The Fantasy Insider: Wyndham Championship
 
Aug. 14, 2007

Yes, it's true. The Fantasy Insider scooped up Woody Austin last week in another roster jiggering that showed his immense intellect as far as the rotisserie format Expert League is concerned.

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TFI had Woody Austin on the bench for the PGA Championship. Ouch. (Getty Images)
PGATOUR.com

Woodrow promptly stuck his chin into the middle of the PGA Championship fray, going toe-to-toe with Tiger Woods (with at least one foot, if not six or seven digits). Austin almost single-handedly kept Sunday's round percolating, finishing solo second.

Of course, if you've been reading during the past few weeks, there's no need to use the cue cards to deliver the next line.

Austin did this from TFI's bench.

Egad! Does the fantasy columnist know no shame when it comes to sabotaging his chances of winning the league title?

Truth be told, TFI isn't going to obsess this week (which will come as a disappointment to the junior shrinks in the audience).

He's in second place in the roto league and has the No. 2 seed locked up in match-play Public League 3359. So the Salary Cap Cup lineups could use a bit of buffing, but the main lineup there is inside the top 4,000, too.

Nope, with only one week remaining before the FedExCup Playoffs, TFI's going to become maudlin for a few moments. Because before we know it, the fantasy golf season will be over, and we'll be left with a long wait for the 2008 season.

There was a sad moment late in CBS's Sunday telecast from Southern Hills CC or in the post-round show on The GOLF Channel -- TFI watched so much golf last week on assignment that everything has started to blur.

But at the bottom of a graphic was this tidbit: 235 days to the 2008 Masters.

Drat.

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Unheralded Marco Dawson is always a threat to score a top-10. (Getty Images)

Yes, we've got the Fall Series events and then those special goodies in November and December, and that torture chamber known as the PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament. That's plenty to keep us occupied until the first full week in January, when fantasy golf returns with a vengeance.

But this moment, this week, feels like the last few minutes you're awake the night of your birthday, knowing that you'll awake the next morning, and it won't be your special day. We've had plenty of fun this season but it's gone by the way, way too fast.

So to the seven other members of Public League 3359, TFI offers a big note of thanks for enduring him this season. To the fellow members of the Expert League, an equally hearty dose of appreciation for jumping into the pool, too.

Everyone participating in the fantasy golf competitions this season has a busy few weeks ahead -- heck, there's only a couple of days remaining to register for The Playoff Challenge and noodle out which four players will carry you to fame and fortune.

Before you know it, much too quickly, we'll look up and notice the place has grown awfully quiet. So let's wade into the Wyndham Championship -- the final week of Segment 3 of Salary Cap Cup -- and get ready for the playoffs.

It's time for a strong finish.

Three players TFI might pick up/trade for to get onto his roster this week:

John Senden. TFI's been waiting for several months for the kind of performance he stitched together last week in the PGA Championship - a tie for fourth in which he never shot lower than 69 nor higher than 71. He hasn't displayed that type of consistency enough this season, but ranking third in greens in regulation (69.63 percent) will serve him well at Forest Oaks CC, where accuracy is paramount.

Kevin Sutherland. He just keeps plugging away with two top 10s in the past month (tied sixth at John Deere Classic, tied ninth at PGA Championship).

His so-so length can cause headaches at Forest Oaks CC, but he's smart enough to rely on other facets of his game. Plus he has the motivation of facing a less-daunting field than he will see over the first three weeks of the FedExCup playoffs, so jumping from 44th in points (5,888) to near or crack the top 30.

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Video Preview:  Wyndham Championship

Lucas Glover. A shaky week at the PGA Championship allowed Woody Austin to bump him from 10th in the Presidents Cup points list, but the captain's selection should keep chugging along as he has for nearly two months (four top 12s in the last six starts). He tied for sixth at Forest Oaks last year with a third-round 66, not exactly an easy accomplishment considering the course's durability. Still loving him.

One player TFI might waive/drop/trade away to get off his roster this week:

Davis Love III. Consider this the caveat: TFI took him in the "Hey, buddy" backup lineup for Salary Cap Cup but wishes he had passed over this guy. He's made one cut since The Memorial (tied sixth at WGC-Bridgestone Invitational) and the only saving grace this week is his fondness for Forest Oaks CC as the defending champ. Otherwise? Out to pasture.

Rotisserie results for Expert League at the PGA Championship: 62.5 points, first (!) by 2.0 points over T.J. Auclair. First in 300+ drives, scrambling and birdies, second in fairways hit, greens, scoring and FedExCup points. Overall: 61.5 points (second, 4.5 behind Christian Peterson). TFI won last week? And he still had Woody Austin riding in the pine? Just think how big an advantage TFI could have in the season standings if he had half a brain about who to play and when.

Rotisserie lineup for Expert League at Wyndham Championship: K.J. Choi, Mathew Goggin, Jeff Quinney, Bubba Watson.

Not in field: Woody Austin, Mark Calcavecchia, Ken Duke, Padraig Harrington, Geoff Ogilvy, Heath Slocum, Steve Stricker, David Toms. Note: Choi was an early week WD, toppling TFI's gamble of playing only three players (Quinney's also idle).

Please indulge him as TFI scrambles beginning Tuesday morning for a way to reconfigure the lineup for this week.

Match-play results for Public League 3359 at the PGA Championship: back 9 9.5, TFI 8.5. Overall: 16-11-2 (first place in West Division, by two games over Da4 Skinz). TFI looked halfway decent until a whole bunch of guys missed the cut, then he had to play only three on the weekend and surrender two crucial walkover points.

Match-play lineup for Public League 3359 at Wyndham Championship: Jonathan Byrd, Joe Ogilvie, Briny Baird, Stephen Marino. Not in field: Mark Calcavecchia, Ernie Els, Zach Johnson, Bernhard Langer, Nick O'Hern, Pat Perez, Vijay Singh, Nick Watney.

Salary Cap Cup results for the PGA Championship: The main lineup of Tiger Woods (4,950 FedExCup points, won!), Steve Stricker (221 points, tied 23rd), Tim Clark (0 points, missed cut), Lucas Glover (65 points, tied 50th) and Kenny Perry (221 points, tied 23rd) totaled 6,207 points and placed 10,661st.

Through Week 32, it totaled 27,380 points and ranked 5,341st in Segment 3. For the season, it totaled 85,285 points and ranked 3,424th overall. Another week, another winner, although having it as the No. 1 player in the world doesn't exactly set TFI apart from the masses, does it?

The "Hey, buddy" backup lineup of Ernie Els (1,870 points, third), Geoff Ogilvy (921 points, tied sixth), K.J. Choi (523 points, tied 12th), Pat Perez (359 points, tied 18th) and Bo Van Pelt (0 points, missed cut) earned 3,673 points and placed 19,072nd. Through Week 32, it totaled 16,481 points and ranked 19,508th.

For the season, it totaled 68,829 points and ranked 8,932nd overall. There's the basic inequity of selecting two distinct lineups each week: TFI could have used the point bonanza of placing Woods with most of these guys, too. Ah, them's the breaks!

Week 32 winner: Duck Hook !!!!!!!! 11,750 points.

Segment 3 leader: Tiger's Woodz 48,814 points.

Overall: The Big Stick 132,321 points.

Salary Cap Cup lineup for Wyndham Championship: Main lineup, John Senden $290,250, Lucas Glover $274,000, Kevin Sutherland $212,250, Bob Estes $144,000, Marco Dawson $75,000. Total: $995,500. "Hey, buddy" backup lineup, Davis Love III $293,500, Jonathan Byrd $270,750, Vaughn Taylor $264,250, Bill Haas $92,000, Chris Couch $75,000. Total: $995,500. Tiebreakers: 267, 1.

Have a question or comment for TFI? Send it to him at brettavery@aol.com. Please be sure to include your name, where you're from, the name of your team and, if it relates to League Championship, the name of your league and whether you're competing in the rotisserie or match-play format.