By Rob Bolton, PGATOUR.COM Fantasy Columnist "Glory's Last
Shot" doesn't refer only to the PGA Championship. Fantasy leagues
are decided this week as well.
I am in our last week of the fantasy golf league and I'm in
the lead by two points. We get points for top 20s and ties with
majors as double points. Here is my lineup: Bill Haas, Rory
McIlroy, Justin Rose, Jason Dufner. My question is who is my fifth
player? I have the following available: Peter Hanson, Ryan Palmer,
Sang-moon Bae (not really an option based on the other two). Thanks
for your help. -- Wilson Palmer jumped off the page in an
instant, so I'll circle him. For more insight, see "On a Roll" in
my
fantasy
preview. While explosive, Hanson has been a bit inconsistent of
late, and that matters when you need to get picky. Meanwhile, Bae
has not fared well ever since he sustained a sore right shoulder in
April.
The PGA Championship is our last tournament left in our
league and I have a moderate lead in first place. Left on my roster
are Bubba Watson and Louis Oosthuizen (the two I like). I have a
slight leaning toward Watson. I'm also considering Oosthuizen due
to the fact he's the hot hand. So, just wanted get your thoughts on
either since I just need a somewhat conservative approach. Thanks.
-- Keith Can't go wrong with either. In your position,
however, Watson is, indeed, the safer play. Not only has he flown
at a consistently high level for most of the year, but with the
adoption process for his son now complete and his focus centered on
golf, the timing to invest couldn't be better. Lost in your
approach is that you've found a way to connect him to
"conservative." Nicely done.
Hi Rob. I would normally avoid guys like Steve Stricker and
Luke Donald on such a long course. Will their scrambling and
putting be enough to overcome the distance disadvantage? Thanks. --
Pete Gamers need to be careful not to lean too much on any
one factor, especially distance off the tee. I've been asked many
times "what one stat matters" in a given week. There's never just
one. Until tournaments are decided by driving distance or proximity
to the hole or putting from inside five feet, to name three
examples, a combination of factors will always guide us. We must
put our trust into Kerry Haigh's setup. He's not going to want to
eliminate anyone in the field. A long, soft track can be
neutralized with choice of tee boxes and hole locations. (Think the
par-5 16th hole at Olympic Club in the final round.) While bombers
may have some advantage on par 5s this week, both Stricker and
Donald have enough short game, particularly putting, that can lead
to a victory. Moreover, no one on the planet scores A's across the
board in every aspect of his game. It may happen in a given week
(Trevor Immelman, 2008 Masters), but it's rare. And when it does
occur, we tip our cap.
No mention of Nick Watney anywhere in your rankings or
preview. Coming off five consecutive top 25s. Will his game just
not translate to Kiawah Island? I only have two starts left for him
so I could conserve them for the FedExCup Playoffs if that is what
you recommend. Just curious if he was an intentional omission.
Thanks. -- Brian More like an unintentional omission. The
fact is, there's simply not enough time and space to hit everyone
in every field, so guys will always go uncovered. It's one of the
reasons I make myself available via email and Twitter. It's also
important to spread the analysis around a bit. Others that escaped
my features this week include Ernie Els, Adam Scott, Jason Day and
David Toms, but it doesn't mean I'm sour on all, or any for that
matter depending on others on your short list. As it relates to
Watney, I've endorsed in each of his last four starts, and he
delivered. No reason to deviate now. The only caveat is that until
he closes the door in a final round, you may want to hop off the
bandwagon early if you're in a daily league.
One dilemma I have this week is between Peter Hanson and
Brendon de Jonge. I am hearing that players who play on the
European Tour will be more suited to the conditions this week but
de Jonge has had better form of late. Any thoughts of which one you
would pick would be much appreciated! Cheers. -- Aaron De
Jonge is a fantasy monster. He arrived having made the cut in his
last 14 starts, three of the last five of which going for top 20s.
If you're goal is to play the weekend, it's a closed case. However,
Hanson has proven and repeated success in the game's most coveted
tournaments. Weigh the risk against your other investments before
making a decision.
Robert Garrigus. You’re joking right? --
Christopher For the record, Garrigus is No. 12 in my
Power
Rankings this week. First, I'm not kidding. I don't have a
sense of humor. Second, if he converts, you've just written his ad
campaign.