Fantasy Sleeper Report – 2015 Farmers Insurance Open

The Sleeper Report: Fantasy Golf Sleepers, Long Shots, and Undervalued Picks for the 2015 Farmers Insurance Open from Torrey Pines.

Event Preview

After taking an exciting stop in Arizona, the PGA heads back to California to continue its tour of the Golden State, where players will now meet at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego.  The famous course has hosted this tournament for the past 46 years with Tiger Woods dominating the fairways for plenty of that time.  He’s won at this event a record seven times, including four straight seasons between 2005 and 2008–he also took the U.S. Open here in 2008.

Phil Mickelson has also enjoyed playing at this 36-hole course lining the Pacific Ocean and is the only multiple time victor at this tournament when played at Torrey Pines besides Woods, grabbing the trophy a total of three times (1993, 2000, 2001).  Both players struggled last week at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and are clearly not at the elite level they once were (at least for now), leaving the door wide open for new blood to come storming in.

Last season it was came down to the wire with Scott Stallings making birdie on his final hole to get to nine-under par, as he just edged out eight players that were within two strokes.  Stallings was ranked 112^th in the world when he pulled out his third career victory and showed that any of the players in the field have a chance to get a win.

It is always going to be difficult if a golfer is short of the tee when dealing with the South Course–one of two tracks used over the four day tournament–as it is one of the longest on tour (weighing in at 7,569 yards).  Thirteen of the top-25 players in the world will make their way to this event as they try to keep lesser known players at bay.  This list will be led by No. 5 ranked golfer Justin Rose as he makes just his second PGA TOUR start of the year.  With such a strong field going into this one, let’s take a look at a few sleepers and long-shots who could come out of the woodwork and put up some head-turning performances–and bring you some serious fantasy points in the process.

[membership level=”0″]

The Sleeper Report

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

Already a member?  Sign in Here.

[/membership]

[membership level=”1,2,3″]

The Sleeper Report

In an effort to continually provide our Premium Members with the best fantasy content anywhere on the web, this week we’ve added a bonus “Sleeper Report” to help you identify the undervalued, long-shots that can help you score some bonus fantasy points this weekend.  Mix and match these players with your usual rosters (or play them separately) to get the most out of your picks this week.

• Brendan Steele – 55/1: Steele was also selected as our “Salary Cap Sleeper” in our main picks segment this week, at Golficity odds of 60/1.  Sometimes you’re simply looking for consistency when picking a golfer, and Steele has been the definition of that so far this year.  He is having his best start to a season since playing his first PGA event in 2011 and is a perfect 6-for-6 in cuts made.  He’s added three top-30 finishes, including a runner-up performance the Humana Challenge just a few weeks back, and has been able dropping plenty of birdies along the way (4.29 per round, 25th on tour).  One big advantage he gains at the South Course will be his ability to bomb the driver as he is averaging 305.7 yards off the tee (10th on tour), which should set him up for some close approaches and low scores.
• K.J. Choi – 66/1: It’s no secret that the 44-year-old is well past his prime, but his familiarity with this course should help him compete with all of the aggressive youngsters coming into the field these days.  He’s played in this event four times in the last five seasons and has done no worse than 29th, finishing in single digits each of the past two years.  In 2014, he improved each day, ending just one shot behind Stallings after a 66 on Sunday.  He doesn’t have the distance off the tee anymore (280.1 yards per, 180th on tour), but will be in the fairway on nearly every drive with 71.4% of his drives missing he rough (16th on tour), and should get on the dance floor quickly.  Again, this is not the sexy pick, but could prove a valuable one once all is said and done.
• Pat Perez – 75/1: Nothing will really blow you away when you look at the game of Pat Perez, but he has carved out a solid career for himself with plenty of mid-tier finishes, as he’s finished in the top-100 of the FedEx cup rankings each of the past eight years–but never done better than 45th. H e’s made his last five cuts going back to the CIMB Classic and has done no worse than 30th over the past three events.  The 38-year-old also seems to relish in the San Diego sun and has been outstanding in this event over the last four years, finishing in the top-25 each time and falling just one stroke shy of the lead at the end of last year’s installment of the Farmers Insurance Open.  He should once again make waves over the weekend while still being a long shot to win the whole thing.
• Shane Lowry – 80/1: Lowry will hop across the pond for just his second PGA event of the season after moving all the way up to 44th in the World Golf Rankings behind some stellar play on the European Tour.  The Irishman has done no worse than 16th in eight of his last eleven events over there and has seen his driving distance increase with each successive season, as it sat at 292.4 yards per in 2014.  Lowry has said that he will be looking to play more in the U.S. this season as he competes for some of the bigger trophies in the sport and this event could be his coming out party.
• Tony Finau – 100/1: Finau is one of the most exciting young golfers in the game and can hit the ball a mile as he is averaging 309.5 yards per drive (2nd on tour) and currently ranks 24th in the FedEx cup rankings as a rookie. He has already had some success when playing on the Web.com Tour with a victory and four other top-10 finishes there last year as he already has two single-digit performances in this young season. His long driver should get him on the greens quick and that has been a big strength of his over his fast start as he’s been able to nail 72.6% of GIR so far, good enough for 39th on tour. Look for this super athletic rookie to go pin seeking and put on a show this week.

[/membership]

Want more of this week’s fantasy predictions?  Check out our full fantasy preview for this week’s 2015 Farmers Insurance Open here.

(Cover Photo Credit)