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Fantasy Insider: Mayakoba Golf Classic
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November 12, 2019
By Rob Bolton, PGATOUR.COM
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Joaquin Niemann has just one top-30 in four starts since breaking through at Greenbrier. (Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)
Perhaps you saw my tweet.
#HotOffTheServer
— Rob Bolton (@RobBoltonGolf) November 7, 2019
Clear your schedule.
More than a million new pages of ShotLink data for all eligible tournaments since 2004 have been launched on the STATS page.
For example, below is what appears for the leaders in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee at the 2019 PLAYERS.
Have fun! pic.twitter.com/N58SJpLvdpThat's right. As of about a week ago, tournament-specific rankings for all applicable statistics have been added to PGATOUR.com.
This is the first extensive release of stats since the injection of all of the granular data you've reviewed and used for a few years. For the excessively nerdy – raises hand – just wait until ShotLink Plus is unveiled.
All right now. Gotta get your feet back on the ground, head back in the game and nose back in the books.
After a rare week off, the PGA TOUR season resumes with the Mayakoba Golf Classic. Both it and The RSM Classic next week are full-field events with a 36-hole cut of low 65 and ties. (Used to that new snip yet?)
ShotLink is not used at El Camaleón Golf Club at the Mayakoba Resort, but the Seaside Course at Sea Island Resort will measure every stroke. However, because the Plantation Course, which co-hosts the first two rounds, is not lasered, ShotLink data from Seaside only will not be used in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf.
All multiple-course tournaments are treated equally this way. To determine for which tournaments ShotLink data will not contribute to fantasy scoring, scroll to Appendix A on How to Play of the landing page.
PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf
My roster for the Mayakoba Golf Classic (in alphabetical order):
Tony Finau
Brian Gay
Billy Horschel
Charles Howell III
Russell Knox
Denny McCarthyYou’ll find my starters in Expert Picks.
Others to consider for each category (in alphabetical order):
Scoring: Cameron Champ; Lanto Griffin; Si Woo Kim; Rory Sabbatini; Scottie Scheffler; J.J. Spaun; Vaughn Taylor; Aaron Wise
Driving: n/a
Power Rankings Wild Card
Jason Day … This is becoming a popular spot in my preview material for the Aussie who celebrated his 32nd birthday on Tuesday of this week. So much for a hopeful boost in form after winning the MGM Resorts The Challenge. Nope, or at least not yet. He preceded it with a T31 in South Korea and chased it with a T22 at the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP. Good, not great. We expect better, especially at his price in DFS.
Draws
Joaquin Niemann … A gimme and no doubt will be owned considerably, but the Presidents Cup captain's pick has just one top-30 in four starts since breaking through at Greenbrier. Default to the strategy of your game, both in format and how you think your opposition will play it.
Cameron Champ … This is his first start since the passing of his grandfather, Mack. That's fact over friction as it concerns anything quantifiable, but the closure, peace and focus that the life experience yields should inspire the recent winner of the Safeway Open. It also doesn't hurt that he placed T10 here last year with a career-best 62 in the second round.
Aaron Wise … Fresh off a T3 in Bermuda where he ranked T5 in both total driving and greens hit. Finished T10 at Mayakoba last year by leading the field in putts per GIR and putting: birdies-or-better. Also ranked T2 in par-3 scoring for the week.
Rory Sabbatini … Now 43 years of age, he's back in the spotlight as a threat at El Camaleón where he's 6-for-8 with a pair of top-fives, although it's been six years since the more recent. Rather, his consistently strong form over time and balanced attack elevates him into above-average value in DFS.
Brian Stuard … The two-time runner-up at Mayakoba (2010, 2013) also placed T9 just two years ago. Arrives having cashed in his last five starts, two of which for a top-20. Among the most precise off the tee on TOUR.
Vaughn Taylor … He's a better putter than he is a ball-striker, but it hasn't mattered here. He's perfect in six trips to Mayakoba and continues to contribute almost every time he plays. Only one missed cut in his last 14 starts of which 11 included a cut. Red meat for DFSers.
Scott Harrington … He's not a veteran, at least on the PGA TOUR, but the rookie is a talent of a certain age. He'll turn 39 on Saturday. He's also best with his irons and already has posted three top-25s this season, including a T2 in Houston.
Doc Redman … At just 21 years of age, he's not a veteran, but he can strike his ball. That he's a first-timer isn't a big deal, either. John Huh (2012) and Harris English (2013) were tournament debutants when they prevailed here. Redman also is 5-for-6 on the season with a pair of top-25s.
Scott Brown … Although he's in a slump, he gets enough of the benefit of the doubt because he's proven it so much over the years. Give him tropical climes and he's money. Since 2013 at Mayakoba, he's 6-for-6 with two top-10s and a T16 contributing.
Rafael Campos
Dylan Frittelli
Russell Henley
Si Woo Kim
Pat Perez
J.T. Poston
Chez Reavie
Xinjun ZhangFades
Brendon Todd … He put on a clinic in Bermuda in his return to the winner's circle, but gamers need to see it again before we're going to consider him in for short-range investment. Indeed, he was earning our attention at times as he clawed his way back to the PGA TOUR, and the victory was nothing short of remarkable. It still feels surreal. He's also failed to make any noise in three previous appearances at Mayakoba.
Kevin Kisner … I don't care about his pair of missed cuts and a T60 (2013) in his first three trips to Mayakoba because he still hadn't found traction with his career at the time. However, he missed last year's cut with poor ball-striking. Yes, he was dusting off the rust after a two-month break at the time and he fared well in the long-term tee to green last season, but he tilts toward trap status. Just wait until he pegs it at The RSM Classic.
Emiliano Grillo … Speaking of traps, he's presented on a silver platter, albeit tarnished. While he's finished a respective T10, T9 and 15th in the last three editions at Mayakoba (his only appearances to boot), he can't get out of his own way on the greens. The positive spin is that his ball-striking is rewarded this week, but he's done nothing to give reason to the notion that his frustration with the putter is a thing of the past.
Charley Hoffman … He's 0-for-4 at Mayakoba since winning the tournament in 2014. Say what you want about extreme coincidences for a guy who's been reliable often and elsewhere, but that's a trend no matter how you define it.
Patton Kizzire … The breakthrough champ in 2017 has missed 16 cuts this year. Given our absence of confidence, nothing else matters until he displays some consistency on the other side of the spectrum.
Kyle Stanley … As a talent who has profiled as a tee-to-green machine over the years, that he's just 2-for-5 with one top-55 finish at Mayakoba (T13, 2011) is a red flag.
Brian Harman … The lefty has been a poster boy of great putters, so it's not surprising that he's without a top-25 at Mayakoba in six tries. Worst yet, his best showing in this last five was but a T40 in 2015.
Scott Stallings … Coming off a T18 in Bermuda, but he's 0-for-4 at Mayakoba and hasn't appeared since 2016.
Harry Higgs … Small sample sizes as they are, he finished second in Bermuda on the strength of his short game and putting. I'm bullish in the long-term, but allow his debut at El Camaleón to prove that I also should be in the short-term.
Wyndham Clark … Best known for his muscle and putting, it's no wonder why he's 0-for-2 at Mayakoba. He's also scuffled in the last three months with a T8 in South Korea as his only impressive outing.
Aaron Baddeley
Kevin Chappell
Keith Mitchell
Robert StrebReturning to Competition
Graeme McDowell … The 2015 champ called it quits before his second round of the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP after opening with an 81 three weeks ago. An explanation wasn't released. It was a disappointing turn of events what with a pair of top-20s immediately prior. Because of his success at El Camaleón, he won't glide under the radar, but the WD in his last start could scare your opposition. In that void, pounce.
Chris Kirk … The 34-year-old couldn't have picked a better spot for a playing retreat to get back inside the ropes than Mayakoba Resort. He took six months off for treatment of anxiety and depression that he was self-medicating with alcohol. Armed with 11 starts on a Major Medical Extension to collect 280.392 FedExCup points and retain status, merely connecting with the competitive juices again is important, but that rides in the backseat to the invaluable in-person support that he'll receive until developing a routine.
Ian Poulter … He withdrew at the midpoint of the WGC-HSBC Champions due to discomfort caused by a cyst in his wrist. After having it drained in Orlando, he's back in action at this week's Nedbank Golf Challenge in South Africa. Currently 24th in the Race to Dubai entering the penultimate event of the European Tour season.
Notable WDs
Rickie Fowler … He wasn't in the field when it published on Friday, but he was scheduled to play until a bacterial infection contracted during his honeymoon forced him to change his plans.
Anirban Lahiri … Also withdrew prior to the third round of the Bermuda Championship due to an injury related to a rib. If you engage in any earnings-based format, remember that what he received for making the cut in Bermuda is unofficial, last-place money, so it will not be reflected in his earnings for the season.
John Huh … This will mark the first time he's been unable to compete at El Camaleón since his breakthrough victory as a rookie in 2012. Eleven starts remaining on his Major Medical Extension.
Power Rankings Recap – World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions
Power Ranking Golfer Result
1 Rory McIlroy Win
2 Hideki Matsuyama T11
3 Xander Schauffele 2nd
4 Justin Rose T28
5 Billy Horschel T24
6 Tony Finau T53
7 Adam Scott T11
8 Paul Casey T38
9 Tyrrell Hatton T14
10 Ian Poulter WD
11 Patrick Reed T8
12 Sungjae Im T11
13 Tommy Fleetwood T53
14 Matt Wallace T60
15 Bernd Wiesberger T49
16 Byeong Hun An T14
17 Henrik Stenson T20
18 Corey Conners T20
19 Keegan Bradley T24
20 Charles Howell III T36
Wild Card Cameron Smith T60Sleepers Recap – World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions
Golfer Result
Michael Lorenzo-Vera T38
Joost Luiten T34
Robert MacIntyre T17
Andrea Pavan T49
Erik van Rooyen T38Power Rankings Recap – Bermuda Championship
Power Ranking Golfer Result
1 Denny McCarthy T15
2 Doc Redman T35
3 Scottie Scheffler T3
4 Mark Hubbard T41
5 Lanto Griffin T18
6 Brian Stuard T51
7 Brian Gay T3
8 Alex Noren T15
9 Scott Harrington T53
10 Cameron Percy T48Other to Consider Recap – Bermuda Championship
Golfer Result
Ryan Armour T8
Rafael Campos T18
Maverick McNealy T35Birthdays among active golfers on the PGA TOUR
November 12 … Lucas Glover (40); Chez Reavie (38); Jason Day (32); C.T. Pan (28)
November 13 … none
November 14 … Talor Gooch (28)
November 15 … none
November 16 … Scott Harrington (39)
November 17 … none
November 18 … none -
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