DraftKings preview: Workday Charity Open

This week’s Workday Charity Open is the first of two consecutive tournaments at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Columbus, Ohio. Among a stacked field are stars returning from a rest (Brooks Koepka, Jon Rahm, Justin Thomas and Xander Schauffele) and some former winners at Muirfield Village (including Patrick Cantlay, Hideki Matsuyama and Justin Rose).

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When contemplating selections, please note that Muirfield Village will be set up slightly differently this week compared to next week’s event the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide. It’s likely the opening week will use a handful of tee boxes to make the course play a bit shorter, along with bentgrass greens that may be set slower than is custom at the Memorial. The rough, which has been a big contributor to bogeys and double bogeys at the Memorial in the past, should sit between 3 to 3-1/2 inches, a slight decrease from next week.

Those who navigate the three par 3s measuring over 200 yards and the six par 4s that measure between 450 to 500 yards the best will be looking good. Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green goes back to being a high priority as the top five at the 2019 Memorial Tournament gained an average of 1.41 strokes with their irons, which was four times higher than Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee. Challenging greenside bunkers means we should also be weighing sand saves a little more this week.

TOP TARGETS

Hideki Matsuyama ($10,000)

Matsuyama can be the ultimate emotion invoker for DraftKings players. People seem to grow sour on him when he doesn’t play (putt) his best one week and guard against going through the same agony by holstering him the week after. He lost more than two strokes to the field on the greens last week, but the former champion (2014) at the Memorial gained five strokes with his irons at the Rocket Mortgage Challenge and hasn’t lost strokes with his irons in nine straight (ShotLink) tournaments. He ranks second in Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green over his past 24 rounds. The pricing at the top is very generous, which could result in lower ownership than it should be.

Viktor Hovland ($9,500)

There may be a desire to roster golfers above him, and while it’s not a bad strategy nor one we should stay away from, Hovland is hitting it better than most, gaining an average of eight strokes Tee-to-Green since being back from the shutdown. However, his putter has not cooperated as the young star has lost more than three strokes to the field in back-to-back weeks on the greens. He has however rolled the ball well on bentgrass in his short career. Fatigue may be a concern but he’s young and hungry enough to overcome a fifth straight start. Ownership may get out of hand on Hovland, and if it does, pivoting to Collin Morikawa ($9,200), who is still one of the best ball-strikers on TOUR is the play.

Joaquin Niemann ($8,400)

Back on bentgrass, check. A week off to rest, check. Hitting the irons well, check. Niemann is one of the rising stars on TOUR with his elite ball-striking and his ability to score, ranking 23rd in birdies or better gained in his past three tournaments. He lost over six strokes putting a couple of weeks ago at the Travelers Championship but gained over seven strokes with his irons the week prior at Harbour Town.

Joel Dahmen ($7,700)

Dahmen may be a popular play this week, and rightfully so, ranking seventh in Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green and fourth in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green over his past 24 rounds. Dahmen is quietly having a terrific season with two top-20s over his past three starts, preceded by back-to-back top-5s at the Genesis Invitational and the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard.

Cameron Champ ($7,700)

Champ should be the pivot play if Dahmen’s ownership gets out of hand. He shot 6 under last Sunday and gained more than three strokes tee-to-green on the weekend. His bentgrass putting is not the greatest nor is his short game, but the ball-striking has been outstanding and is the reason he’s got two top-15 finishes in his past two starts.

Max Homa ($7,100)

Homa was heavily rostered at the Travelers Championship and disappointed with a missed cut, losing close to 1.5 strokes on the greens at TPC River Highlands. He’s missed the weekend twice over the last month as the putter has been cold, losing strokes on the greens since the return to golf. Homa’s irons are still hot and he’s scoring well, ranking 21st in birdies or better. He’s inside the top 50 on par 4 efficiency on holes 450 to 500 yards and is outstanding on par 3s measuring 200 to 225 yards, ranking inside the top 10 over his past 24 rounds.

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ABOUT THE WRITER: I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is reidtfowler) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.