Golf fans rejoice as the third major tournament of the year is here with the U.S. Open set to go beginning on Thursday morning at Pebble Beach. The field is of course loaded with most of the best golfers in the world and after last week, Rory
Pebble Beach is a fairly short course at just 7,075 yards, it’s a par 71, the greens are Poa and some are the size of postage stamps. The field is a hefty 156 players and just the top 60 players plus ties will get to play Saturday and Sunday – with no secondary MDF cut happening on Saturday after round 3. The key stats to examine this week are Strokes Gained: Approach, Fairways Gained, Strokes Gained: Around The Green, Par 4s Gained: 400-450
Onto the juicy stuff, below outlines 10 contenders and 5 value picks (in no particular order) for the U.S. Open this week, and DraftKings and FanDuel salaries are documented as well.
10 Contenders To Get In Your Lineups
Matt Kuchar (Salaries: DraftKings – $8,500, FanDuel – $10,200) – Kuchar is still after his first major championship and is having perhaps his best season ever with two wins already – so his time to add one to his storied career is now. The FedEx Cup leader is coming off a 4th last week in addition to a 2nd and an 8th over his last three of four starts. Almost half of his 15 starts this season have gone for top 10’s and he might add number 8 on Sunday.
Brooks Koepka (Salaries: DraftKings – $11,600, FanDuel – $12,300) – Is a U.S. Open beast with back to back championships in 2017 and 2018, and is coming in hot after winning the PGA Championship just three weeks ago. Was 50th last week but we know that his best game only seems to come out at major tournaments. Was 2nd at the Masters and he’s my top pick to win this week.
Patrick Cantlay (Salaries: DraftKings – $10,000, FanDuel – $11,300) – Life is good for Patrick right now as he’s coming off a win at The Memorial in his last start and is primed to win this week again with a 3rd at the PGA Championship and a 9th at The Masters – also had another 3rd in between those two previous majors. Has 9 top 10’s in his 13 starts this season and is essentially a superstar player without the hype, but he could really break out in a big way this week.
Rory McIlroy (Salaries: DraftKings – $10,500, FanDuel – $11,800) – Dominated last week in Hamilton at the Canadian Open and will look to keep the good times rolling again this week on the west coast. Won The Players Championship in March and will be looking to right the ship at the U.S. Open after somehow missing the cut the last three years straight. Has 9 top 10’s in 12 starts this season.
Brandt Snedeker (Salaries: DraftKings – $7,500, FanDuel – $9,400) – Perhaps the best value player this week but had to put him in as a contender as he has won on this course twice before at the AT&T Pebble Beach tourney. Fresh off a 4th last week and he looks locked in and ready to make noise in California this week. Was 16th last month at the PGA Championship on a course that didn’t necessarily fit his game – at least not like Pebble Beach does.
Phil Mickelson (Salaries: DraftKings – $8,200, FanDuel – $10,300) – Looking to win the career grand slam this week and what better place than Pebble Beach as he has won on this course 5 times at the AT&T Pebble Beach tournament, including this year with a closing round of 65. Has been very inconsistent since then, but have to give him respect for his dominance on this course.
Webb Simpson (Salaries: DraftKings – $7,700, FanDuel – $9,600) – Was runner up last week, had a 5th at The Masters, and a 29th at the PGA Championship. Is playing very well these days, he won the U.S. Open in 2012 on a nearby course and is well positioned to take another run at it this year as well.
Tiger Woods (Salaries: DraftKings – $10,700, FanDuel – $11,900) – Will be looking for the same result that he got at The Masters when he earned the big win. Won when the U.S. Open was here in 2000 and was 4th in 2010 when it was also at this venue. Was 9th in his last start at The Memorial just two weeks ago. I wouldn’t bet $85,000 for him to win this week but he should have a decent result.
Jason Day (Salaries: DraftKings – $9,100, FanDuel – $10,800) – Is here for two main reasons – his results at the AT&T Pebble Beach tournament are stellar as he has 6 top 10’s and 2 top 15’s, and he tends to play his best golf on the biggest stages with a 5th at The Masters, an 8th at The Players Championship, and he had a respectable 23rd at the PGA Championship. Tends to have top 10’s after missing a cut and he missed the cut in his last start at The Memorial.
5 Value Pick Players To Utilize
Billy Horschel (Salaries: DraftKings – $7,200, FanDuel – $8,900) – Has had a very complete season with just one missed cut in 17 starts, and is coming off a 9th at The Memorial. He is trending in the right direction by improving on his finishes over his past 5 starts – a 6th straight improvement will be challenging but he’s won the FedEx Cup before, so he knows how to play well on the big stage.
Jim Furyk (Salaries: DraftKings – $7,200, FanDuel – $8,700) – This course’s setup should fit Furyk’s game perfectly this week as he’s a small ball kind of player which will play well on the tight Pebble Beach fairways.
Erik Van Rooyen (Salaries: DraftKings – $6,900, FanDuel – $8,100) – Has been playing some solid golf since March with two runner up finishes, a 6th, an 8th at the PGA Championship, and was 20th last week thanks to a 64 in round one. Like him at these salary numbers and is a great player to use if you want to have two or three high salary players on the same lineup.
Graeme McDowell (Salaries: DraftKings – $7,300, FanDuel – $8,800) – Won here in 2010 at the U.S. Open and will be looking to defend that title this week. Has 3 top 8’s in his last 6 starts including a win and an 8th last week. Has also only missed one cut in 15 starts this season – bet on him with confidence.
Make the most of your DFS lineups and contests this week, and all the best pulling down some big wins on Sunday!
