Fantasy Golf Picks & Predictions – The Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

European Tour Fantasy Golf Picks and Predictions for the 2016 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

The 2016 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship Fantasy Preview

Next up on the European Tour we will have the pleasuring of enjoying the Alfred Duhill Links Championship at the famous St. Andrews Golf Course in Scotland. Two other venues, Carnoustie Golf Links and Kingsbarns Golf Links, will also be part of the festivities over the four days of competition. The European Tour will be happy to put the Ryder Cup in the rearview mirror after the men representing Europe were trounced by the Americans 17-11. As the players head to what is often dubbed the “home of golf,” they will have the opportunity to grab part of one of the largest prize pools all year as a combined $5 million will be handed out to those making the cut with the winner taking home nearly a million dollars.

With the big money and prestige that comes with taking down this event, plenty of big names will be making their way to Scotland from around the world. This has been evident in the past with the likes of Branden Grace (2012), Martin Kaymer (2010), Padraig Harrington (2002, 2006), and Lee Westwood (2003) taking home the trophy since the tournament’s inception back in 2001. Three players from Scotland, Paul Lawrie (2001), Stephen Gallacher (2004), and Colin Montgomerie (2005), have been able to hold home field advantage and win in the country they were born. Last season it was Torbjorn Olesen out of Denmark who took home his third, and most impressive, European Tour trophy.  He was able to hold off the likes of Americans Brooks Koepka and Chris Stroud thanks to amassing a large lead heading into Sunday; winning by two strokes despite a less than stellar 71 on the final day. His final score of 18-under was right in lines with what it typically takes to win here and the last five victors have all shot 17-under or better while averaging 20.4 shots below par.

As mentioned previously, the field at this event is typically littered with big names chasing the prize money, and 2016 will once again be filled with talent. A total of 11 players from the Official World Golf Rankings top-50 will be in attendance with No. 10 Danny Willett, No. 13 Branden Grace, and No. 18 Louis Oosthuizen coming from within the top-20. The rest of the list includes Alex Noren, Rafa Cabrera Bello, Shane Lowry, Thomas Pieters, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Lee Westwood, Martin Kaymer, and Soren Kjeldsen. A group of those players, Willett, Bello, Pieters, Fitzpatrick, Westwood, and Kaymer, will be looking for a big outing after the loss a week ago in the Ryder Cup.

As always, this week we’ll feature six golfers in different fantasy price ranges who have a shot at a big week and who can help win you some DFS cash.

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The Alfred Dunhill Links Championship Fantasy Picks and Predictions

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The Alfred Dunhill Links Championship Fantasy Picks

Bernd Wiesberger – $10,800 – Wiesberger has been an elite player on the European Tour throughout the 2016 campaign, and after last week’s fifth place finish, has now made it into the money on 19-of-22 attempts (86%) with four top-10s. There may be many others out there who have made it into the top-10 more, but Wiesberger has been hanging just outside that range all season, notching another six finishes between 11^th and 20^th. He now gets a chance to extend his impressive play after putting up top-15s at this event in each of the last three seasons; including a fourth in 2015 when he had three rounds of 69 or better. The 30-year-old ranks 16^th in scoring average (70.68) thanks to a long drive (294.3 yards per, 47^th on TOUR) and the ability to get the ball on the greens quickly (74% GIR, 15^th on TOUR). Wiesberger is running hot with top-fives in each of his last two outings and should be right near the top of the leaderboard come Sunday.

Tommy Fleetwood – $9,700 – Fleetwood has been at the top of his game over the past few months, notching an average finish of 19^th over his last five matches with five top-16s in the mix. During that time he has gone for a combined 45 shots under par and has nine rounds of 68 or better. It would be surprising to see his hot play halt in this event since he has three consecutive showings of 13 or better and nearly took home the big check in both 2013 with a fifth and 2014 with a runner up. He has totaled 40-under during his time here since 2013 and has carded a 67 or better in half of his rounds played. Although he is having a down season in comparison to his last three, all of which he finished in the top-30 in the Race to Dubai, he is playing his best golf in a while and will be looking to add a second trophy to his accolades.

Richard Bland – $8,200 – Bland is on pace to notch a career-best finish in the Race to Dubai in his 14^th full season on the European Tour since 2002. Prior to 2016, his best was a 65^th back in 2010, but he currently enters the week ranked 28^th thanks to a nearly flawless 21 cuts made of 24 outings (88%) and a career high six top-10s. Much of his success stems from a scoring average which has improved over each of the past four years, sitting at 70.45 (10^th on TOUR) behind 71.2% of greens hit in regulation (24^th on TOUR), 63.8% sand saves (28^th on TOUR), and a tremendous feel with the flat iron (1.734 putts per GIR, 13^th on TOUR).  Of the players in the field this week, only Rafa Cabrera-Bello, Danny Willett, and Joost Luiten have averaged more points on DraftKings per week than Bland’s 73.1, and he should have no issues continuing that trend at a great price.

Bradley Dredge – $7,500 – Dredge is coming off of a very solid performance here last season, going 13-under-par en route to a tie for 13^th. He comes back to the event on the heels of a roller coaster season which has seen him in the money a mere 13-of-19 times (68%) while earning two runner ups and coming into the week in the 23^rd spot in the Race to Dubai. His average finish of 41.83 is the best he’s done in a season with at least 10 events played since 2006 and he is currently riding the eighth-best scoring average (70.39) on the European Tour. He lives by the mantra “drive for show, putt for dough” as he is one of the best players on the greens with 1.747 putts per GIR (23^rd on TOUR) which has led to 28.5 putts per round (5^th on TOUR). Dredge’s volatility certainly makes him a play that could go either way, but it is worth the $7,500 price which they are asking.

Gregory Bourdy – $7,000 – The price that you can steal Bourdy at is pretty amazing given that he has made it into the money on 17-of-22 tries (77%) in European Tour sanctioned events and ranks 30^th in the Race to Dubai. He is also playing well in recent tournaments, raking in seven top-25s over his last nine events and improving his average finishing position to a career-best 35.81. Bourdy has a nice floor for this event with plenty of experience, and while he has not exactly torn up this course in the past, he has made the cut in each of the past three seasons and has shown flashes of a top finish with rounds of 63 in 2013, 67 in 2014, and 69 in 2015. He is in the midst of one of his better years and should be able to use his consistent driver (66.3% fairways hit, 21^st on TOUR) and talent to hit greens (70% GIR, 44^th on TOUR) to be a great cash game play while providing a nice floor for tournament lineups.

Benjamin Hebert – $6,800 – At 29-years-old, Hebert has yet to make his mark on the European Tour with a win, but he has amassed six victories over 72 tournaments on the Challenge Tour; including three in 2014. That put him on a clear track to be a full time player on the biggest stage overseas, and he has taken advantage of it since. Over the last two seasons, Hebert has made it into the money on 34-of-53 (64%) outings and is looking improved over 2015 when he finished 60^th in the Race to Dubai. He has scattered three top-10s over his 23 events and has three top-20s in his last 10 starts. One of the biggest things going for the Frenchman is his tie for fourth he earned when he visited these three courses last year. Over the four rounds, Hebert was able to go 15-under behind his tremendous putter which ranked seventh in putts per GIR (1.69) and 12^th in putts per round (29.3). He could be in line for another such performance as he is getting on greens quickly (75% GIR, 9^th on TOUR) during the 2016 campaign and is allowing himself loads of scoring opportunities. Watch for Hebert to make a nice run this week in Scotland as he attempts to add to his plethora of Challenge Tour trophies.

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