, not only do you have the opportunity to defeat me and claim bragging rights, but if you’re successful, you basically entered this week’s large prize pool for FREE.

That’s a pretty sweet deal. And hey, if the $3 return policy doesn’t entice you, at least the thought of putting me in my place should, right?

Whatever the case, I’m excited for the challenge. Here are my picks for this week. I dare you to try to beat them!

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The Course

Hole 18 Harbour Town

Hole No. 18 at Harbour Town Golf Links

At Harbour Town, strategy and shot making are at a premium, a reason why players so adore the layout.

A drive in the fairway is not enough. Players have to pump it out to the correct side of the short grass, otherwise they might have the wrong angle to the green and obstacles (overhanging tree limbs, a sharp tree-lined dogleg to shape around) in their way.

The short, accurate hitter has long been identified as the player to note when it comes to Harbour Town, as the set up neutralizes driving distance on several holes due to its twists and turns, and tee shots even a little off line are heavily penalized with restricted approaches into the green or forced recovery shots.

Great approach play has also been touted here at times, with Harbour Town’s extremely small surfaces making it consistently near the bottom in GIR among Tour courses.

As usual, though, I checked in on these assumptions with the same method of compiling data on top 10 finishers over the past five years.

What I discovered was that all assumptions on driving were correct. Top-third caliber Tour drivers showed up far more often in this data set than top-third players in any other part of the game, which proves driving is the most important aspect to success at Harbour Town.

Significant accuracy was more than three times as likely to get you in the top 10 as significant length, and exceedingly short hitters showed up nearly twice as often here as longer bombers, which is incredible considering long hitters almost always beat out their diminutive counterparts in this category!

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Hole No. 14 at Harbour Town Golf Links

Approach play, though proved least effective in facilitating a high finish at Harbour Town. Yes, this is a shotmaker’s course, but that is far more on the driving aspect.

These greens are tiny and undulated, which mean plenty of difficult up and downs, and Harbour Town boasts a series of well placed bunkers that make this even harder. Short game, then, is highly important at Harbour Town, and that showed in the sample (even if driving is still paramount).

Putting was a decent predictor, below short game and above approach play.

All in all, Harbour Town favors a really good driver (predicated on accuracy) and short game player. Long hitters can still be picked, but should be avoided far more than usual.

Six-Man Roster (Last Week: 452.5 points, 4184th of 18660, WON $30!!!)

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  • Zach Johnson, $10,500
  • Luke Donald, $9,300
  • Billy Horschel, $9,000
  • Jason Dufner, $7,900
  • Brendon de Jonge, $7,900
  • Bryce Molder, $5,000
Why no Jordan Spieth?

Well…have you seen his media tour this week? He’s an incredible talent and he’s in incredible form, yet he already admitted Sunday night that he was fatigued. I can see a top 10 this week, but why waste his leading $12,500 price tag on that?

Meanwhile, Johnson enters hot with top-10s in two of his last three events, fits the great accurate driver, short game player mold perfectly and placed second here in 2012.

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Donald at $9,300?! Yes, please! His last six finishes at Hilton Head: 2, T3, T37, 2, T3, T2.

Yeah, he’s experienced a really tough season so far (one top-25 and four missed cuts in nine starts), and the brace on his right wrist at the Masters stems back to a nuisance there that convinced him to take some time off before the year’s first major. But I would pick Donald here even if he were playing with one arm.

He’s oddly not very accurate off the tee for his short length, but he’s accurate enough for Hilton Head and his short game is off the charts fantastic (especially his bunker play, crucial at this course).

Much of Donald’s decline in 2015 has to do with putting, where he’s 99th in strokes gained (unheard of from him). As I said, putting isn’t incredibly crucial at Hilton Head, but that’s a big gap from Donald’s norm of near world best.

Donald’s coach said his pupil’s putting fundamentals are perfect, the confidence is just lacking on the greens. Positive memories from these surfaces are all Donald needs to kick start his confidence with the flat stick and consequently his putting and game at Hilton Head.

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Horschel profiles well for this course and already has a top-10 here. He’s a fantastic driver of the golf ball, and although his short game is pretty poor, he’s actually quite good at getting up-and-down from fringe areas, important at Hilton Head with its run-offs.

Dufner fits even better here, in fact he’s pretty much a perfect match. He’s an impeccably accurate driver and he possesses one of golf’s best short games. He’s not in great form and is going through a divorce, but this place has him set up for a bounce back.

As for my final two, de Jonge is an elite driver, especially in accuracy, enters after a top 5 in Houston and has a very solid record at this course.

Molder is certainly a flyer with his three missed cuts in four starts, but his driver is very precise when it is working well and that meshes with Hilton Head combined with his beautiful work around (and on) the greens.

Ultimate Sleeper Roster

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  • K.J. Choi, $6,600
  • Brian Harman, $6,200
  • Luke Guthrie, $5,900
  • Seung-Yul Noh, $5,800
  • Bryce Molder, $5,000
  • Ricky Barnes, $4,200

Choi’s been solid here the last two years with a T18 and T31, but he can do so much better at this course with his driving-short game combo. Harman’s five consecutive missed cuts is harrowing but he’s got this same attractive combo for a bounce back.

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Guthrie and Noh are kind of the opposite in that I don’t love this course for them but they are really trending in the right direction of late.

Barnes once had consecutive top fives at Hilton Head, so why not take a shot there if you’re really cash strapped.

Alternate Six-Man Roster (Last Week: 420.5 points, 7954th of 18660)

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  • Matt Kuchar, $10,700
  • Bill Haas, $9,500
  • Charl Schwartzel, $9,000
  • Russell Knox, $7,300
  • K.J. Choi, $6,600
  • Luke Guthrie, $5,900

I guess Kuch is just that hill I’m going to die on. I will keep picking him until he plays well because it must come soon and I don’t want to be the idiot who misses it. His all around game also fits here and he’s the defending champion.

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Haas is performing solidly of late and has a good game for this place, even if the results haven’t shown yet.

Schwartzel doesn’t work at all with this course but just taking a stab due to his inkling of recent form and Knox really fits perfectly into that accurate driving, great short game mold. Also helps he placed T9 in this event last year.

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Kevin's fascination with the game goes back as long as he can remember. He has written about the sport on the junior, college and professional levels and hopes to cover its proceedings in some capacity for as long as possible. His main area of expertise is the PGA Tour, which is his primary focus for GolfWRX. Kevin is currently a student at Northwestern University, but he will be out into the workforce soon enough. You can find his golf tidbits and other sports-related babble on Twitter @KevinCasey19. GolfWRX Writer of the Month: September 2014

2 Comments

2 Comments

  1. Matt

    Apr 15, 2015 at 4:49 pm

    Spieth carried my team last week. His shoulders have to be sore, therefore he is on the bench this week.

  2. Brian

    Apr 14, 2015 at 10:53 pm

    Won back $6 of my $25 I put into a total of 3 lineups last week. Sooo… Two $3 lineups this week. Why not?

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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2024 Players Championship

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On the heels of Scottie Scheffler’s dominant victory at Bay Hill, the PGA Tour heads a little farther north in Florida to TPC Sawgrass this week for The Players Championship. And of course, GolfWRX is on site to get a look at what the players are playing.

We’ve already spotted a new Titleist mini driver this week, and there’s plenty more.

Check out our photos below!

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Photos from the 2024 Arnold Palmer Invitational

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GolfWRX is on the ground in Orlando ahead of the 2024 Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill Club & Lodge.

We’re assembling our usual collection of WITB photos, general galleries, and of course, gear inspired by the King himself.

We’ll continue to add to the photos below as more flow in from Florida.

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Photos from the 2024 Cognizant Classic

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GolfWRX is on site this week at the Cognizant Classic —FKA the Honda Classic.

The first leg of the PGA Tour’s traditional “Florida swing,” the Cognizant Classic continues to be contested at PGA National’s Champion Course in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, host course of the 1983 Ryder Cup and 1987 PGA Championship. The course is known for its famed “Bear Trap,” a three-hole stretch of holes that take their name from Jack “The Golden Bear” Nicklaus, who redesigned the course in 2002.

The Bear Trap includes No. 15 (a par 3), No. 16 (a par 4), and No. 17 (a par 4). All three holes involve water and have led to several big numbers from Tour players over the years.

Check out an assortment of general galleries, WITBs, and pullout albums below.

We’ll continue to update the galleries as more photos flow in from Florida!

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