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Fantasy Golf Picks, Odds, and Predictions – 2019 Desert Classic

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Fantasy Golf Picks, Odds, and Predictions for the Desert Classic

2019 Desert Classic Fantasy Preview

Life begins at 40, so the old parable goes. Given Matt Kuchar’s recent achievements, it’s hard to disagree with that sentiment.

Kooch, winless in four-and-a-half years on the PGA TOUR, finally got back in the winners’ enclosure at November’s Mayakoba Golf Classic, and lo and behold – with the monkey firmly off his back – the veteran has only gone and done it again.

He opened up with a round of 63 at the Sony Open and never looked back; taking the lead on Friday and never once being overtaken by any of his competitors.

Matt Kuchar of the United States reacts on the 15th green during the…

Matt Kuchar of the United States reacts on the 15th green during the final round of the Sony Open In Hawaii at Waialae Country Club on January 13, 2019 in Honolulu, Hawaii. Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

It was the ninth PGA TOUR triumph of Kuchar’s career, and he became the second player in as many years – following Patton Kizzire – to bag the Mayakoba/Waialae double in the same season.

It’s back to the US mainland this week for the first domestic event of the calendar year: the Desert Classic, which depending on your vintage you may recall being named the Bob Hope Classic, the Humana Challenge or the CareerBuilder Challenge.

This is the 60th anniversary of the famous celebrity pro-am, which has seen the likes of Bill Clinton, Frank Sinatra, Samuel L. Jackson and many others tee up alongside the pros across three courses in the Californian desert.

It’s slightly chaotic but a lot of fun, and those watching on TV or pacing the floors with their tablets/phones locked on to the live scoreboard will have plenty of interest in the action.

Last Week’s Fantasy Results 

Perhaps our most impressive finish of the week was one of our Super-Sleeper picks off of the Tuesday Sleeper Report.  Andrew Putnam finished in a solo second against 80/1 Vegas odds after falling short to Kuch by four strokes.   

Our Top Tier Pick was Justin Thomas, who although hanging around the top 20, didn’t put together any low 60’s rounds to compete with the two 63’s Kuch fired on day one and two.

Matt Kuchar of the United States poses with the trophy after winning…

Matt Kuchar of the United States poses with the trophy after winning the Sony Open In Hawaii at Waialae Country Club on January 13, 2019 in Honolulu, Hawaii. Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

The 2019 Desert Classic Field

The reigning champion Jon Rahm will look to defend the crown he won in spectacular fashion 12 months ago, and his beaten playoff protagonist, Andrew Landry, is also in the mix.

The Spaniard takes his place in a field which includes a raft of former winners o this event, including Jason Dufner, Charley Hoffman, Pat Perez and Bill Haas, alongside two-time champion Phil Mickelson.

A trio of former major winners – Justin Rose, Charl Schwartzel and Danny Willett – make their first starts of 2019, while Adam Hadwin returns to the scene where he became the eighth member of the PGA TOUR’s ’59 Club’ back in 2017.

Jon Rahm of Spain plays a shot from the third tee during the second…

Jon Rahm of Spain plays a shot from the third tee during the second round of the Quicken Loans National at Congressional Country Club on June 24, 2016 in Bethesda, Maryland. Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

This Week’s Course Preview

This is one of those rare PGA TOUR events where a split-course set-up is used.

All of the players will tackle the trio of courses in their opening three rounds: PGA West’s Stadium Course, PGA West’s Tournament Course and La Quinta Country Club. On Sunday, those who make the cut will tackle the Stadium Course one last time.

That particular layout is the toughest of three, designed as it was by the mad scientist that is Pete Dye.

Indeed, to give you an idea of what the players are in for, this track was once voted the fourth most difficult to play in the US, and in 1986 the pros started a petition to have it taken off the tour. Their efforts succeeded, although it returned in 2016 to host this event; albeit made easier to accommodate the amateur players.

The Stadium Course plays at 7,266 yards for its Par 72, and has supposedly been inspired by Scottish Links courses; although it has also been named as a sister to TPC Sawgrass.

Featuring deep bunkers, elevated greens and plenty of water, most in the field will look to consolidate at the Stadium Course while making hay at the other tracks.

The Tournament course, designed by Jack Nicklaus, is the middle layout in terms of difficulty. Forgiving off the tee, the players can give it a bomb off the tee to minimize the chance of them coming unstuck when approaching these tight greens, which feature plenty of run-offs areas and undulations.

It has been called a ‘true ball striker’s test’ by Nicklaus himself, and again plays as a Par 72 at 7,204 yards.

Finally, we have the La Quinta Country Club, the easiest of the courses and the scene of Hadwin’s 59 two years ago.

A Par 72 at 7,060 yards, La Quinta underwent some changes prior to the 2018 renewal, with bunkers and trees added, but it didn’t seem to affect the ease with which it is taken apart.

A general view of the 18th hole during the final round of the…

A general view of the 18th hole during the final round of the CareerBuilder Challenge at the TPC Stadium Course at PGA West on January 21, 2018 in La Quinta, California. Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

Weather Forecast for La Quinta, CA

We’re looking at a cool but largely dry week in the Californian desert.

Tuesday and Wednesday look set to be dry enough, sunny and with temperatures around the 66 degree mark.

The early forecast suggests there could be some showers around on Thursday, moving in during the afternoon mostly. Temperatures will hit 67 degrees, with wind speeds at around 7 mph.

Friday, Saturday and Sunday all look to be very similar, according to the early forecast. Sunny spells, temperatures of around 72 degrees and wind speeds of around 7 mph appear to be the order of the day.

Last Year’s Results from the Desert Classic

When Jon Rahm opened up with a round of 62 at La Quinta to open up a two-shot lead, the writing appeared to be on the wall for the rest of the field.

The Spaniard followed up with 67-70 to let others into the fold however, with Austin Cook’s sublime Saturday 64 taking him top of the 54-hole leaderboard at -19; one shot ahead of Andrew Landry and Martin Piller.

Sunday at the Stadium Course is an altogether different beast, mind you, and Rahm’s bogey-free 67 took him clear before Landry birdied the last to force a playoff at -22.

It took four extra holes to separate the pair, with Rahm birdieing the 18th in fading light to secure a second worldwide win in just three starts. Landry, Hadwin, Piller and John Huh rounded out the top five.

Highlights | Round 4 | CareerBuilder

SUBSCRIBE to PGA TOUR now: http://pgat.us/vBxcZSh In the final round of the 2018 CareerBuilder Challenge, Jon Rahm beat Andrew Landry on the fourth playoff with a birdie to win his second-career PGA TOUR victory. The Stadium Course at PGA West, the host course for the CareerBuilder Challenge, and part of a three-course rotation, takes place in La Quinta, California.

Where to Play Fantasy Golf for the Desert Classic this Week

In a big field with all sorts of pro-am shenanigans going on, and in a realm where there are only a handful of standout picks, it will be a tough week for everyone as far as DFS point scoring is concerned. Happily, these are the slates where the cream generally rises to the top.

  • PGA $150k Dogleg: If you have the bankroll for it then why not team into this $33 contest, where you’ll only be battling it out with circa 5,000 teams for the $25,000 top prize. Sometimes, variance can be your friend!
  • PGA $35k Birdie: If you want to keep a tighter leash on your spending, given that this Desert Classic has the look of something of a free-for-all, then there are still some handsome rewards in this $3 contest; not least the $3k jackpot.

This Week’s Fantasy Notes for the Desert Classic

This is an event where there are knowns and ‘known unknowns’.

We know that we’re looking for form in the desert ideally, but primarily in California and on the west coast, as well as success on Par 72 layouts.

From last year’s stats – and the event’s history – we know that what you do off the tee is largely irrelevant: Rahm ranked 28th for Driving Accuracy but 5th for Distance, whereas Landry found 68% of fairways from an average distance of 282 yards; clearly, he was hitting lots of irons off the peg.

GIR is usually a key measure of success, but last year’s numbers (Rahm ranked 20th, Landry 16th) hint that there’s even some leeway there.

No, as is often the case in birdie-fests, its with the flat stick where most of the magic happens. All of the top five last year ranked inside the top 20 for Putting Average, with Rahm (eighth) gaining much of his momentum on the greens.

The last time this event wasn’t won in -20 or better was 2007, and that was the sole anomaly since way back in 1989! The idea here is that the amateurs and celebrities have half a chance of posting a score, while the pros have a jolly good time too.

There is the possibility of a draw bias, of course, although there is nothing particularly worrying in the weather forecast that suggests one day is going to be much better/worse than any other.

And on that note, it was noticeable that each of the first five players home last year were able to get off to a fast start: Rahm (-10) and Landry (-9) opened up at La Quinta, with Piller (-8), Hadwin (-6) and Huh (-4) at the Tournament Course.

Our Top 5 (and Top 2 Sleeper) Fantasy Picks and Odds to Win the Desert Classic

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Fantasy Golf Predictions This Season (2018-2019)

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[skill_bar heading=”Total Top 3s” percent=”4.28%” bar_text=”3 out of 70 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Top 10s” percent=”27.14%” bar_text=”19 out of 70 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Top 25s” percent=”48.57%” bar_text=”34 out of 70 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Winners Picked” percent=”10.00%” bar_text=”1 out of 10 events” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Runners-Up Picked” percent=”10.00%” bar_text=”1 out of 10 events” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Made Cuts (Includes Sleepers)” percent=”82.86%” bar_text=”58 out of 70 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″]

Remember to visit our private Facebook group to discuss this week’s picks for the Desert Classic with other Premium Members.


Cover Photo via Instagram

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