Fantasy Golf Picks, Odds, and Predictions – 2014 Frys.com Open

Fantasy Golf Picks and Predictions for the 2014 Frys.com Open

This Week’s Tournament Preview

Calling all fantasy golf fans – the 2014 FedExCup might have just ended but don’t blink, because it’s already time to kick off the 2014-2015 wrap-around season with this week’s Frys.com Open.

As the first event of the new season, the Frys.com Open sets the stage for what will be another long PGA TOUR season and the start of another year’s FedExCup points run.

You won’t see many big names in the field this fall season, as most are resting up for when the reason more “officially” kicks off in January. But for all of us fantasy nuts, it’s time to jump right back into the action.

Last Season’s Fantasy Results

Last season (which officially wrapped up with the TOUR Championship at East Lake) we provided our Premium Member fantasy picks for all 37 tournaments. During what turned out to be yet another wildly successful season, we picked 10 winners, 90 Top 10s, 28 Top 3s and an astounding 86.49% of our picks made the cut (that includes sleepers!).

For all you bean counters out there, that record resulted in a total fantasy earnings of $46.4 million, which is an average of $1.254 million in weekly player fantasy earnings.

Not a bad bar to set going into the new 2014-2015 season!

The Field

Coming off of his recent Ryder Cup defeat will be the defending champion Jimmy Walker and three others from Team USA, including Matt Kuchar, Hunter Mahan and Patrick Reed. Out of the 2014 Ryder Cup bunch, Europe’s Lee Westwood is another notable you’ll find in this week’s field.

Also among the big names at Silverado this week will be Brooks Koepka, who just missed winning this event last year while playing on a sponsor exemption.

The rest of this week’s field will be stocked primarily with recent Web.com TOUR graduates who earned their PGA TOUR card, including three-time winner Carlos Ortiz and overall money leader Adam Hadwin.

The Course

Silverado Resort & Spa (North) measures in at 7,203 yards, and plays as a par 72. Located in beautiful Napa, CA, this track has been a regular stop on TOUR for many years.

The course was converted into a resort in the 1960s when Robert Trent Jones Jr. came on board to add his special touch, creating two 18-hole courses in the process. Shortly after the track’s restoration (courtesy of Hall of Famer Johnny Miller), the PGA TOUR came on board, launching their inaugural event, the Kaiser International, in 1968.

As TOUR tracks go, the course itself is pretty standard but heavy air may play the course a bit longer, but the notoriously clam weather otherwise should not pose much of a threat.

Most of the excitement here at Silverado will most likely come on the Par 5-4-5 finishing three holes, which could swing some scores and make for a tight finish.

Photo via SilveradoResort.com

Weather Forecast for Napa, CA (from weather.com)

• Round 1: Thursday (Oct 9) 87 degrees, 0% chance of rain, sunny.
• Round 2: Saturday (Oct 10) 85 degrees, 10% chance of rain, partly cloudy.
• Round 3: Sunday (Oct 11) 91 degrees, 0% chance of rain, partly cloudy.
• Round 4: Monday (Oct 12) 94 degrees, 0% chance of rain, sunny.

2013 Results

In 2013 Jimmy Walker ended his 8-year winless drought and earned his first PGA TOUR victory by beating out Brooks Koepka, who took himself out of the running with late round trip into the water hazard. Koepka had led by four with eleven holes to play but missed short par putts on a few of the tough greens at CordeValle Golf Club, allowing Walker to sneak up from behind. Walker eventually moved ahead with a 6-foot birdie at No. 15 and the rest was history.

Walker’s two-stroke win marked the first of three that he would go on to win last season. We’re sure his pride is still hurting from the recent Ryder Cup loss, but Jimmy is undoubtedly in prime shape to take on these Web.com newbies.

Here is wrap-up of Round 4 from last year’s edition of The Frys.com Open.

Round 4 Recap: 2013 Frys.com Open

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Media

• Television Broadcasts
  • Thursday – Sunday 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. EST (Golf Channel)
• Radio Broadcasts
  • Thursday – Sunday, 2:00 pm – 8:00 p.m. EST (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.COM)
• Mobile Broadcasts
  • Simultaneous coverage on the Golf Live Extra app for iPhone and iPad.

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Our Top 5 (and Top 2 Sleeper) Fantasy Picks and Odds to Win The 2014 Frys.com Open

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Top 5 Picks/Odds to Win The 2014 Frys.com Open

• Jimmy Walker (Golficity Odds 10/1): The defending champion is undoubtedly the man to beat this week. After a disappointing defeat at the Ryder Cup, Walker is still among the most conditioned of the other players in the field. He comes off a total of 10 top 10s (three wins) and another six top 20s from last year’s wrap-around season. Walker is our go-to guy this week for sure…
• Matt Kuchar (Golficity Odds 12/1): You can’t bet against Kuchar in a field like this. This is his Frys tournament debut, but Kuch easily ranks in the top three in terms of best in the field. Last year he ranked T2 on the PGA TOUR with 11 top 10s, all while coming in at fifth in adjusted scoring, and 12th in scrambling. Kuch is easily a strong contender this week and would fit well on a salary cap team with Walker.
• Hideki Matsuyama (Golficity Odds 22/1): Matsuyama been mostly idle since his last successful run on the PGA TOUR last season, and he’ll be looking to change that this fall season. Last season Hideki ranked sixth in strokes gained: tee-to-green and 19th in adjusted scoring. He also came in with four Top 10s last year including one win, and even finished T3 at this event in 2013.
• Patrick Reed (Golficity Odds 24/1): Reed is probably still fired up from his personal success at Gleneagles where he went 3-0-1 in his first appearance at the Ryder Cup. Reed also pulled in both of his 2014 win in the early part of the season, which seems to be the time where he really shines, and in a weaker field like this one, he should really stand out.
• Hunter Mahan (Golficity Odds 30/1): Tough call here, but this is the type of event we see Hunter shining in. This year’s Frys will mark his first appearance in Napa, CA and but Mahan is coming off a Barclays win just seven weeks ago. We wouldn’t advise picking him in a salary cap league (too expensive), but in a pick’em league he makes a great addition to your roster.

Sleeper Pick/Odds to Win The 2014 Frys.com Open

• Brooks Koepka (Golficity Odds 45/1): Brooks nearly won this event a year ago and comes into Napa with his hot new PGA TOUR card. Most golf experts agree that he’s poised to keep the momentum going as he heads into the new season. Brooks has finished no worse than T11 in his last three starts (all of which were all in Europe) and we think he’ll be out to prove he can hang with the big guns this week.

Salary Cap League Sleeper Pick/Odds to Win The 2014 Frys.com Open

• Adam Hadwin (Golficity Odds 66/1): Coming in on most salary cap leagues around $6,400, Adam Hadwin makes a solid sleeper pick for at an attractively cheap price. Last season Hadwin was No. 1 in Web.com Tour earnings with two wins, a T2, a T3, and five more top 10s. Look for Hadwin to potentially be the breakthrough star this week.

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Last Event’s Results:  Top 5 Picks/Odds to Win the 2014 TOUR Championship

• Rory McIlroy Golficity Odds 3 /1): T2 ($708,000)
• Rickie Fowler (Golficity Odds 8/1): 8th ($260,000)
• Bubba Watson (Golficity Odds 10/1): 14th ($190,000)
• Jim Furyk (Golficity Odds 15/1): T2 ($708,000)
• Billy Horschel (Golficity Odds 33/1): WINNNER (1,440,000)

Last Event’s Results: Sleeper Picks/Odds to Win the 2014 TOUR Championship

• Jordan Spieth (Golficity Odds 33/1): 27th ($135,000)

Last Event’s Results Salary Cap Sleeper Pick/Odds to Win the 2014 TOUR Championship

• Ryan Palmer (Golficity Odds 33/1): 7th (275,000)

Fantasy Golf Predictions Stats: 2013-2014 Season

• Total Fantasy Dollars: $46,401,659 (Weekly average = $1,254,098).
• Total Top 10s: 90 out of 259 players picked (34.75%).
• Total Top 3s: 28 out of 259 players picked (10.81%).
• Total Missed Cuts: Only 35 out of 259 players picked (86.49% made the cut).
• Total Winners Picked: 10 out of 37 (27.02%)
• Total Major Winners Picked: 2 out of 4 (50%)
• Total WGC Event Winners Picked: 2 out of 3 (66.67%)

Remember to visit the The Clubhouse and our private Facebook group to discuss this week’s picks for the 2014 Frys.com Open with other Premium Members.

(Cover Photo Credit)