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Due to the COVID-19 impact on the schedule, the PGA Tour hasn’t had a major in over a year since the Open Championship, where Shane Lowry claimed his first major victory last July. The PGA Championship was moved to this week from its originally scheduled week in May, and it will now be the first major of 2020. This year’s PGA Championship will take place at TPC Harding Park, which has never hosted the event before. It’s neighboring course, the Olympic Club has hosted the U.S. Open five times and one time Harding Park was even used as a parking lot for that event. Since that insult, the historic course has been totally revitalized and re-imagined and is now considered one of the most beautiful courses in the area thanks to its sweeping views of Lake Merced. It has hosted the 2005 WGC American Express and the 2015 WGC-Match Play since its overhaul in addition to the President’s Cup and some Champions Tour events. The course will play as a very difficult long Par 70 this week and will be a tough test for the elite field.
The field is stacked with all the top-tier talent as would be expected for a major championship. It’s a full field of 156 players including almost all the top-50 ranked players in the world along with top players from other tours and the top 20 in the 2019 PGA Professional Player of the Year standings. Those pros don’t typically figure into the fantasy picture, but they do provide a bunch of value options. To help you sift through all the options and pick the right value plays, check out my top four bargains available for under $7,500 who I think can give your lineup a boost even though they come at a very affordable salary.
DraftKings is hosting the $3M Fantasy Golf Millionaire [$1M to 1st] to celebrate the first major of the year. For only $20, draft 6 golfers for a shot to win the $1M top prize. This contest is part of DraftKings Championship Series - Fantasy Tournament of Champions. In addition to the $1M top prize, the winner will also earn a ticket to the Big Game in Tampa (2/7/21) to compete for another $1M top prize. Check out the promotions page to learn more about all the special activities this week.
The DraftKings slate locks at 6:00 a.m. ET on Thursday, August 6. Set your lineups here: $3M Fantasy Golf Millionaire [$1M to 1st + ToC Entry]
Henrik Stenson, $7,300
Stenson hadn’t played in a competitive event since March until returning for last week’s WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational. Stenson was his typically steady self, firing three rounds of 69 and one of even-par 70 to finish T35 for the tournament. He only made four bogeys all week in Memphis with five birdies and an eagle. He has the kind of steady, reliable game that typically plays well at major championships.
The 44-year-old Swede won the Open Championship in 2016 and made the cut in nine of the 10 most recent majors, highlighted by a T9 at the U.S. Open last season. He has posted top-10 finishes in five previous PGA Championships and only missed the cut three times in 13 trips. Stenson doesn’t have a ton of current form to bank on, but his well-rounded game has helped him compete in elite field events like this in the past. Despite the long layoff, he’s still the No. 33 overall golfer in the world according to OWGR and he already picked up a win this season at the Hero World Challenge in early December.
Curious about when major leagues and events will return? Check out our DraftKings Sports Calendar for the latest updates.
Tom Lewis, $7,100
While he’s a relatively new name to most fans of the Tour in the U.S., Lewis has a very nice track record in Europe and seems to be finding a nice groove at the right time. The 29-year-old Englishman finished T2 last week at the St. Jude firing a 61-66 over the weekend to shoot up the leaderboard. He missed a couple of five footers on the back nine that kept him from challenging for the win but still posted a very impressive finish. He also had good results at the Rocket Mortgage (T12) and 3M Open (T32) in his previous two tournaments.
Lewis has more experience than most casual fans probably think and will be teeing it up for the seventh time at a major. He finished T11 at The Open Championship last season and also was Low Amateur back at the 2011 Open. He has only played the PGA Championship one time and that resulted in a missed cut last year. He bounced back from a 76 on Thursday with a 71 in Round 2 at Bethpage Black. Given his current form, he’ll be a solid play this week.
Emiliano Grillo, $6,800
Grillo also comes in hot after posting a T3 at the 3M Open and a T9 last week at the alternate-field event at the Barracuda Championship. He entered the field as an alternate to replace Vijay Singh (undisclosed).
The international flavor to these bargains continues since Grillo is a 27-year-old from Argentina who worked his way up through the European Tour before earning PGA Tour Rookie of the Year for 2016. He has played in the past seven majors and made the cut in four of the past five, including a top-25 finish at least season’s PGA Championship.
Jim Furyk, $6,600
Furyk didn’t play the Barracuda or the St. Jude last week, instead making his debut on the Champions Tour and winning The Ally Challenge. Furyk turned 50 during the stoppage earlier this year, which makes him eligible to participate in Champions Tour events. He won at Warwick Hills, which he knew well from its time on the PGA Tour as host of the Buick Open.
The 50-year-old isn’t done with the PGA Tour, though, and has played five events since the restart making the cut three times, including a T48 at The Memorial in his most recent start on the Tour. Furyk won the U.S. Open in 2003 and posted six top-10 finishes in his 25 PGA Championships in his career. Even if he doesn’t have the game to contend for the win on Sunday, he should be able to make the cut and put together a strong showing on a track he played in the 2015 WGC-Match Play and went 2-1 in group play before advancing all the way to the semi-finals where he lost 1up to eventual champion Rory McIlroy ($10,700).
Set your lineups here: $3M Fantasy Golf Millionaire [$1M to 1st + ToC Entry]
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is Z.Thompson) 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 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.