Fantasy Golf Sleeper Report – Houston Open

2018 Houston Open Fantasy Sleeper Report

Let the Augusta excitement commence! We are T-minus one week away from the first major of the year, and things are shaping up rather nicely with some of the old guard of the PGA TOUR showing their stripes.

None more so than Bubba Watson, who has gone from the brink of retirement to a dual Tour winner in the space of a few months. His ridiculous shot making off the tee is back, and he’s starting to make some putts too….what timing from the former two-time green jacket wearer.

Bubba followed up his win at the Genesis Open in February with victory at the WGC Match Play last week where, with six wins from seven matches, he was by far the best player over the course of the five days. His bullying win over Kevin Kisner in the final proved that the old, confident Bubba is back. Everybody else had better watch out.

Bubba Watson of the United States plays his shot from the eighth tee…

Bubba Watson of the United States plays his shot from the eighth tee during his final round match against Kevin Kisner of the United States in the World Golf Championships-Dell Match Play at Austin… Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

Before talk turns too readily to The Masters, there is one final piece of business to take care of. The Houston Open is a nice precursor to the battle for the green jacket in that the Golf Club of Houston, according to many, is a dead ringer for Augusta National in some ways. Certainly the Bermuda greens, running at around 13 on the stimpmeter, will provide the players with the ideal ‘look in’ ahead of the trip to Georgia next week.

The list of recent winners of this event includes Henley, Herman, Holmes, Jones and Points; that suggests a sleeper has an outstanding chance of winning this week with the great and the good arguably distracted by dreams of slipping on that green blazer on Sunday April 8.

So who are the ones to watch this week?

Brandt Snedeker – Vegas Odds 70/1 – A fully-fit Brandt Snedeker would be at least half his 70/1 price in this field, and so we have to take a chance that a two weeks off has given him a chance to round out the sharp edges of his game.

The injuries have left Sneds on the verge of missing the trip to Augusta, a course at which he has five top-20 finishes, and that will be hurting the former FedExCup champion.

Snedeker has eight PGA TOUR wins and two of them have come at Rees Jones properties: East Lake and Torrey Pines, and so there is no reason why he can’t get the job done this week; especially given GC of Houston’s apparent likeness to Augusta National.

Shubhankar Sharma – Vegas Odds 80/1 – At the 80/1 price point this week you could invest your hard earned cash in the likes of Bill Haas, Bud Cauley or Harris English….or you could bet on a man who has won three times worldwide in recent months and who led a WGC event after 54 holes.

You can believe the hype: Sharma is the real deal, and he proved it in Mexico when he mixed it with the best and, but for a Sunday wobble which was always likely to come, got the better of them.

Sharma will have learned a lot from that experience of going off in the final group on a Sunday, and he is continuing to develop as a player. In his first ever look at match play golf last week he lost 1-down (twice) and 2&1 to a trio of excellent players in Sergio Garcia, Xander Schauffele and Dylan Frittelli, and you can expect Sharma to fly sooner rather than later.

Kelly Kraft – Vegas Odds 100/1 – Ever since he finished second to Jordan Spieth in the AT&T Pebble Beach last year, Kraft has been on the radar.

He hasn’t done anything since really, frustratingly, although recently there have been signs that the 29-year-old’s game is coming together. T8 at the Honda Classic travelled nicely to the Dominican Republic where he finished T3 in the Corales Punta Cana Championship; the first time in a long time he has connected two quality efforts.

So, there’s current form, an excellent performance at a correlated course in Pebble Beach and a decent touch with the flat stick – Kraft ranks 43rd for SG: Putting this season. Who knows what might follow from the Texan this week?

Peter Uihlein – Vegas Odds 125/1 – It has taken quite some time, but Peter Uihlein finally looks ready to cash in on the potential he showed at amateur level.

He won the 2010 US Amateur at Chambers Bay – no mean feat, and was expected to achieve great things as a pro….as is often the case in life, these things don’t always go to plan.

But a decent season on the European Tour led to a milestone win at the Web.com Tour’s Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship, his first as a professional.

The Oklahoma State graduate – Uihlein will know how to play in this part of the country – beat Rory McIlroy (what a boost to his confidence) and Jhonattan Vegas at the WGC Match Play, and he will be ready to get stuck into some strokeplay action back at this old stomping ground.

Sung Kang – Vegas Odds 150/1 – This feels like a week that is open to a surprise winner, and while ‘surprise’ would be an understatement if Sung Kang could somehow win here lest we forget the likes of Herman, Jones and Points were the unlikeliest of champions.

That said, he was six shots clear at the halfway mark 12 months ago so we can say that this is a course that suits his eye!

Another interesting stat that caught the eye a few weeks ago was that Kang ranked thirteenth for Strokes Gained: Putting on the Bermuda of Bay Hill. If his flat stick is hot, at a course that suits his eye….well, stranger things have happened.