Fantasy Golf Sleeper Report – 2018 Waste Management Phoenix Open

Fantasy Golf Sleeper Report – 2018 Waste Management Phoenix Open

Few lovers of golf will ever be sold on the idea of Monday finishes, but there was a thrilling sense of anticipation ahead of the shootout between Jason Day and Alex Noren to conclude the Farmers Insurance Open.

In the end, the experience of Day overcame the brave Swede, who had to put up with all sorts of shenanigans from JB Holmes on Sunday before booking his place in the playoff against the Aussie and Ryan Palmer; the latter of which was eliminated after bogeying the first extra hole.

For Day, this was an eleventh PGA TOUR title but perhaps more important than that a timely reminder – to us and himself – that he belongs among the world’s elite. As for Noren, a prolific winner on the European Tour, it served as confirmation that he can make the transition to the elite-level with confidence.

The Tour takes a hop and a skip across the south coast to Arizona this week, and Scottsdale specifically for the Waste Management Phoenix Open, and the assembled field suggests that the 2018 season is set to burst into life if it hasn’t already.

A general view of the 16th hole as Kevin Na plays his tee shot during…

A general view of the 16th hole as Kevin Na plays his tee shot during the final round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale on February 5, 2017 in Scottsdale, Arizona. Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

Reigning champion Hideki Matsuyama will be looking to create his own slice of history: a first three-peat on the PGA TOUR since Steve Stricker’s trilogy at the John Deere Classic. The Japanese star faces stiff competition from the likes of Jordan Spieth, Jon Rahm, Rickie Fowler and Justin Thomas, among many others.

TPC Scottsdale is a raucous setting at which the action will unfold, with more than 500,000 paying punters stepping through the doors and 20,000 settling into the stadium-style seating around the sixteenth hole’s famous amphitheater. It’s loud, lively, and a real test of nerve.

The last four holes in particular are fantastic: a quartet where dreams are made and hopes are shattered, where there’s an opportunity for risk to generate the ultimate reward. It should be the scene of a fantastic conclusion come Sunday.

If they can hold their nerve, maybe these five sleepers can run Scottsdale’s conclusive gauntlet:

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2018 Waste Management Phoenix Open Fantasy Sleeper Report

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The 2018 Waste Management Phoenix Open Fantasy Sleeper Report

Mix and match these players with your usual rosters (or play them separately) to get the most out of your picks this week.

Gary Woodland – Vegas Odds 50/1 – The T12 finish of Gary Woodland at Torrey Pines will have largely gone unnoticed due to the thrilling finish, but shrewd gamers will have noted that all aspects of his game were in fine fettle.

Typically an outstanding tee-to-green player, the 33-year-old also ranked seventh for Strokes Gained: Putting, and for guys like Woodland that is usually an indicator that more good form is to follow.

The two-time PGA TOUR winner finished T7 on his previous start at the Sony Open, so the upward trend is obvious for a player that has gone six-for-eight at Scottsdale with one top-five finish.

Scott Piercy – Vegas Odds 66/1 – A winner of three PGA TOUR titles and a top-five finisher in a pair of majors, injury and a crippling lack of confidence threatened to derail Scott Piercy’s career in 2017. The good news is that he is back and playing as well as ever.

He is striking his irons beautifully at present, and that was the main factor behind his T6 finish last time out at the CareerBuilder Challenge.

Piercy has a habit of playing well on the south coast, with top-20s last season at the Dean & Deluca and Byron Nelson rare highlights of a tawdry campaign.

Born and bred in Nevada, Piercy is also well accomplished when playing at altitude: TPC Summerlin was his affiliated course for a while, and he won the Reno-Tahoe Open in the state back in 2011.

Keegan Bradley – Vegas Odds 66/1 – Quality ball striking, as standard, propelled Keegan Radley to yet another top-five finish at Torrey Pines, and with a number of tee-to-green tests upcoming now is the good time to support the 31-year-old.

It is often argued that Bradley hasn’t won enough tournaments to justify his undoubted ability, and indeed it is some six years since he last entered the winner’s circle at the WGC Bridgestone Invitational.

But it is easy to forget that this is a major winner we’re talking – he claimed the 2011 PGA Championship over his good friend Jason Dufner, and there is that old saying that form is temporary, class is permanent.

There is a sense of satisfaction in Bradley’s personal life after becoming a father in November, and as we know that can often manifest itself in enhanced performances. With a decent record at Scottsdale, there’s no reason why Bradley can’t wind back the hands of time and re-enter the winner’s circle.

Ryan Palmer – Vegas Odds 70/1 – It’s good to see Ryan Palmer playing great golf again after a tough year on and off the course.

His own shoulder concerns have paled into insignificance since his wife’s diagnosis, but now that she is seemingly on the mend and Palmer himself has undergone surgery everything is moving in the right direction again.

The 41-year-old is actually playing on a medical exemption at the moment but is booked in for the year after last week’s T20 at the CareerBuilder Challenge was backed by his outstanding efforts at Torrey Pines. You suspect many will forget he was also in that playoff with Jason Day and Alex Noren, but missed out Monday’s conclusion after falling at the first hurdle.

The Texan loves playing on the south coast, and with a trio of top-fives at Scottsdale he is a reliable pick this week.

Michael Kim – Vegas Odds 250/1 – At the 54-hole stage of last week’s Farmers Insurance Open, Michael Kim was tied in T3 just two shots behind overnight leader Alex Noren. He would eventually fall to T23 on Sunday.

In an alarming symmetry, Kim was also T3 after 54 holes at this very tournament 12 months ago – slipping to T24 after the final 18.

Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised by his form at Torrey Pines – he was a member there during his college years, after all – but last year it proved the catalyst for a series of fine performances thereafter; not least his efforts at Scottsdale.

The 24-year-old carded some interesting finishes in 2017, including T3 in the Safeway Open, T12 in the Houston Open and T17 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. This young man is certainly one to keep an eye on this week and into the future.

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Want more of this week’s fantasy predictions? Check out our full fantasy preview for the 2018 Waste Management Phoenix Open here.

Sleeper Report Predictions This Season (2017-2018)

[skill_bar heading=”Total Top 3s” percent=”1.81%” bar_text=”1 out of 55 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Top 10s” percent=”12.72%” bar_text=”7 out of 55 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Top 25s” percent=”38.18%” bar_text=”21 out of 55 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Winners Picked” percent=”0%” bar_text=”0 out of 11 events” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Runners-Up Picked” percent=”9.10%” bar_text=”1 out of 11 events” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Made Cuts (Includes Sleepers)” percent=”63.63″ bar_text=”35 out of 55 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″]

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Cover photo via Instagram