This week the PGA tour stops in Ponte Vedra, Florida for THE PLAYERS Championship played at TPC Sawgrass. Below you will find my DraftStreet daily fantasy picks for the tournament this week. Come on a join me for a round!

Tour Stop

The Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass is a 7,215 yard par 72 course with the shortest hole (the 17th at 137 yards) being the most intriguing on the entire course with its Island Green.  The course was built in 1980 with the idea this would be the permanent home of THE PLAYERS.

There are some problems on the greens as the hard winter and chemical treatment put those greens behind where the club would like them to be.  That means that the top putters will be at a disadvantage this week and you’ll want good tee to green players to fill out your lineup. Counting on making up strokes on the greens could be dicey.

Field

It is a top notch field with 46 of the top 50 players in Overall World Golf Rankings heading to one of the PGA’s crown jewel events.

Injuries

Matt Every looks to get back on the course after an illness – and he’s a pseudo-local for the course.  Jason Day has decided not to return this week and may stay out until the Memorial at the end of May. His thumb injury continues to nag him and Day won’t play until fully healthy.  Defending champ Tiger Woods remains out after back surgery.  Peter Hanson withdrew from the Wells Fargo with a back injury and isn’t in this week’s field.  Miguel Angel Jimenez is also not in the field, but he has a good excuse. Victor Dubuisson wasn’t in the field, but has withdrawn from a tourney with a shoulder injury so keep that in mind for future tourneys.

2013 Tournament Results

Here is the top 20 from THE PLAYERS Championship in 2013:

Let’s look at a few options this week.

DraftStreet Expert Picks

Erik Compton | $8,886 – Compton is from Florida and plays well on the tracks in the Sunshine State. He’s made five out of his last seven cuts and has two top five finishes over that period including his last start out at the Zurich.

Luke Donald | $22,220 – Donald has been up and down this season, but when he’s been up he’s been top notch. He has been tied for fourth, sixth and tied for 19th over his last three appearances here and he’s made the cut in his last seven trips here.

Jim Furyk | $19,622 – Furyk lives in Ponte Vedra so I assume he plays here every day when he’s home (not actually true, but I’m sure he gets in rounds when he can). He’s been on fire. Slot him in to your lineup this week and cash in.

Sergio Garcia | $23,224 – He won here in 2008 and has made ten straight cuts. He’s been playing well (even with the missed cut at the Masters – his last time out). Adam Scott ($27,689) with his fantastic record and Rory McIlroy ($27,948) – 12 straight cuts, three straight top 10s in his last three appearances on tour) are of course in play as well, but this column isn’t about the obvious plays all the time.

Zach Johnson | $18,460 – He’s made eight cuts out of nine shots at TPC Sawgrass. He’s a solid all-around player whose salary is outside of the heavy hitters. He’s a nice safe play.

Martin Laird | $14,424 – Laird was tied for fifth here last year and second in 2012. However, his game is not in top flight shape as he had missed three straight cuts before tying for 30 th last week.

Henrik Stenson | $21,188 – He won here in 2009 and has a fantastic track record. He’s made four straight cuts on tour with three top 20s. He was tied for fifth here last year.

Kevin Streelman | $13,581 – Streelman just makes cuts. He’s got three straight including a 14 th place finish last week. He was tied for second last year at the TPC.

Chris Stroud | $12,542 – Stroud has played 14 rounds at the TPC and has the best scoring average of anyone with a minimum of eight rounds. The problem is he’s struggling a bit with back to back missed cuts. However, he’s worth the risk at this price. He finished in a tie for 33rd here last year with two rounds below 70. He missed the cut in 2012, but did finish 12 th here in 2011.

If you need to go cheap, there are lots of other great options with such a top heavy field. Michael Thomspon ($9,819) has been a cut machine as has Justin Hicks ($7,352) (and Hicks is fifth in greens in regulation this season). Ben Crane ($9,931) offers value as he has four top 10s in his last six trips here. Roberto Castro ($11,338) fired an opening round 63 last year and could catch lightning in a bottle here as he’s coming off a tied for eighth place last week (after missing three cuts in a row). John Huh ($10,946) is also an option as he was in the top 25 here last year and has made the cut both times he’s been here.

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

DraftStreet Scoring

Roster size: 6 Golfers

Points Scoring
ALBA*   4.5 pts
EAG       2 pts
BRD        1 pt
PAR        0.2 pts
BGY        -0.6 pts
2BGY+   -1.6 pts

*ALBA = Albatross or double eagle

PLACE
1st                          8 pts
2nd                        5 pts
3rd                         4 pts
4th-10th               3 pts
11th-25th            2 pts
26th-50th            1 pt

Round Bonuses
BFR*      1 pt
LROD**    2 pts

*BFR = Bogey-free round
*LROD = Low round

Note :

1. Ties will not affect “PLACE” bonus. For example, if three players tie for 2nd they will all receive the 5 point bonus for 2nd place.

2. Playoff holes will not count towards scoring but can impact the place a golfer finishes.

3. Golfers who withdraw or are disqualified in the middle of a round will receive 0 fantasy points for that round.

4. If multiple golfers tie for low round of the day, full bonus points will be awarded to all of them.