After last week’s struggle at Oakmont Country Club, the PGA TOUR pros will find much easier scoring conditions this week at the Travelers Championship, which is the last Signature Event of the season and will once again be held at TPC River Highlands. The 72-player field will compete in a no-cut format this week, which makes it a good week to be super-aggressive with GPP plays, going for the players with the most upside since the format eliminates the risk of being cut. As you build your fantasy golf lineups for GPPs this week, let’s take a closer look at three fantasy golf pivot plays. I think all three of these players will be able to outperform their comparatively low ownership. My top three fantasy golf pivot plays for the week are Ludvig Aberg ($9,600), Taylor Pendrith ($7,900) and Tom Kim ($7,100).
To make sure we’re all trying to reach the same green, a “fantasy golf pivot play” is a golfer with lower ownership but similar upside to more popular options available around the same DFS salary. Often, golfers with lower ownership bring extra risk factors, but they can be worth that added risk since their lower ownership improves your chance of finishing near the top of tournaments. Even though they’re NOT the safest plays in their price range, they have enough potential upside to be worth the sweat. Be sure to check out my picks for companion post to this on that highlights my picks for cash lineups if you’re looking for safer options that raise the floor of your lineup.
Let’s break down why I like each of my top three pivot plays this week.
Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $800K Summer Sand Trip
Ludvig Aberg ($9,600)
Aberg was in my fantasy golf pivot plays last week as well and looked good coming out of the gate with an even-par 72 in Round 1. He fell apart in Round 2, though, and missed the cut at the U.S. Open. That should keep his ownership very low this week, even though he definitely has the game to contend if he’s at his best.
The most expensive plays in the field like Scottie Scheffler ($13,300), Xander Schauffele ($10,800) and Rory McIlroy ($11,500) are all getting much more attention than Aberg, and even Justin Thomas ($9,300) and Viktor Hovland ($9,000) are getting more looks based on their stron grecent form.
Aberg showed he can win Signature Events in tough fields with a win at the Genesis Invitational at Torrey Pines. He faded for a bit before bursting back onto the scene with a T7 at the Masters. He missed the cut at the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow, but bounced back with a T16 at the Memorial and a T13 at the RBC Canadian Open. His scrambling and putting let him down last week, but his approach game remained sharp.
Aberg has finished T27 and T24 in his two previous appearances at this course, and his overall game gives him the upside to contend in just about any setup. If he can find his form, he could be a great leverage play for GPP lineups, and the fact that he’s getting overlooked makes him an evey juicier play.
Taylor Pendrith ($7,900)
Pendrith is in a popular price range but is getting much less attention than Sungjae Im ($7,900), Tony Finau ($7,700) and Jordan Spieth ($8,200).
The 34-year-old from Canada finished T27 at his own national open two weeks ago and T38 last week at the U.S. Open. Since the start of May, he has five straight made cuts, highlighted by a T5 at the PGA Championship and a T12 at the Memorial. In his 17 events this season, he has six top-25 finishes and four top-10 finishes.
Over the last 20 rounds, Pendrith ranks No. 12 in the field in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green and also ranks in the top 25 in Total Strokes Gained. He missed the cut in 2023 in his first trip to the Travelers and improved to finish T23 last year.
He has proven he can contend in low-scoring events and got his first PGA TOUR career win last year at the THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson. He’s going overlooked in this salary range and could end up one of the best fantasy tolf pivot plays of the week if he steps up and delivers.
Tom Kim ($7,100)
Of the 72 players in the field this week, 37 have salaries of $7,100 or under. Ryan Fox ($7,000), Max Greyserman ($6,900) and Kevin Yu ($6,400) are all picks that I like and have used recently, but they’re all getting lots of attnetion this week. For a fantasy golf pivot play, though, I’m going with Tom Kim this week, who comes in under the radar but has shown a few good signs lately.
Kim won the King of the Course promo we were tracking last week at the U.S. Open, meaning he had more par-breakers than anyone else in the tournament Saturday and Sunday. He also had a few disastrous holes, though, so he only finished T33 for the week despite tying for the most birdies in the field. Ultimately, he ended up in the top five in the field for the week in Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green and Scrambling.
Kim played great last year at the Travelers, finishing runner-up to Scheffler in a playoff. He also made the cut and finished T38 in 2023 in his tournament debut. Throughout his time on the PGA TOUR, Kim has had a few courses that he mashes at, and this is one of them.
If he can build on all those birdies and avoid the big numbers this week, he could contend once again in what has been a quiet season overall for him.
Since we don’t have to worry about a cut, Kim is exactly the kind of player I’m targeting for fantasy golf pivot plays. He brings a ton of upside if he’s right and can legitimately contend if he’s at his best from this price point.
