2014 Fantasy GolfChris Garosi

Daily Fantasy Golf Strategy: Hyundai Tournament of Champions

Kapalua, Plantation Course Hole 18 - Credit: GolfAtKapalua.com - Photo Tour
Kapalua, Plantation Course Hole 18 – Credit: GolfAtKapalua.com – Photo Tour

It looks like the PGA DFS is back at DraftKings. And I’m back to lead The Fantasy Fix’s PGA Daily Fantasy golf coverage. We’ll try to cover at least 10 players each week to give you a flavor of who to look at it (and who to avoid).

We fly off to Kapalua on the island of Maui in beautiful Hawaii. The Plantation Course at Kapalua hosts the Hyundai Tournament of Champions again this year. I will generally publish this column on Wednesday morning, but with the late start to this tourney, we’re getting a late start with it.

It’s a great week to check out DraftKings as they have some top notch contests. Come on over and take a look.

Tour Stop

This week we have a no-cut event to kick off the calendar year for all of the winners from calendar year 2014. Not every winner is here, but the field is deep enough that the tournament should be enjoyable.

The tour stops at the Plantation Course at Kapalua, a 7,452 yards, par 73 course (the only par 73 on the PGA tour) that usually plays easy, but can get tough if the winds pick up as they do from time to time on this exposed track.  There are only three par-3s on the entire course so length will be important, but the course gives you many downhill tee shots so even you might be a big hitter if you tee it up.

This is a great way to check out DraftKings’ PGA games as you know every player is going to play all four rounds. You don’t have to sweat the cut line.

Field

Everyone who is here is a winner – tournament winner that is. All 34 entrants in this no-cut event won tournaments in the 2014 calendar year.

The full field can be found here.

Also, thanks to GolfOdds.com for the odds this week.

Past Tournament Results

2014 Winner: Zach Johnson beat Jordan Speith by one stroke.

All four of the previous winners had played the tournament at least three times prior to their victory here. Will the trend continue? The last winner in his debut at the tourney – Daniel Chopra in 2008.

The tournament has been played in Kapalua since 1999 though under a few different sponsors. The Plantation course hasn’t changed significantly since 2006 when about 200 yards were added.

DraftKings Expert Picks

Sang-Moon Bae | $7,300 – Bae is one of my favorite players because I got to follow him around for a few holes here in DC and his family (or fans?) was following him around all wearing white hats with TEAM BAE in multi-colored letters. It was fantastic. Oh, he’s also second in FedEx cup points on the young season. Yeaj, he may have to go back to South Korea to join the military, but enjoy him while you can.

Ben Crane | $6,200 – If you are going to go expensive (and you almost have to here to get a shot at the winner), you need to find some cheap options. Crane isn’t a great player in the class of many of the players here. However, he has had some success on the course as he does have two top ten finishes on his resume (along with two bottom feeder finishes in the 20s).

Russell Henley | $7,800 – He played here last year (though not well) so he’s seen the course. He’s also got two top five finishes in his last five starts so he’s in form going into this tournament.

Charley Hoffman | $7,100 – Hoffman is another bet on experience on the course. He’s played here twice, though he’s never been to too successful. Let’s hope the third time is a charm.

Zach Johnson | $10,100 – Johnson has more experience (seven appearances) than anyone else in the field. If you believe in experience being important here, ZJ is your man.  He’s got two top 10s and is the defending champion, but he hasn’t had nearly the success that Matt Kuchar has in two fewer appearances.

Matt Kuchar | $12,100 – Kuchar hasn’t finished outside of the top 10 in his last four trips here. He’s one of the most consistent golfers on tour and you can do worse anchoring your squad with him. I’d choose Kuchar over Jason Day ($13,900) and Bubba Watson ($14,000) who are both too rich for my blood (and optimal lineup creation). Day and Watson are great choices if you want to go that route, but I’m not doing it this week.

Ryan Moore | $9,200 – This is the guy who fits the mold of recent prior winners of this tournament. He’s been here three times, has finished in the top then in two of those trips including a 10 th place finish last year. If you are fishing for a winner a little bit off the board (20/1 to win right now), he’s your man.

Geoff Ogilvy | $7,300 – Ogilvy’s spot here is all about a horse for the course. Ogilvy won twice (back to back in 2009 and 2010) on this course, but isn’t in the best form currently. There is risk here.

Scott Stallings | $6,200 – Don’t like Ben Crane as a cheapy? Then look to Stallings to fill in the bottom of your roster. He’s getting his third swing at Kapalua (finishing 13 th in his last outing here in 2013). He’s been playing relatively well as of late (including a fifth place finish in his last outing at the Aussie Open).

Robert Streb | $7,200 – It’s not often that you can get the hottest player on tour for a sub-$8,000 price tag.  Streb is the current leader in FedEx points as he’s picked up a win and two other top ten finishes in the early going this season.

Kevin Streelman | $8,000 – Streelman finds his way to my list based on this finish in a tie for third last year in his debut. It’s clear he didn’t have the problems that other debutantes have had in the past. I expect another solid showing.

Good luck this week! Head over to DraftKings to choose your squad for this week.

Here is what my lineup looks like right now – things can change.

Expert Lineup for the Hyundai TOC at DraftKings
Expert Lineup for the Hyundai TOC at DraftKings

DraftKings Scoring

Roster size: 6 Golfers

POINT SCORING

Golfers on each team will accumulate points as follows:

  • Per Hole Scoring
    • Double Eagle (DBL EAG): +20 PTs
    • Eagle (EAG): +8 PTs
    • Birdie (BIR): +3 PTs
    • Par (PAR): +0.5 PTs
    • Bogey (BOG): -0.5 PTs
    • Double Bogey (DBL BOG): -1 PT
    • Worse than Double Bogey (WORSE DBL BOG): -1 PT
  • Tournament Finish Scoring
    • 1st: 30 PTs
    • 2nd: 20 PTs
    • 3rd: 18 PTs
    • 4th: 16 PTs
    • 5th: 14 PTs
    • 6th: 12 PTs
    • 7th: 10 PTs
    • 8th: 9 PTs
    • 9th: 8 PTs
    • 10th: 7 PTs
    • 11th–15th: 6 PTs
    • 16th–20th: 5 PTs
    • 21st–25th: 4 PTs
    • 26th–30th: 3 PTs
    • 31st–40th: 2 PTs
    • 41st-50th: 1 PTs
  • Streaks and Bonuses
    • Streak of 3 Birdies of Better (MAX 1 Per Round) (3+ BIR STRK): +3 PTs
    • Bogey Free Round (BOG FREE RD): +3 PTs
    • All 4 Rounds Under 70 Strokes (ALL 4 RDS UND 70): +5 PTs
    • Hole in One (HOLE IN ONE): +10 PTs

Scoring Notes: Ties for a finishing position will not reduce or average down points. For example, if 2 golfers tie for 3rd place, each will receive the 18 fantasy points for the 3rd place finish result. Playoff Holes will not count towards final scoring, with the exception of the “finishing position” scoring. For example, the golfer who wins the tournament will receive the sole award of 1st place points, but will not accrue points for their scoring result in the individual playoff holes.

Player Lock Notes: All golfers lock at the time the first golfer tees off on day 1 of an event.

Full rules are located here for DraftKings golf.

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