Fantasy Golf Picks, Odds, & Predictions – The PGA Championship

Fantasy Golf Picks, Odds, and Predictions for the PGA Championship

2018 PGA Championship Fantasy Preview

One week ahead of the fourth and final major of the year, you suspect that the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational is an event that giveth with one hand and taketh with the other.

Imagine being Rory McIlroy and Ian Poulter this week: they were the pair chasing Justin Thomas hard heading into the final 18 holes, and both capitulated. McIlroy hit just 21% of fairways and 39% of greens in his final round, and he will now have plenty of work to do on the range to find his game before the PGA Championship kicks off on Thursday.

As for Poulter, his previously red-hot putter went ice-cold, losing more than a stroke to the field on Sunday. Poults’ confidence won’t be shot – that’s simply not his personality type – but he has gone from serious contender to long-shot fancy in the space of 24 hours.

Dustin Johnson waves his ball to acknowledge fans after making a…

Dustin Johnson waves his ball to acknowledge fans after making a birdie putt on the eighth hole green during the final round of the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone… Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

Contrast that to the good vibes cursing through Justin Thomas today, who reminded the golf world to not forget about him. It was a good week for him – and punters – this week, with the savvy recognizing that 30/1 about a player who had won six times since the start of 2017 was just madness.

In little over 18 months, JT has now bagged a major, a WGC title and a FedExCup trophy, leaving most of his contemporaries trailing in his wake.

The 25-year-old will now look to defend his PGA Championship crown at Bellerive CC in St Louis, Missouri this week. It’s a manic final session on the PGA TOUR, with a major, the FedExCup finals and the Ryder Cup just around the corner, and you sense that only the strong will survive such a punishing schedule.

Last Week’s Fantasy Results 

We can’t brag about a perfect 7 for 7 week because well, it was a non-cut event. However, we went heavy on Kyle Stanley who came in priced low and offered up 99 fantasy points with his solo 2nd finish.

Along with Stanley, our 1-2 punch of Rory and Day looked quite strong heading into Sunday but their aforementioned final round struggles lead to finishes of T-6 and T-10 respectively.

With that in mind, we congratulate JT on a strong WGC performance and look ahead to this week’s final Major of the season.

Justin Thomas poses with the Gary Player Cup after winning the World…

Justin Thomas poses with the Gary Player Cup after winning the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club South Course on August 5, 2018 in Akron, Ohio. Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

The 2018 PGA Championship Field

It’s the last chance to grab some major silverware in 2018, so it’s little surprise that some 110 of the world’s top 112 players will tee up at Bellerive – Europeans Joost Luiten and Bernd Wiesberger the only absentees with respective wrist injuries.

There are concerns about the back spasms which kept Justin Rose out of the WGC-Bridgestone, but he is expected to take his place in the field on Thursday.

Tiger Woods walks across the 18th hole during the World Golf…

Tiger Woods walks across the 18th hole during the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational – Final Round at Firestone Country Club South Course on August 5, 2018 in Akron, Ohio. Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

Andrew Putnam has earned his place in the field following his efforts in last week’s alternate event, the Barracuda Championship. He finished on +47 – a good score in the stableford format! – to clinch the last place in the PGA.

Joaquin Niemann has been given a special invitation to compete following his stellar season; this will be the 19-year-old’s debut in a major.

This Week’s Course Preview

If you think you’ve heard the name ‘Bellerive Country Club’ before then maybe you have: it has hosted prior editions of the standard and senior US Open and PGA Championship before, as well as the BMW Championship in 2008.

Based in a suburb of St Louis, Missouri, Bellerive was first designed by Robert Trent-Jones in 1960, with a large overhaul coming in 2006 from his son, Rees Jones, an architect known as the ‘Open doctor’ for his work on Winged Foot and Torrey Pines.

Built around a creek which creates a hazard on nine holes, Bellerive will play as a Par 70 this week with just two Par 5s and at a lengthy yardage of roughly 7,300 yards, depending on tee placement.

The Wanamaker Trophy at Bellerive Country Club, home of the 2018 PGA…

The Wanamaker Trophy at Bellerive Country Club, home of the 2018 PGA Championship on May 15, 2017 in St. Louis, Missouri. Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

The Bentgrass greens are large, as per Trent-Jones’ original design, but have been complicated since with the introduction of ‘greens within a green’: layers and ‘transitions’ with the green complexes themselves. You can expect little tiers and shelves to complicate matters, and place an emphasis on accurate approach.

The fairways are Zoysia, the strain of grass typically native to parts of Africa. Both Gary Player and Nick Price have won here, so perhaps that is an angle that the South African players will enjoy this week.

Those who have walked the course have commented on the back nine in particular, which appears to feature some outstanding holes. The eleventh will be a driveable Par 4, a move which was dictated when a pot bunker was removed by Rees Jones, although the players are well served to watch out for the pond that protects the right-hand side of the green.

Holes 13-16 are on the ridgeline, which means some dramatic elevation changes and elegant visuals for players off the tee.

And the 17th is a 597-yard behemoth of a Par 5, which is lined by the creek down the right-hand side. Will the field lay-up or attack the green?

There is a fantastic interview with Rees Jones on the American Society of Golf Course Architects website, that goes into great detail about Bellerive, but suffice to say the players can expect a challenging test this week.

The key is the length: six of the Par 4s will weigh in at over 450 yards two at 500+, the Par 5s will be topside of 600 yards (or near as damn it), and the 16th is a 220-yard Par 3. Oh, and the rough is said to be up.

Bellerive will provide an excellent test of all-round credentials this week.

Weather Forecast for St. Louis, MO

The forecast is nice and settled this week, with only some light thunderstorms on Tuesday scuppering matters.

Otherwise, we’re set for a sunny, dry and largely wind-free week in St Louis.

It really is a case of déjà vu across all four days: the sun will be out, the wind will increase through the day but be fairly negligible at all times, ad it’s unlikely that the atmospheric conditions will have any bearing on the outcome of the 2018 PGA Championship.

Last Year’s Results from The PGA Championship

After opening with a round of 73, it’s unlikely that Justin Thomas would have expected to triumph in last year’s edition of the PGA Championship.

But he fired straight back with a fantastic 66 to reinvigorate his tournament; albeit he was five strokes back from the runaway halfway leaders Kevin Kisner an Hideki Matsuyama.

A 69 intensified the pressure on the leaders – Kisner held top spot on -7 heading into the final round, with Matsuyama and Chris Stroud on -6 and Thomas and Louis Oosthuizen on -5.

Justin Thomas | Best Shots from His Final Round at the 2018 PGA Championship

Take a look at PGA Champion Justin Thomas’ Fourth and final Round at the 2017 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow. Thomas came into the round trailing but had an impressive final day to win the PGA Championship, his first major championship.

A chaotic final round saw five players tied for the lead heading into the back nine, before Matsuyama – one of the bunch – forged ahead. However, the Japanese ace bogeyed five of his remaining holes to fall out of contention.

Patrick Reed made three straight birdies heading towards the clubhouse, but he too made a bogey on the 18th to fall out of the mix.

Which left Thomas, playing smart, conservative golf, to hold his nerve and claim the first major of his career. How many more will follow is anybody’s guess.

Where to Play Fantasy Golf for The PGA Championship this Week

It’s a major, and as expected the daily fantasy sites have raised their game accordingly!

There’s the chance to become a millionaire, and plenty of other opportunities to cash big in, possibly, the last huge slate of the year. Let’s take advantage…

• PGA $2.5m Fantasy Golf Millionaire: For just $20 entry, you could become a millionaire come Sunday evening. There’s 161k other players to contend with, but with the top 20% all banking profit there’s plenty of reasons to get involved.
• PGA $600k Fore: If you’re on a tighter budget then this contest offers maximum gain for minimal outlay. There’s a sweet $100k to the winner, and for just $4 entry the top 400 players trouser a handy $50.

This Week’s Fantasy Notes for The PGA Championship

In the interview with Rees Jones that we linked to earlier in this preview, the famed architect tells us that “Bellerive requires shot makers,” i.e. that quality approach play will seize the day.

It’s hard to disagree with the man – he knows his own course, after all – and approaching these ‘greens within a green’ will require pinpoint placement, especially as the run-off areas will gobble up any errant iron play and lead to some tricky up-and-downs.

But we can’t ignore the fact that long, straight driving will surely be the key to success at Bellerive. Think about it: the longer you get down these lengthy fairways, the shorter the club in hand; ideal for holding these complex greens.

There’s an advantage to playing from the fairway, of course, but that is negated if you’ve got a two or three-iron in hand and a perilous approach to navigate.

So those ‘total drivers’ could well be the ones to follow in this week.

As ever at a Par 70 layout, the emphasis is on Par 4 Scoring; both from the perspective of making birdies and avoiding a booger. The Par 5s are three-shot holes for the shorter hitters – again, we’re leaning towards the considered bomber types – and will offer only very occasional looks at eagle.

Of all the majors, the PGA Championship is one where shock winners are more likely to be coronated. Without the complexity of Augusta or the US Open, or the unique skillset required to prosper on the Links in the UK, this is perhaps the fairest and easiest test of the bunch.

Keegan Bradley and Y.E. Yang can be categorized under surprise champion in the past decade alone, and guys like Jimmy Walker and Jason Dufner aren’t necessarily what we could consider obvious major contenders.

The unheralded Englishman, David Lynn, was second in 2012, so perhaps we can widen our net somewhat in our hunt for a champion.

As for correlating courses, anywhere that long, straight hitters thrive will be of use, and actually we can draw comparison to Firestone last week, which was more forgiving but again benefited those who could send their ball a long way down the fairway.

There are no unique weather conditions to consider here, so there’s no favoring wind players or the like.

Hit it long and straight, approach from a great height to hold the green, putt like a major winner. What could be simpler!

Our Top 5 (and Top 2 Sleeper) Fantasy Picks and Odds to Win The PGA Championship

You must be a Premium Member to view our exclusive fantasy golf picks.

Already a member? Sign in Here.

Fantasy Golf Predictions This Season (2017-2018)

Remember to visit our private Facebook group to discuss this week’s picks for PGA Championship with other Premium Members.

Cover Photo via Instagram