Fantasy Insider: The Greenbrier Classic

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As a fantasy manager, regardless of the sport, one of the goals is to make your league's playoffs. In most cases, leagues have deadlines for trades and drop/adds, both preceding the postseason. The idea here is that you conclude your regular season with the same team that starts the playoffs. You play with what got you there. This isn't too different than the rules of the actual sports themselves and truly underscores the spirit of the final fragment of your journey.

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While the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup are formatted differently than those in team sports -- not to mention that there are five official events afterwards, in the form of the Fall Series -- rotisserie leagues, salary leagues and the like should consider an individual drop/add moratorium beginning with The Barclays and extending until a golfer is eliminated from the Playoffs. (Deadlines in trade leagues should also fall before the first tee ball is aloft at The Barclays.) It also prevents cherry-picking from a small bushel.

If it seems like an extreme measure, the moratorium will likely only affect a handful of guys that sneak in. We all saw what Heath Slocum was able to accomplish a year ago, so it's best not to leave any free agents on the market.

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TOP PICKS: See Power Rankings for Charlie Wi.

Kenny Perry -- Fantasy golf takes a back seat to most priorities in our lives (let's hope so, right?), and one of them deserves recognition this week. For every birdie he circles at The Greenbrier, Perry will be donating $2,000 to a fund established for the 29 families that were affected by the mining tragedy near Montcoal, W.Va., in April. As a native of neighboring Kentucky, Perry has an emotional bond with the communities in the Mountain State. The Greenbrier owner, Jim Justice, will match Perry's contribution. For the full story, click here.

Perry ranks 21st in greens in regulation and sixth in ball-striking this year, but he's a horrid 160th in putting. He's missed just two cuts in 16 starts, but has just one top-10 (SBS Championship). No question everyone involved wants him to fire at pins all week, but Perry, who turns 50 on Aug. 10, ranks 121st in birdie average. Go get 'em, Kenny.

Steve Marino -- The University of Virginia product has been relatively quiet since consecutive top-5s in February. In fact, he doesn't have any top-10s since. He's such a fantasy stud that his owners are getting antsy for that first victory. However, sometimes the chase for the carrot is more valuable in our world than taking a bite from it. The Greenbrier is his first start since finishing T55 at the British Open. His numbers across the board are down slightly compared to 2009, but he makes for a worthwhile bench option in Yahoo!'s very shallow Group A this week.

Martin Laird -- I've dropped in on the Scot a few times this year, and he continues to prove that numbers don't tell the whole story -- not that I ever wrote or said they did. He's 17th in greens in regulation, so he's seen more birdie chances than most of his peers. However, Laird is 173rd in putting and 193rd (of 194) in three-putt avoidance. He should contend during weeks like this, but I can't endorse him. Put it this way: when he figures out how to minimize the damage on the greens, don't be shocked if he's a regular on leaderboards.

TOP PICKS: See Power Rankings for Greg Chalmers, Jim Furyk, Charley Hoffman, J.B. Holmes, Jeff Overton and Nick Watney.

Sergio Garcia -- There seems to be so much more to his life than anyone outside of his inner circle knows. First, there's no timetable for anyone in recovering from a broken heart, so a connection to that and his extended subpar play cannot be ruled out. Second, despite chatter about an early retirement (which he has rebuked) he still posted top-25s at the U.S. (T22) and British (T14) Opens. And he's missed just one cut in the U.S. this year.

Kevin Sutherland -- I endorsed him in this space last week, so hopefully Yahoo! gamers were invested during his 62 in the second round. Incredibly, it was the first time that Sutherland went sub-63 since joining the PGA TOUR in 1996. He continues to lead the circuit in greens hit. He's also ninth in ball-striking, 14th in scrambling and 15th in sandies, but his putting (123rd) continues to niggle his fantasy owners. Alas, he's still too valuable as filler to ignore.

Michael Letzig -- It was a season devoid of a top-20 payday; that is, until he closed with a 65 at St. George's on Sunday to finish T4, his second-best finish since joining the TOUR in 2008. He led the RBC field in putting (1.604) and birdies (23), but ranked outside the top 50 in fairways and greens hit. Until he proves otherwise long-term, you still have to exert concern over his wrist, too. For now, make the mental note that he just might be a tad undervalued entering the stretch run for the Playoffs.

Kevin Na -- His T27 at the British Open was his best finish in five career starts in majors, and he's coming off a T13 in Canada, where he was under par every day. With eight first-time winners in the last 14 events, the 26-year-old, seven-year PGA TOUR member has to be wondering when it's his turn. He's an emotional player on a bit of a roll right now, so it just might be sooner than later. His lack of distance off the tee won't be an issue this week.

Webb Simpson -- The sophomore is kind of the antithesis of putting four solid rounds together; that is, he most definitely has done exactly that recently, but his paydays don't quite reflect it. To wit, he's gone T21-T37 in his last two starts, stringing eight scores of par or better together during that stretch. All that's missing is the one go-low kind of day.

TOP PICKS: See Power Rankings for Brendon de Jonge, Trevor Immelman and Matt Kuchar.

Carl Pettersson -- Given his pedigree, I have zero worries that there will be any semblance of a letdown after stealing the RBC from Dean Wilson's grasp. Pettersson finished the week T3 in birdies (he also had two eagles) and T4 in putting. A 60 never hurts the stats, but you gotta trust a guy that gets hot with a long putter.

Richard S. Johnson -- No doubt anyone on site seeking out RSJ at The Greenbrier this week will want to see which caddie is on the bag -- regular looper Lance Ten Broeck or sudden sensation Anders Timell. I'm chalking up the win to good vibes in Johnson's hometown, so I'm cool this week.

Matt Bettencourt -- In the wake of his breakthrough in Reno, for the Canadian Open I wrote, "Expect a major swoon this week." Well, he sure showed me. Despite ranking T66 in greens hit and T11 in bogeys, he wasn't over par in any round and finished T17. He has a history of making his hay in a short period of time, so going back to this well is a logical approach.

Ricky Barnes -- He chased a T44 at St. Andrews with a T37 at St. George's. I'm sensing a little burn-out (not regression), but none of us, including Barnes, have been in this situation with him in the past. In fact, I'm still having trouble identifying him as a force, but six top-10s don't lie.

Matt Jones -- Sat just inside the top 10 after 54 holes in Ontario, and then closed with a 73 that included a bogey-par-bogey-double bogey stretch on the front nine. It wasn't uncharacteristic, given that he's outside the top 100 in final-round scoring average (and inside the top 15 through the first three rounds), so I'm ignoring it ... until Sunday.

Chris DiMarco -- Oh, no he di'n't. Oh, yes he did! With a T10 in Reno and T24 in Canada, DiMarco has posted consecutive top 25s for the first time since October 2008. He's also cashed in his last six starts. His whole continues to be greater than the sum of his parts, which defines his reputation as a scrappy sort, and he's apparently feeling something, but he's still not top-two quality for the Yahoo! game.

Johnson Wagner -- He and Virginia Tech teammate, Brendon de Jonge, are two of just three All-American golfers in the university's history. (Two-time All-American, Tim Collins, is the other. He's in the VT Hall of Fame.) Wagner has cashed 12 of 20 times this year, and is fighting for his TOUR card. Abstain.

Rob Bolton is PGATOUR.COM's fantasy columnist. His views do not necessarily reflect those of the PGA TOUR. To contact Rob, please e-mail him at FantasyInsider@charter.net.