Golf is back after a one-week hiatus, and with any PGA TOUR event comes the ability to play in DraftKings Pick6 contests, a single-user daily fantasy game where users choose players to go for more or less than the totals.
This week, the PGA is headed to Napa Valley to take on Silverado, a shorter Par 72 venue with Poa greens where players typically can wield a driver a ton on the tree-lined course. Winners at Silverado have often outperformed off the tee so that’s something to keep in mind for this week, as plenty of big hitters like Cameron Champ and Kevin Tway have found wins at this course. However, it’s also important to remember that for Pick6 contests, we are looking at round-by-round totals, so it’s not imperative that we necessarily hyper-focus on one style of player.
This venue has yielded some very low scores in the past. In 2023, Sahith Theegala managed to get to -21 in his win, with the top five finishers all getting into the clubhouse at 15-under Par or better. Last season, Patton Kizzire managed to get to -20, gaining 8.9 strokes putting alone. I went over more stats and course dynamics in the Procore Championship PGA Cheat Sheet.
For Pick6 play, though, my initial take on things this week is that some of the birdie totals are worth looking at. There are four short Par 5’s on the course (all good birdie opportunities), and while players may struggle on the longer Par 4’s and Par 3’s, there are also seven Par 4’s on the course that tend to play under par for the week, in terms of scoring average.
With the weather also looking nice, I’d expect we’ll see scoring similar to what we saw last season, which again suggests that we’ll see a lot of birdies in Round 1. With that in mind, I’ve focused on a couple of my favorite “more than” plays in the birdie or better department and also picked out a couple of totals from two other markets to focus on to round out your cards this week.
Akshay Bhatia More Than 4.5 Birdies or Better
Bhatia comes in off a solid finish to his PGA season, having landed a T13 at East Lake. He’s been gaining strokes on approach at a solid rate over his last few starts and looks to have figured out some of his ball-striking issues from earlier in the season. Given his success on Poa greens and on the west coast in the past (T2 Detroit – 2024, winner Barracuda – 2023), he profiles well for this venue. From a motivation standpoint, making a statement in front of all the Ryder Cup players would not be a poor thing either, as he makes his case to be included on the next International squad.
Overall, I see this as a great spot to be bullish on the two-time winner. With him ranking 12th in birdie or better rate on the PGA and being in a plus spot, taking the “more than” in Round 1 on his 4.5 BoB total makes plenty of sense on a course with four 5s.
Scottie Scheffler More Than 67.5 Strokes
I don’t mind rolling the dice and fading Scheffler in this spot. Even for the world’s best player, coming off a few weeks’ rest and onto a course he’s never played before on the PGA TOUR could make this week a touch more difficult than usual for him. Further, with the Ryder Cup approaching and all his teammates in the field, it’s not hard to think he might be just a touch less focused than we usually see him.
The main thing I like about fading him in Round 1, though, is the total. At 67.5, Scheffler’s Round 1 total is two full strokes lower than most of the other elite names in this field, many of whom have experience playing Silverado. With a 5-under par round needed for him to beat this number, it’s very plausible we see Scheffler still play well and come up short.
Ben Griffin Less Than 69.5 Strokes
Griffin is straight up one of the most consistent Round 1 players on the PGA. He averaged 68.96 strokes per round in Round 1s in the regular season and is coming off a terrific stretch in the PGA playoffs, where he finished T12 or better in all three events.
The lack of experience at this venue is the only negative worth noting, but given his recent form, this total really does seem to be undervaluing him compared to some of the other top names in the field, who have reduced multipliers for taking a less than at the same 69.5 total. I’d rather roll with Griffin, who remains an elite iron player and isn’t likely to get in much trouble off the tee here. He should give us a good run at -3 or better score on Thursday.
Collin Morikawa More Than 11.5 Pars
If you’re looking for a quick fourth pick to add to your lineups, I do like the “More Than” on Morikawa’s 11.5 Par total for Round 1. He should come in focused after just squeaking onto the Ryder Cup squad, via a CPT’s pick, and would certainly love to get a big result to boost his confidence before BethPage in two weeks.
He only ranks 36th in BoB% on the PGA this season, and the chances of his putter getting super hot and him landing 6-8 birdies seem somewhat slim. However, the consistent ball-striking he brings is also going to keep him well out of trouble on this course with tighter fairways and somewhat tight greens. I see this as a plus venue for him, so a consistent opener for him, with a few birdies and little to no mistakes, seems likely.
What is DraftKings Pick6?
Pick6 is a peer-to-peer fantasy variant where you build a lineup (your “Pick Set”) of 2+ players and select whether or not you believe each will outperform their listed stat projection. Enter your Pick Set in Pick6 contests to compete against other users. Get enough picks correct and win a share of cash prizes.
How to Play
Create a Pick Set
Create a Pick Set by choosing 2+ players from the same sport and Pick Group (a set of picks available from a group of set competitions). For each player, simply select if you think they’ll have more or less than their listed stat projection. In each Pick Set, you can not pick the same player twice and you must pick players from at least two different teams.
Enter an Amount
Once you finalize your Pick Set, choose your entry fee amount. Your entries will be automatically distributed into available contests, subject to your confirmation.
Sweat Your Picks
When the games go live, use the My Picks tab to follow your picks in real time to track how your players are performing against their projections and how they stack up against other users.
Compete for Prizes
Make enough correct picks and win a share of the contests’ guaranteed prizes. Any prizes won will be credited to your DraftKings account after contests are finalized.
Play at DraftKings Pick6 or by downloading the DraftKings Pick6 app on Apple or Google!
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