The Florida swing continues this week with the Arnold Palmer Invitational. This event will be played at Bay Hill Club and Lodge (par 72, 7,466 yards, Bermuda greens) in Orlando, which has been the host course of the Arnold Palmer Invitational since 1979. As one of the PGA TOUR’s eight signature events this season, the Arnold Palmer Invitational features a limited field of 69 golfers – including 18 of the top-20 ranked players in the world – and there will be a 36-hole cut, with the top 50 and ties, along with anyone within 10 shots of the leader making the weekend.
Bay Hill is a difficult Florida track that is home to large Bermuda greens, narrow fairways, thick rough, 84 bunkers and water in play on nine of the 18 holes. Notably, three of the past four victors at this challenging par 72 didn’t crack double-digit strokes under par. To avoid the penalizing rough, most players will elect to use less than driver this week to improve their accuracy, making off-the-tee numbers irrelevant for research at Bay Hill. While the putting surfaces at this par 72 rank as the fourth largest on the PGA TOUR, these greens are firm, and having a brilliant showing with your irons is a must if you wanted to contend at Bay Hill, as three of the past four winners here finishing the event top-10 in SG: Approach. Lastly, the four par 5s at this course are far and away the easiest holes at the venue and taking advantage of the birdie opportunities these holes present is essential for surviving Bay Hill. Over the last three years, two of the golfers to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational have ranked top-three in par-5 efficiency during their victories.
Below, I dive into four of my favorite DraftKings bargain plays for the Arnold Palmer Invitational, that all cost less $7.5K.
Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $1M Spring Sand Trap [$200K to 1st]
Keegan Bradley ($7,400) – Bradley is a true course horse at Bay Hill. The former FedEx Cup champion has only missed one cut in 12 appearances at the track and that mishap came in his first attempt at Bay Hill back in 2011. Notably, Bradley’s resume at this course includes a pair of top-three finishes and a top-12 finish at each of the last three editions of the Arnold Palmer invitational. The veteran is coming off a missed cut at the Genesis, but prior to this, Bradley had provided five top-20 finishes in his previous seven starts.
The world-class ball striker should bounce back with a top-25 finish this weekend and is a sensational target at this price point.
Harris English ($7,300) – English is a terrific combination of strong course history and current form, that can’t be ignored at this low price tag. The veteran is coming off his best finish of the season, with a T7 at the Genesis, in which he gained strokes in every major category. English has now made 10 straight cuts and has carded five top-20 finishes during this cut streak. As for his resume at Bay Hill, English finished runner-up at last year’s Arnold Palmer Invitational – while leading the field in SG: Putting – and has produced a top-30 finish in four of his last five appearances at the par 72.
English is criminally underpriced for his upside this week, which is evident when we compare DFS salaries to odds to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational on the DraftKings Sportsbook. While English and Wyndham Clark both carry +4500 odds to win this weekend, English is notably $1,200 cheaper for DFS purposes than Clark.
Tom Hoge ($7,100) – Very few players have been better with their irons than Hoge this season, with him ranking fourth in SG: Approach on the PGA TOUR. With this outstanding ball-striking, Hoge has made seven-of-eight cuts this season and has racked up four top-20 finishes, including a T6 at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and a T8 at the Genesis Invitational.
Hoge has recorded two top-30 finishes in five starts at Bay Hill and shouldn’t come with much ownership in this stacked field, making him a great sleeper for GPPs.
Christiaan Bezuidenhout ($7,000) – Bezuidenhout missed the cut at the Cognizant Classic last week, but only did so by one shot and despite being sent home early, he still gained strokes on approach and with his putter at PGA National. DFS players may overlook Bezuidenhout coming off this missed cut, but Bay Hill is the perfect place for the South African to get back on track. Bezuidenhout has finished in the top 20 in three of his four appearances at Bay Hill and has only missed one cut in his previous 10 starts worldwide before last week. Plus, during this 10-event span, Bezuidenhout was in the mix a win on multiple occasions, with four top-10 finishes, most impressively with a runner-up at the American Express in late January.
The 28-year-old has been one of the best ball strikers in the world – Bezuidenhout ranks third in SG: Approach on the PGA TOUR this season – and is an elite value play at this cheap salary.
Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $1M Spring Sand Trap [$200K to 1st]
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is Hunta512) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skills and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
