Fantasy Golf Predictions – The 2013 Wells Fargo Championship

Fantasy Golf Predictions for the 2013 Wells Fargo Championship May 2nd – 5th

The Course:  Quail Hollow Club, the site of Rickie Fowler’s first PGA TOUR victory last year, measures at 7,492 yards and plays as a par 72. The course was originally designed by George Cobb and opened back in 1962.  Quail Hollow’s beautiful and challenging layout allowed the facility to quickly established itself as a PGA TOUR caliber track. The course previously hosted other TOUR tournaments in the 80s and 90s before returning to the PGA TOUR in 2003. The final three holes, known as the “Green Mile,” are considered perhaps the toughest closing holes on TOUR. Quail Hollow’s prestige course layout has grown in popularity over the years, and as a result, it has joined the list of major championship tracks as it got the nod for the 2017 PGA Championship.

Quail Hollow Club. Photo by QuailHollowClub.com

The Weather in Charlotte, NC (from Weather.com)

• Round 1: Thursday (May 2) 69 degrees, 20% chance of rain, AM Clouds / PM Sun.
• Round 2: Friday (May 3) 71 degrees, 10% chance of rain, partly cloudy.
• Round 3: Saturday (May 4) 67 degrees, 10% chance of rain, mostly cloudy.
• Round 4: Sunday (May 5) 71 degrees, 20% chance of rain, partly cloudy.

2012 Results:  Rickie Fowler notched his first PGA TOUR victory by beating out Rory McIlroy and D.A. Points with an amazing wedge shot on the first hole of their playoff.  The orange-clad young superstar birdied a hole that had only yielded four birdies all day.  Placing his wedge shot just 4 feet from the hole; Fowler was able to sink the putt with ease to win the tournament. D.A. Points, who has been playing great this year, appeared to have victory all to himself before giving a shot back from a greenside bunker on the 72nd hole. We normally don’t favor a returning champ (unless they  unless they beat the course numerous times like Tiger at Bay Hill) however, this week, we like Rickie primarily on account of his recent play – he’s been impressive.

Notes:  Fowler, along with five other previous Quail Hollow champs in the field this week, will be looking to become the first multiple winner in the event’s short history. Fowler’s first visit in 2010 finished him tied for sixth, followed by a shared 16th in 2011 before he eventually won the tournament last year. Phil Mickelson owns six top-10 finishes in nine visits to Quail Hollow with no victories. Phil’s Quail Hollow resume includes finishing runner-up to McIlroy in 2010 and a tie for third in 2007. Speaking of McIlroy, Rory made this his first PGA TOUR win in 2010 and still holds the course record of 62.  Among the big names also make sure to keep an eye out for a hot handed Bill Haas  – he has 5 top-10s this year.

Top 5 Picks/Odds to Win to 2013 Wells Fargo Championship:

• Rory McIlroy (Golficity Odds 6/1): McIlroy is no stranger to Quail Hollow where he owns the course record (62) and claimed his first PGA TOUR title in 2010. Rory missed the cut back in 2011, and lost to Rickie Fowler in a playoff last year. The former world #1 is well rested since sharing 25th place at the Masters and is a strong favorite to finish well this week. If nothing else, the young Irishman’s “all-or-nothing” history at this track should certainly make for an interesting leaderboard shuffle.
• Jimmy Walker (Golficity Odds 10/1): Yes, we know Walker missed cuts in his first four appearances, but he’s been a an absolute animal this year. A T8 in New Orleans was his fourth top 10, with 20th consecutive cut made. Walker also currently ranks 11th in adjusted scoring. This guy is long overdue for a win.
• D.A. Points (Golficity Odds 16/1): As mentioned earlier, Points lost in the playoff at this event last year to Fowler, but D.A. already has one win this year (Shell Houston Open) as well as a runner up finish at the Zurich event last week. Points comes into the 2013 Wells Fargo Championship riding a “consecutive cuts made” streak of 4 in a row.
• Bill Haas (Golficity Odds 22/1): Hass co-leads the PGA TOUR with five top 10s and ranks eighth in greens in regulation and 13th in scrambling. Bill already has two fourth-place finishes and a pair of T22s in nine appearances at Quail Hollow. Haas knows this course pretty well and his game has been incredibly strong in 2013…that’s why he’s up here.
• Rickie Fowler (Golficity Odds 25/1):  Rickie finally emerged in 2012 (his 72^nd PGA TOUR event) to pick up his first PGA TOUR victory in last year’s playoff at Quail Hollow. Rickie has three top 10s this season and ranks 20th in fairways hit, 35th in strokes gained-putting and 22nd in scrambling.  We think Rickie will win a tournament this year, so why not start with the course he dominated last year?

Sleeper Picks/Odds to Win:

• Webb Simpson (Golficity Odds 50/1): Simpson took last week off after losing to Graeme McDowell in a playoff at the 2013 RBC Heritage at Harbour Town – his third top-six finish of the season.  Webb’s been playing well lately and we like his chances given the fact that he finished solo fourth here last year.
• Phil Mickelson (Golficity Odds 50/1): We know it’s rare seeing Phil as a Sleeper (a spot normally reserved for long shots) given his recent struggles at Augusta (T54), he certainly falls under that category this week.  In previous years Phil’s been lights out at Quail Hollow where he’s 9-for-9 with four top-5s and another two top 10s. We all know he can still hang with the best of them, but we’re not quite ready to include him in our top-5 this week.

Last Week’s Fantasy Golf Predictions Results (The 2013 Zurich Classic):

Top 5 Picks/Odds to Win 

• Justin Rose (Golficity Odds 9/1):  T15
• Jason Dufner (Golficity Odds 14/1): T42
• Rickie Fowler (Golficity Odds 20/1): T32
• Bubba Watson (Golficity Odds 22/1): T15
• Billy Horschel (Golficity Odds 29/1): WINNER

Sleeper Picks/Odds to Win:

• Nick Watney (Golficity Odds 50/1):   T15
• Jimmy Walker (Golficity Odds 50/1): T8

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(Cover Photo Credit)