Fantasy Insider: Valspar Championship

If you’re in a league in which it’s important to monitor non-members chasing Special Temporary Membership [STM], then this is the time of year for you. At last week’s World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship, Thomas Pieters qualified, Tommy Fleetwood came close and Tyrrell Hatton took another giant step toward the objective. (See my latest Rookie Ranking for details. However, with all three firmly entrenched inside the top 50 of the Official World Golf Ranking, they’re already cemented into all of the biggest tournaments on the PGA TOUR, so the benefits of STM don’t resonate as much as they would for other hopefuls like Henrik Norlander and Aaron Wise, both of whom remain short of the goal (318.895 FedExCup points). After the current fortnight of golf in Florida is over, the next WGC will be contested, but the field for the Dell Match Play will be determined after the conclusion of action around the globe this weekend. (The top 64 in the OWGR will automatically qualify.) As long as he tees it up, Fleetwood will achieve STM at Austin Country Club, and who knows how many others will flirt with it. But again, because of the clout in that field, your focus should be on how non-members would rank among members in FedExCup points at the conclusion of the Wyndham Championship. For it is at that time when they will learn if they’ll have the option of accepting TOUR membership in 2017-18. Speaking of the Match Play, the annual Bracket Challenge will be presented again as a stand-alone game this year. Registration will open next week on both desktop and mobile devices. Once the brackets are locked in on March 20, you’ll be free to make your picks. PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO My roster for the Valspar Championship (in alphabetical order): Graham DeLaet Jason Dufner Bill Haas Charles Howell III Henrik Stenson Justin Thomas You’ll find my starters in Expert Picks. Others to consider for each category (in alphabetical order): Scoring: Daniel Berger; Adam Hadwin; Martin Laird; Graeme McDowell; Ryan Moore; Sean O’Hair; Patrick Reed Driving: Lucas Glover; Adam Hadwin; Billy Horschel; Jason Kokrak; Martin Laird; Ryan Moore; Gary Woodland Approach: Wesley Bryan; Lucas Glover; Billy Horschel; Kevin Na; Scott Stallings; Nick Watney; Gary Woodland Short: Daniel Berger; Scott Brown; Luke Donald; Jim Furyk; Adam Hadwin; Martin Laird; Ryan Moore; Sean O’Hair; Patrick Reed Power Ranking Wild Card Martin Laird … The tee-to-green monster has no weaknesses and he’s been uncharacteristically consistent at a high level. Sits 23rd in the FedExCup standings on the shoulders of an 8-for-8 season during which he’s scattered four top 10s and a T13. More than enough experience at Copperhead where he’s survived four of six cuts, the best a T5 in 2011. Draws Ian Poulter … Forget about any contrived concern that his medical extension is hovering over his head. The 41-year-old is healthy and making cuts. He’s done that at Copperhead in each of the last two editions of the Valspar Championship, too. Inside the top 50 on TOUR in par-3, par-5 and adjusted scoring as well as bogey avoidance. He’s also pacing the circuit in conversion percentage inside 10 feet. (His three measured starts including leading the field at The Honda Classic two week ago.) Sean O’Hair … He won here in 2008 and lost in a playoff in 2015, but this nod is mostly due to the extension of solid form. The 34-year-old has survived 13 consecutive cuts on the PGA TOUR, a blitz that includes three top 10s and another four top 25s (including the 30-man TOUR Championship). So, even if he didn’t have success here, he’d deserve your attention and a roster spot. Statistically, he’s riding the sum-is-greater-than-the-parts wave, which plays just about everywhere. Graeme McDowell … It seems ridiculous to label a U.S. Open champion as complementary, but fantasy sports are relative and that’s what he is at Copperhead. He missed the cut in his debut here last year, but he’s going to keep his ball in the fairway, so that slides him onto our short list. Recent form has been better than decent as he’s registered top 25s in five of his last eight starts worldwide, including a T14 in his last at PGA National. Also leading the PGA TOUR in both par-3 scoring and one-putt percentage. Nick Taylor … Rising into that bubble that includes guys like Brian Harman, Michael Kim, Chez Reavie and a few others who could be Sleepers every time they play because they deliver so often as complementary pieces with the occasional spikes. Taylor is 8-for-11 this season with a top 10 and another pair of top 25s. He ranks T13 in par-5 scoring and placed T24 in his first appearance at Copperhead in 2015. It doesn’t hurt that he’s in the last season of his exemption for winning the Sanderson Farms Championship in just his fourth start as a PGA TOUR member in November of 2014. Adam Hadwin … No, I haven’t forgotten about him. He could be included in that smattering of reliable rank-and-filers in Taylor’s capsule above, but the Canuck deserves his own space. What a season so far, this his third with playing privileges on the PGA TOUR. The 29-year-old has survived eight consecutive cuts, including a career-best solo second at the CareerBuilder Challenge. He’s 15th in the FedExCup standings. He’s improved his approach game enough to allow his spectacular putting to shine. Currently ninth in strokes gained: putting, 10th in one-putt percentage, seventh in scrambling and fifth in bogey avoidance. Also T10 in par-3 scoring. Luke Donald … As chalky as it gets in this field except that he’s a role player with a dose of potential pop. That very much has room in most formats, so don’t hesitate. His 8-for-8 slate at Copperhead includes the 2012 title, a pair of T4s, a T6 and two T22s. He’s placed insidethe top 30 in his last three starts of 2017 and ranks 12th in strokes gained: putting and 28th in adjusted scoring. Jim Furyk … The 2010 champ hasn’t missed a cut in his last eight trips to Copperhead. He added top 20s in each of the four editions post-victory. Of course, we know who he is, but he’s restarted this season in the slow lane with no better than a T39 at Riviera among three paydays in as many tries. Therefore, unless you dive in with the sole objective of making the cut, he’ll likely be overpriced in DFS. Scott Stallings … Here’s where my conservative position as an objective voice conflicts with my contrarian side as a gamer (in certain situations). He took outright third in his debut Copperhead way back in 2011, but he’s 0-for-5 with no better than a pair of 1-over 72s since. However, as one of the most proven among the streaky, he struts in having logged top 25s in three of his four starts in 2017, including a T21 at similarly challenging PGA National two weeks ago. Ignore his stats even if they support an investment, as he’s all about the groove. Fades Charl Schwartzel … A rare placement for him and for any defending champion. Alas, he’s opened 2017 pretty much opposite to how he began 2016 on the comeback trail from a stomach illness when he won in his first start abroad, and then again in his fourth at Copperhead. Weekly gamers are equipped with enough options to get through this week and leave his title defense in the clicks of their opposition. Bubba Watson … First appearance since his last of six consecutive in 2011. No matter what you think about his fit at Copperhead, the real-time concern remains the same until he generates consistency and a level of comfort with his new golf ball. Webb Simpson … Once upon a time, he was a set-and-forget cornerstone at Copperhead, but he’s missed his last two cuts here. Still one of the best with his irons and he’s T8 on TOUR in par-4 scoring and 31st in adjusted scoring, but he’s lacked the consistency week-to-week and standing over putts since the anchoring ban went into effect. The rub is that that’s not a knock, but when you carry his cachet, expectations are higher. Russell Knox … This cuts both ways depending on your philosophy. On one hand, he’s skidding. On the other, as unconventional as it seems, Copperhead is actually the kind of joint where he could find his game because it tests all components and his skill set is among the broadest. He’s also perfect in the last three editions with a personal-best T25 in 2014. So, while course history is your friend, your decision to make room is rooted more in his fit while others with an imbalance struggle. Tony Finau … Respecting the fact that he’s yet to solve Copperhead in two prior tries and hasn’t broken 73 in four rounds. Steve Stricker … Throws another bone to full-season salary gamers, but weekly leaguers should tiptoe into him given his sometimer status nowadays, so his position here is relative. That’ll be tough for course history buffs who see four consecutive top 15s at Copperhead dating back to 2008. He’s also warming for his debut on the PGA TOUR Champions in Tucson next week. Patrick Rodgers … Rewarding full-season owners on occasion – all four of his cuts made this season are top 25s – but still navigating the learning curve that includes many pitfalls. A missed cut by three in his debut here last year was one of them. Robert Streb … If not for a T9 at the Farmers, he’d really be grinding. Then again, he probably is at 117th in the FedExCup standings. It’s his only top-35 finish of the season and he’s not fully exempt beyond it yet. Returning to Competition Steve Wheatcroft … The open qualifier was scheduled to compete in the Web.com Tour’s Panama Claro Championship three weeks ago but withdrew early. He had called it quits after two rounds of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am the week before due to a virus. The veteran has deep fantasy value with conditional status on the PGA TOUR, especially in shootouts where he’s never afraid of going low. This is not one of those weeks. Power Rankings Recap – World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship Sleepers Recap – World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship Birthdays among active golfers on the PGA TOUR March 7 … none March 8 … none March 9 … Vaughn Taylor (41) March 10 … Steve Marino (37) March 11 … none March 12 … none March 13 … none

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