01-25-17

Torrey Pines South Course is almost 7,700 yards of behemoth with beauty.

The North Course received a major face lift after last year’s event.

Time to find “the one” to get back on track in OAD.

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One-and-done

Each week I painfully writhe and wretch trying to figure out the proper strategy to find a player that will hit the top 10. Wins are great but aren’t likely, so I’m satisfied with having a chance to hit the big money. Missed cuts are absolutely the death in this game, but even the surest of things don’t always happen in the reality world of fantasy golf. Remember, fade or follow, it’s up to you.

 

Gamers who are new to OAD must remember that the most lucrative purses, the majors, WGC events, THE PLAYERS and FedExCup Playoffs, are down the road and you’ll need to save some big boys for these events, all 12 of them.

 

 

Last Season: Il Disastro

Season total: $5,978,929; 47 events

• Wins: 2 (Matsuyama, Hoffman)
• Seconds: 0
• Thirds: 1
• Top 10s: 9
• Top 25s: 18
• MC: 8 (Mickelson, FIO; Oosthuizen, SHO; Chappell, Colonial; Casey, Memorial; Woodland, FESJC; Hearn, RBC Canadian; McGirt, Wyndham; Justin Thomas, DBC)

 

2016-17 season: Brand New Day

 

Season total: $1,359,190; 9 events

• Wins:
• Seconds: 1
• Thirds:
• Top 10s: 4
• Top 25s: 5
• MCs (3): Grayson Murray (Safeway Open); Patton Kizzire (SFC); Jamie Lovemark (CB Challenge).

 

Thermometer:

Ah, what a format. I can’t help myself when course form meets current form. It was “right church-wrong pew” last week as Jamie Lovemark entered the week off back-to-back top 10’s and posted T-6 last year. Adam Hadwin entered the week off T-10 and T-11 and was T-6 last year as well and he finished second. Sigh.

The good news is that a big name didn’t win and I didn’t burn one in the process. Patrick Reed’s spectacular 65 on Sunday was my best finisher at T-12 and Sunday 68 from Bill Haas was T-17. Ryan Palmer and Emiliano Grillo MC. Rubbish.

The bad news is a big, fat $0.

Brendan Steele will get a very serious look NEXT SEASON after T-2, T-34 and T-6 the last three  years.

I’ve went young and non-winner three times this season and have not made a cut.

Live and learn.

 

Keys this Week:

Experience is No. 1 on my list this week as the South Course hasn’t seen a first-time Tour winner since 1991. The experience factor of putting Poa annua greens won’t hurt either so that points to West Coast players.

I’m looking for guys who can bomb it as fairways aren’t easy to hit so you might as well get as close as possible. The course has taken on plenty of rain this month so getting roll early in the event isn’t going to happen. With four par fives on the card, those who can take advantage and make birdies will be hanging out Sunday.

You can’t fake it around a former U.S. Open track that stretches out to almost 7,700 yards!

Check my preview for more details!

 

Event	Golfer	Place	Money
Safeway Open	Grayson Murray	MC	$0
CIMB Classic	Hideki Matsuyama	T-2	$756,000
WGC-HSBC Champions	Martin Kaymer	T-40	$62,000
Sanderson Farms	Patton Kizzire	MC	$0
Shriners	Chris Kirk	T-61	$14,190
OHL Mayakoba	Emiliano Grillo	T-10	$175,000
RSM Classic	Russell Henley	T-10	$150,000
SBS TOC	Brandt Snedeker	T-14	$122,000
Sony Open	Charles Howell, III	T-8	$180,000
CB Challenge	Jamie Lovemark	MC	$0

 

My Weekly Finalists:

OWGR listed in (  )

 

Jason Day (1): Any course and just about any tournament he enters; ran off a streak of T-9, T-2 and WIN before MC last year.

Jimmy Walker (21): He loves Poa. He results at Torrey and Pebble confirm this. His favorite course is Riviera. If you’re nervous about his driver, save him for Pebble Beach.

Dustin Johnson (3): He really should be above Walker but with only one top 10 in eight tries you can see why he isn’t. Current form breaks the tie if you must use him this week. I’m not but I could see why YOU might!

Gary Woodland (41): He’s been knocking at Torrey recently and there aren’t any “must-save” tracks for him down the road.

Brandt Snedeker (28): Here’s another that plays well on the left coast as he’s won here and at Pebble twice each in since 2012. His slow start to 2017 raises questions.

J.B. Holmes (29): All the players on this list, including Holmes, play all three California events well. The one knock on Holmes is he, unlike Day, DJ and Sneds, has never taken home the trophy but he has twice at TPC Scottsdale…

 

My Choice: Jimmy Walker

Close Second: Gary Woodland

Outlier: Martin Laird

Gut Shot: Shane Lowry

 

 

QUESTION(S) OF THE WEEK:

Where are the guys who have won the most titles here, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson?

 

Doesn’t Rickie Fowler always play well here?

 

ANSWER(S) OF THE WEEK:

In FANTASY GOLF, Woods and Mickelson have relative value. Woods is coming off a massive layoff and struggled to find fairways at a resort course he’s played a million times in the Bahamas. No, thanks, but I’d love to see him win just to hear the “I told you so” army. So would the PGA Tour I bet.

Mickelson heard the roars last week in the desert but his swing deserted him at times as bogeys and doubles kept him from a big week. I’d mention that he was playing two of the easier courses on Tour so take it with a grain of salt. I speak from experience as I jumped in with both feet last year after T-3 at CB Challenge. My reward was MC for third time in five years. The other two finishes were T-51 and WD.

Fowler has been all-or-nothing but the nothing has been more recent than the all. I’m looking to hitch up when he’s ticking over rather than hoping he finds it again on this track.

 

Thanks for reading!

Good luck and hit me up at mikeglasscott@gmail.com or on Twitter (@MikeGlasscott) if you have any questions!