Fantasy Golf Predictions
Fantasy Golf Picks, Odds, and Predictions – The 3M Open
Fantasy Golf Picks, Odds, and Predictions for the 3M Open
2019 3M Open Fantasy Preview
There are just some guys in world golf it is impossible not to root for.
Nate Lashley suffered the ultimate tragedy as a college kid when both of his parents and his girlfriend died in a plane crash after watching him compete in the NCAAs.
Unsurprisingly, his focus was no longer on golf, and after finding difficulties with his swing – we’ve all been there – and not having the motivation to rectify them, Lashley even temporarily gave up the sport for a career in real estate.
But he bounced back, and after a series of solid showings he finally got his ultimate reward when winning the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit last week.
In fact, Lashley didn’t just win the inaugural hosting of the event: he demolished the field by some six strokes, not making a single bogey through his opening 54 holes, and in doing so claimed his maiden PGA TOUR title.
Last week’s action was a leap into the unknown for DFS gamers at a new course, and this week we once again set forth for unchartered territory with the PGA TOUR heading to new land once more: Minnesota getting its first event in decades.
The 3M Open will be familiar to followers of the Champions Tour, with the young guns getting their first taste of TPC Twin Cities this week.
Last Week’s Fantasy Results
Lashley was yet another pick you wouldn’t normally see coming; but hey, that’s the breaks with DFS golf games.
Overall, 5 of 7 of our main picks made the cut in Detroit with two Top-13 earners including Cameron Tringale’s T5 finish.
We had Cheavie two weeks ago at the Travelers, but failed to pick a winner last week, so let’s fix that and come back strong for the 3M.
The 2019 3M Open Field
Just 11 of the top 30 in the FedExCup standings will make their way to the North Star State, with three-time major winner Brooks Koepka taking on headlining duty.
He will be joined by the seemingly rejuvenated Jason Day, the in-form Hideki Matsuyama and the mercurial Bryson DeChambeau.
Patrick Reed and Keegan Bradley will be looking to build on their recent improvements, while Tony Finau will be hoping to halt his decline. One of the more intriguing young talents, Viktor Hovland, tees up as a pro for the third time, while at the other end of the age spectrum Phil Mickelson will be hoping to prove he’s more than just a social media icon!
Local heroes Tom Lehman, who helped to oversee developments at TPC Twin Cities, and Tim Herron will both tee up courtesy of a sponsor’s exemption.
This Week’s Course Preview
“We want birdies and train wrecks, and we don’t want to be the hardest golf course on the tour. I think you’ll see 20 under par (win the tournament). It wouldn’t bother me if they shoot 25 under.”
For purists, those are surprising words from tournament director Hollis Cavner – particularly with the action unfolding at an Arnold Palmer design in TPC Twin Cities.
But yes, the legend must have been in a generous mood when he scribbled down the blueprints for this Minnesotan layout. Used as the base for the Champions Tour’s 3M Championship, the average winning score here in recent years has been -17 – and remember, these are 54-hole events.
No course on the Champions Tour has seen more birdies recorded, with Kenny Penny and Paul Goydos both carding rounds of 60 here in recent history.
Naturally, we’re expecting a birdie-fest that could put even last week’s host, Detroit GC, to shame.
The only thing that will add to the complexity is length: course managers have been able to add significant yardage that will see the track play as a 7,468 yard Par 71 this week.
Lehman has also been part of renovation efforts, with trees added, water hazards extended and additional sand traps added to fairways and around the fringes of greens.
How that will alter the dynamics remains to be seen, but with the tournament’s own director dreaming of a -25 winning score, you get the idea that many of the top pros could have their wicked way with TPC Twin Cities.
Weather Forecast for Blaine, MN
Remember that length we mentioned? Well, the distances could be getting even longer if the weather forecast is to be believed.
Scattered thunderstorms are the buzzword on Thursday, Friday and Saturday in Blaine, which presumably means that at some point we are in for some hefty rainfall.
Temperatures are good – ranging from 75°F to 84°F – and wind speeds are fairly calm at 8-10 mph.
And the good news is that Sunday will be sunny and settled, according to the early forecast. Just watch out for that rain early in the tournament!
Last Year’s Results from the 3M Open
Well, this is awkward: of course, there was no 3M Open on the PGA TOUR last season.
For what it’s worth, the corresponding event on last year’s schedule was the Military Tribute at The Greenbrier, which Kevin Na won by five shots from a chasing pack headed by Kelly Kraft.
Where to Play Fantasy Golf for the 3M Open this Week
It’s kind of a suck-it-and-see week for gamers this week, and that attitude appears to have been reflected by the DFS sites, who are keeping their cards close to their chests. But with the British Open just a couple of weeks away, now is the time to start accumulating a fresh bankroll to tackle the year’s final major.
- PGA $500k Drive the Green: Do we have an edge this week? Perhaps, perhaps not, although at least we know a long-hitting birdie fest is in the offing. That gives us an angle to cling to with our draft, and so entering this $5 behemoth – with $100k to the winner – appears to be fair game.
- PGA $45k Birdie: The top 10% of owners will at least double their money in this $3 contest, and with a 20-team multi-entry that gives us plenty of opportunities to walk away with a tidy haul to carry forward to Royal Portrush.
This Week’s Fantasy Notes for the 3M Open
Once again we are heading into the unknown this week, although at least we have some pointers to work with as opposed to the crapshoot that was the Rocket Mortgage Classic last week.
We know that TPC Twin Cities is going to play long – longer if the rain comes – and clearly that gives a certain type of player the edge.
And while efforts have been made to enhance the difficulty here with hazards added and extended, the comments of the tournament director suggest they want plenty of red and even yellow numbers to be made.
It kind of goes against the grain of an Arnold Palmer design: both Bay Hill and TPC Boston, two of his other famous works and mainstays of the PGA TOUR, are difficult enough and rewarding to classic shot-makers who are strong in all facets of the game.
It sounds, worryingly, that TPC Twin Cities may reward those who can it the closest to the green before approaching into soft surfaces and putting well from 15ft and inwards.
There are trees, water and sand, but the aerial view of the course suggests these will be of limited concern, and quite frankly we’re expecting this to turn into a close quarters putting contest amongst those who can whack the thing 300 yards plus off the tee.
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Our Top 5 (and Top 2 Sleeper) Fantasy Picks and Odds to Win the 3M Open
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Top 5 Picks/Odds to Win the 3M Open
Top Tier Pick #1:
Bryson DeChambeau (Odds: 14/1, FPPG: 79.8, GPFP: 63.83 Salary: $10,500)
Having won six times worldwide in the space of 18 months or so, a return to form from Bryson DeChambeau is always going to grab the attention.
The scientist will love trying to fathom out a new course, and as one of the best drivers around – and a prolific birdie-maker – you sense he could win anywhere, not least amongst such fallow company.
It’s unlikely that TPC Twin Cities will be all that reminiscent of Arnold Palmer’s legendary tracks, but as somebody who has won at TPC Boston and finished second at Bay Hill, clearly there is something about the legend’s designs that suit his eye.
With a top-10 finish last time out in the Travelers, DeChambeau looks poised to enter the winner’s circle once more.
Key Stats:
- Total Driving – 4th
- Birdie Average – 5th
- Approaches from 175-200 yards – 6th
Top-Tier Pick #2:
Keegan Bradley (Odds: 40/1, FPPG: 65.1, GPFP: 82.00 Salary: $8,800)
Certain players have certain triggers that dictates when they are rounding up into form. And when Keegan Bradley putts well, you know some good performances are on the horizon.
He was outstanding with the flat stick at the Travelers Championship, where he finished T2, and as one of the best tee-to-green merchants in the game putting improvements are a signal that is hard to ignore.
Much of his best work comes on Bentgrass too, so if he can put together all of the ingredients of his game there’s no reason why Bradley can’t add to his stash of PGA TOUR titles this week.
Key Stats:
- SG: Approach – 4th
- Total Driving – 6th
- Scoring Average – 41st
Mid-Tier Pick #1:
Charles Howell III (Odds: 50/1, FPPG: 67.8, GPFP:71.21 Salary: $8,400)
It’s been a fallow few months for Chucky, but he seemed to find a bit of form last week when opening up 65-67 at the Rocket Mortgage Classic and that bodes well this time out.
Howell is long enough to mix it, is a streaky putter and makes plenty of birdies, and so there’s no reason why he can’t contend in Minnesota.
His ‘nearly man’ tag was shed in winning the RSM Classic earlier in the season, and those stats about the ridiculous amounts of money he has made in his career are no coincidence: Three Sticks is the epitome of consistency, and in this fallow field he stands out at a stirring price.
Key Stats:
- Greens in Regulation – 5th
- Total Driving – 16th
- Par 4 Birdie or Better Leaders – 44th
Mid-Tier Pick #2:
Talor Gooch (Odds: 100/1, FPPG: 62.0, GPFP: 49.57 Salary: $7,600)
To many esteemed judges, this 27-year-old looks to be the real deal and could well make the breakthrough in 2019.
Indeed, if he could tidy up his occasionally errant driving then his approach play – which is outstanding – really could come to the fore.
Gooch ranks 12th on Tour for Birdie Average – this guy can hang – and a healthy return of five top-25 finishes from 13 starts this season lets you know this is a player who appears to be on the cusp of breaking through.
Key Stats:
- Greens in Regulation – 6th
- SG: Approach – 7th
- Birdie Average – 12th
Low-Tier Pick:
Wyndham Clark (Odds: 200/1, FPPG: 59.3, GPFP: 47.41 Salary: $7,100)
Long off the tee and excellent with the flat stick, Clark could well do the business for fans of value plays this week.
He averages a mammoth 311 yards off the tee this season, while ranking ninth for Strokes Gained: Putting – 2nd for putts made inside 10ft.
The obvious flaw in his game is accuracy off the peg and his approach play, but if TPC Twin Cities plays as easily as we suspect then both of those weaknesses will be mitigated.
With top-20s in his last pair of outings in the Travelers Championship and Rocket Mortgage Classic, Clark has the form and the game to get in amongst it in Minnesota.
Key Stats:
- Putts Inside 10ft – 2nd
- Driving Distance – 7th
- Par 4 Birdie or Better Leaders – 15th
Sleeper Pick for the 3M Open
Cameron Champ (Odds: 100/1, FPPG: 59.3, GPFP: 47.40 Salary: $7,500)
There’s not much subtlety to Champ’s game, but that might not matter at this TPC Twin Cities layout.
The 24-year-old sparked a social media tidal wave when he joined the Tour with his huge bombs off the tee, winning the Sanderson Farms Championship at a design not all that dissimilar to this week’s.
Huge off the peg and a decent enough putter, Champ is a proven PGA TOUR winner already and has that X Factor that could make all the difference in a week where there really is very little to separate the players.
Key Stats:
- Driving Distance – 1st
- Greens in Regulation – 10th
- Birdie Average – 19th
Alternative Sleeper Pick for the 3M Open
Wes Roach (Odds: 150/1, FPPG: 54.4, GPFP: 43.54 Salary: $7,000)
A missed cut at the Travelers aside, Roach has played his last eight rounds in the 60s, and there’s no reason why that form cannot travel to Minnesota.
He fired -18 at Detroit GC – that would have been good enough to win on many occasions but for Lashley’s brilliance – and so why wouldn’t he go well again at a track of similar ease.
And while he’s far from prolific, Roach is a former champion on the Web….sorry, Korn Ferry Tour (that’s going to take some getting used to), so he knows how to take care of business.
Key Stats:
- Putts Inside 10ft – 17th
- Total Driving – 54th
- Approaches from 150-175 yards – 75th
This Week’s Sample DraftKings Lineup
Note: Sample lineups provided as examples only. Be sure to mix-and-match players to best fit individual contests.
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Fantasy Golf Predictions This Season (2018-2019)
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