Tour News
Fantasy Golf Cheat Sheet: Travelers Championship
Luck is an unquantifiable statistical category. It sure would be an interesting breakdown if you could see who just needs to throw their hands up or shrug their shoulders at the amount of balls that find the cup out of plugged lies or roll up on the green despite unenviable lies.
But really what happens is that professional golfers make their own luck. There’s an element of skill involved with making something appear lucky. However, that definitely wasn’t the case when Ken Duke’s approach shot on the 10th hole of last year’s Travelers Championship hit a tree branch off the left side of the green. The ball ricocheted to five feet and Duke birdied instead of dropping a shot or two. His good fortune turned into his first career win. While his tournament wasn’t made on that shot alone — he shot 65-66 on the weekend — it illustrates how fine the line is between winning and losing.
Unless you’re Martin Kaymer, of course, who seems hellbent on reminding everyone he once ascended to No. 1 in the Official World Golf Rankings. Kaymer’s wire-to-wire U.S. Open victory should demonstrate to fantasy owners the beauty of a dark horse with confidence and pedigree.
This is the final week of the Yahoo spring segment, so don’t be afraid to get a little crazy and go off the beaten trail. If you’re ahead use the chalk, but understand everyone behind you will be looking for the Martin Kaymer’s of the week. You may need a little luck to win, but hopefully you’ve at least positioned yourself to be in contention. Here’s a look now at some golfers you may want to consider or stay away from as you make your lineup’s. It’s Risk, Reward, Ruin.
RISK
Never before in the history of a major championship has anyone done what Kaymer did in shooting back-to-back rounds of 5-under par. It was an impressive display to really put everyone else in a huge hole. What’s important to note about Kaymer is his composure and his understanding of his natural shot shape. The less thinking you have to do about mechanics on a golf course, the better you’ll perform. Take a look for some of those guys who seems to be figuring things out with their swing and are now just playing instead of pondering.
Ken Duke
Duke, 44, returns to defend his title, which was the first of his career. Known as one of the “good guys” on Tour, Duke turned a strong 2012 in which he had five T7s and a T5 into a more rewarding 2013. Notice I didn’t say better, because Duke’s quality results have been less consistent since. In fact, since his win, he only has two finishes inside the top 20 and that came at the beginning of this season. Here’s hoping last week’s solid tournament at Pinehurst No. 2 gets him going. He’s shot several low rounds at TPC River Highlands in addition to his winning tournament, so it’s not out of the realm of possibility to do it again.
Marc Leishman
The Aussie picked up his first and only career win in 2012 at TPC River Highlands, firing a final-round 62 to snag the title. He backed that up with a T30, hasn’t missed a cut in Cromwell and seems destined to shoot at least one 66, if not multiple. TPC River Highlands is a shorter course and longer hitters haven’t had a problem navigating it, which has been suiting Leishman’s game. In addition, his last four tournaments have displayed more finesse, highlighted by a T3 at the Byron Nelson.
Freddie Jacobson
While the last two tournaments haven’t been to Jacobson’s liking, he previously posted a T3 at the Crowne Plaza Invitational, which was hisd third top-10 of the year. Working backwards to 2009, his last four results in Cromwell have been a T30, T8, win and missed cut. His putting has again been his strongsuit, which would be the risk in running him out there this week. History suggests he likes these greens and that would be good news for gamers needing a sleeper pick.
Charley Hoffman
Hoffman has missed just one cut this year, while racking up four top-10s and nine top-25s. With a strong history of success at TPC River Highlands, including a T7 last year, T2 in 2012, and a low round of 61, Hoffman has an eye on his first win of the year. He’s also finished T43, T27 and MC here, and statistically is hitting it long, finding greens (13th in GIR) and making putts (26th in Strokes Gained-Putting). There’s little to suggest he won’t make at least a little noise this week and may very much be off the radar in Yahoo group C.
Brian Harman
Not the best former Georgia golfer in the field (Bubba Watson), but he continues to show promise and the same collegiate expertise that’s led Harris English, Brendon Todd, Russell Henley and Chris Kirk to put up wins early in their career. Coming off a T6 at the FedEx St. Jude Classic, Harman will be looking for his first Tour victory. He has four other top-10s this season and has been using his putter with effectiveness. He tied for 24th in his debut, shooting 70-65-69-69, and tied for 51st last year, shooting 69-69-69-72.
REWARD
Built on a bluff along the Connecticut River, TPC River Highlands isn’t a long course at just 6,841 yards. The par-70 track was originally designed by Pete Dye. Lush and green, it will yield a lot of birdies, which is a key in picking golfers this week since those known for scoring will do so. A 68 is fine on one day, but four days of that won’t accomplish a win. I’m going to lace my lineup with guys capable of shooting 62 and burning up par-5s for eagle. The best thing will be watching the finish on holes, Nos. 15-18, as they navigates a four-acre lake, which puts water in play along with tighter fairways.
Bubba Watson
Pinehurst No. 2 clearly befuddled Watson, whose game revolves around banging it long and, in many cases, over trouble. He should find scoring a lot more optimal this week where he can sit on a traditional gameplan. TPC River Highlands was the site of Watson’s first Tour win in 2010. He does hope to avoid another triple-bogey meltdown like last year which cited a bit of caddy bashing after a fourth-place result and a blown two-shot lead on the 16th. In 2012, he finished T2, plus Watson also owns T38, T14 and T6 tallies over his career. With the year he’s having, one missed cut on a tough course acts as an outlier and the norm is in the top five.
Jason Day
You’ve got to go all the way back to 2008 to find the last time Day played the Travelers Championship. That week, he shot 67-67-66-71 to finish T27. A round of 4-under on the final day would have netted him a T5 in his debut. Day returns to Cromwell after a solid U.S. Open, which he navigated without problem from his thumb. Another long hitter, he’s also accurate off the tee, hits GIR and putts well enough. He absolutely has the potential to be in the top 10 and that makes him dangerous.
Matt Kuchar
I find myself in a final segment week where I’m going to have to burn a start and use Kuchar. He’s too good to leave off my roster right now while trying to hold a minuscule lead. I’m not exactly sweating it though since Kuchar shot four rounds in the 60s to finish T8 in ’12. A couple other appearances of ’08 resulted in a T52 and ’05 in a T36. With Kuchar, you have to judge his last three years since that’s when he became an elite and consistent threat, including this past week when he held steady for yet another top-10.
Graham DeLaet
Ready to see DeLaet pick up his first win? This is as good a place as any given TPC River Highlands’ propensity in rewarding those yet to find Tour love. Duke, Leishman, Jacobson and Watson all did so. Could DeLaet keep the run going? He missed the cut in his debut, came back in 2012 and opened with 68-68 before falling back with a final-round 75, but then finished solo third last year, shooting 65-70-65-69. DeLaet is still leading the PGA Tour in GIR and bombs it long off the tee as well. He’s made changes to his putting stroke this year, which would ideally reveal itself this week.
Hunter Mahan
It’s rare, but no pro golfer is immune from a blunder. While Mahan’s miscue in hitting the wrong ball cost him a made cut at the U.S. Open, it does nothing to deter use of him at the Travelers where he’s the all-time earnings leader. First, we’re talking about the 2006 runner-up, ’07 champion and ’08 runner-up. Last year, he opened with a 62 on the way to a T24. He shot 61 in ’12 and ended T11. In ’11, he shot 63-66 in the middle of a T43. And then in ’09, Mahan shot 66-70-63-64 on the way to a T4. It’s clearly a course he’s comfortable on and his swing has begun to solidify after a few changes last year.
RUIN
Rickie Fowler’s inclusion in last week’s Ruin portion was not a mistake. With the swing changes he’d undergone and spotty success record, it was justified, not just by me, but by other fantasy writers as well. Fowler channeled his inner and outer(wear) Payne Stewart and pulled out a fabulous U.S. Open. Now, he just needs to retain some level of consistency. That’s one of the biggest highlights in separating who goes in which section and for why. For as much as a golfer may have a singularly good tournament, becoming one who rides a wave of good play for several months in a row is what really gets people salivating, while simultaneously bringing in the money. This week’s group covers a broad spectrum of those criteria. They may play their way out of the argument, but it’s where they start their tournament— as wary selections capable of burning their owners.
Patrick Cantlay
It’s rare for an amateur to set a course record, but that’s exactly what Cantlay did three years ago, shooting a 60 at TPC River Highlands. But this will be just the second start of 2014 for the youngster, who has been out for nearly a year with a stress fracture in his back. That could possibly be the worst injury to recover from for a golfer, especially a young one. He played the Byron Nelson in May, shooting 70-69-71-76 to finish 71st. He shot 75-67 to miss the cut in 2012 and finished T24 in ’11 when he opened with 67 before shooting the record. He’s a good talent, but Cantlay’s health and time on the course is a critical decision maker this week.
Cameron Wilson
Looking for another Cantlay, it could be Wilson who just captured an NCAA individual championship for Stanford University. He’ll be making his professional debut, however, and I’m always wary about throwing an amateur or a rookie into the mix on my fantasy golf team unless it’s on a course where everyone will score and the best pros won’t compete, such as the Puerto Rico Open. We’re just a tad farther north than the Caribbean Sea, so I’m going to shelve Wilson and look for other options coming out of Yahoo group C with a bit more seasoning.
Bobby Gates
Let’s see if I can jinx myself. Do not use Gates. He’s missed 11 of 12 cuts this year, pulling in just a T80 at the Farmers Insurance Open. That was coincidentally the only time he shot a single round in the 60s. He has one round in the 60s at TPC River Highlands, but has missed the cut all three times he’s played. There’s quite literally nothing that he’s done right statistically, but I’ll be watching in earnest to see if he wants to stick it to me.
Ben Crane
In contrast to Gates, Ben Crane broke a winless streak with a huge victory at the FedEx St. Jude Classic. Truthfully, his year hadn’t been great to that point with a T9 at the Humana Challenge being far and away his best result since May of last year. Again, consistency is the key here. I want to see Crane back that win up with a made cut and even a top 25 before I begin public endorsement. For now, Crane is still a guy with a T75, T59 and WD in his history in Cromwell. If he begins changing the lack of greens he hits, he sets up well to start being consistent. I’ll wait and see.
Sergio Garcia
There’s normally no reason to leave Garcia out of your lineup, especially since he falls in Yahoo group C, but the Spaniard is dealing with a knee injury right now that could be disaster should he withdraw medically. He already did that once in May and has been limiting his practice rounds pre-tournament. Should swelling not subside, Garcia could choose to rest and a WD in group C would hurt. This would be a good week to lay back and use someone else, especially since his U.S. Open didn’t show the crispness he exhibited at The Players and in previous tournaments
If you’d like to further discuss fantasy selections, you can comment below or find me on Twitter @bricmiller. Best of luck on your week and thanks for reading!
This week’s picks
Yahoo!
Group A: B. Watson (S), M. Kuchar
Group B: H. Mahan (S), J. Day (S), G. DeLaet, D. Johnson
Group C: C. Hoffman (S), B. Koepka
(Last week: 140 points; Spring segment: 1,639; Spring rank: 2,719; Season points: 3,632; Full Season rank: 814 – 99th percentile)
PGATour.com
B. Watson, J. Day, G. DeLaet,. C. Hoffman
(Last week: 277 points; Season: 5,909; Rank: 3,984)
Golf Channel
Travelers Championship
Group 1: B. Watson
Group 2: H. Mahan
Group 3: K. Duke
Group 4: H. Swafford
U.S. Women’s Open
Group 1: I. Park
Group 2: M. Wie
Group 3: B. Lincicome
Group 4: J. Rosales
(Last week: $668,005; Season: $11,087,812; Mulligan: $78,287; Rank: 8,666 of 39,983)
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Tour Photo Galleries
Photos from the 2024 PGA Championship
GolfWRX is on site this week at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky, for the PGA Championship.
While we see fewer equipment changes and new gear seeding at major championships, we get a look at custom gear and looks into the bags of players we rarely see, which is just as exciting. In the case of the PGA Championship, this means a look at the gear some of the PGA Professionals who qualified for the tournament will be gaming, and LIV players, such as Jon Rahm and Patrick Reed.
Check out links to all our albums from Valhalla below and check back throughout the week as we continue to update.
General Albums
WITB Albums
- Michael Block – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Patrick Reed – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Cam Smith – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Brooks Koepka – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Josh Speight – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Takumi Kanaya – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Kyle Mendoza – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Adrian Meronk – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Jordan Smith – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Jeremy Wells – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Jared Jones – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- John Somers – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Larkin Gross – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Tracy Phillips – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Jon Rahm – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Keita Nakajima – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Kazuma Kobori – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- David Puig – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Ryan Van Velzen – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Brad Marek – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Chris Gotterup – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Rich Beem WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Phil Mickelson – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Matt Dobyns – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Lucas Herbert – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Jason Dufner – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- John Daly – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Taylor Gooch – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Dean Burmester – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Joaquin Niemann – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
- Dustin Johnson – WITB – 2024 PGA Championship
Pullout Albums
- Ping putter covers – 2024 PGA Championship
- Bettinardi covers – 2024 PGA Championship
- Cameron putter covers – 2024 PGA Championship
- Max Homa – Titleist 2 wood – 2024 PGA Championship
- Scotty Cameron experimental putter shaft by UST – 2024 PGA Championship
- Joaquin Niemann – new Ping putter – 2024 PGA Championship
- Brooks Koepka’s new Cameron putter – 2024 PGA Championship
- Rickie Fowler’s Cobra bag and Aerojet driver – 2024 PGA Championship
- Super Stroke grip – 2024 PGA Championship
- Tiger Woods – 2024 PGA Championship
- Michael Block’s new TaylorMade “Proto” 7-iron, from address – 2024 PGA Championship
- Odyssey putter covers – 2024 PGA Championship
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News
Photos from the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
GolfWRX is live this week at the Wells Fargo Championship as a field of the world’s best golfers descend upon Charlotte, North Carolina, hoping to tame the beast that is Quail Hollow Club in this Signature Event — only Scottie Scheffler, who is home awaiting the birth of his first child, is absent.
From the grounds at Quail Hollow, we have our usual assortment of general galleries and WITBs — including a look at left-hander Akshay Bhatia’s setup. Among the pullout albums, we have a look inside Cobra’s impressive new tour truck for you to check out. Also featured is a special look at Quail Hollow king, Rory McIlroy.
Be sure to check back throughout the week as we add more galleries.
General Albums
- 2024 Wells Fargo Championship – Monday #1
- 2024 Wells Fargo Championship – Tuesday #1
- 2024 Wells Fargo Championship – Tuesday #2
WITB Albums
- Akshay Bhatia – WITB – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Matthieu Pavon – WITB – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Keegan Bradley – WITB – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Webb Simpson – WITB – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Emiliano Grillo – WITB – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Taylor Pendrith – WITB – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Kevin Tway – WITB – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
Pullout Albums
- New Cobra equipment truck – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Rory McIlroy – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- New Cobra equipment truck – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Eric Cole’s custom Cameron putter – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Custom Cameron putter – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Matt Kuchar’s custom Bettinardi – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Justin Thomas – driver change – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Rickie Fowler – putter change – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Rickie Fowler’s new custom Odyssey Jailbird 380 putter – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Tommy Fleetwood testing a TaylorMade Spider Tour X (with custom neck) – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
- Cobra Darkspeed Volition driver – 2024 Wells Fargo Championship
See what GolfWRXers are saying about our Wells Fargo Championship photos in the forums.
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Tour Photo Galleries
Photos from the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
GolfWRX is on site this week in McKinney, Texas, at the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson (FKA the AT&T Byron Nelson).
Last year at TPC Craig Ranch, Jason Day ended a five-year winless streak. J-Day is in the field again, as are Jordan Spieth, Tom Kim, and Will Zalatoris.
We have our usual assortment of general galleries, WITBs, and pullout albums for your perusal. As always, we’ll continue to add links to additional albums as they make their way to us from the Lone Star State.
Check out links to all our photos below.
General Albums
- 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson – Monday #1
- 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson – Monday #2
- 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson – Tuesday #1
- 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson – Tuesday #2
- 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson – Tuesday #3
WITB Albums
- Pierceson Coody – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Kris Kim – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- David Nyfjall – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Adrien Dumont de Chassart – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Jarred Jetter – North Texas PGA Section Champ – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Richy Werenski – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Wesley Bryan – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Parker Coody – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Peter Kuest – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Blaine Hale, Jr. – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Kelly Kraft – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Rico Hoey – WITB – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
Pullout Albums
- Adam Scott’s 2 new custom L.A.B. Golf putters – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Scotty Cameron putters – 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
- Ben Griffin playing Maxfli golf ball
See what GolfWRXers are saying in the forums.
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