Fantasy Golf Sleeper Report – AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am

2019 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am Fantasy Sleeper Report

Even the hardest-hearted of golf fans couldn’t have helped but root for Rickie Fowler at the Phoenix Open on Sunday.

He played near faultless golf for the opening 54 holes; a performance which guided him to a four-shot lead with a round to play.

But then the rain and the wind came, and so too did the finishing line nerves that have dogged his career.

Somehow, the 30-year-old managed to right himself following a triple bogey at the eleventh, and by hook or crook he got the job done to claim a fifth PGA TOUR title.

Rickie Fowler and Justin Thomas laugh together on the eighteenth hole…

Rickie Fowler and Justin Thomas laugh together on the eighteenth hole green during the final round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale on February 3, 2019 in Scottsdale, Arizona. Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

It was a fantastic spectacle as ever in the Arizonan desert, and even despite some lunk-headed behavior in the stands around the 16th hole, it’s always a pleasure to return to Phoenix.

It’s less of a pleasure, for the players at least, to visit the Links at Pebble Beach. Not because this is a horrible location; far from it, the Monterey Peninsula is an absolute treat.

No, it’s because the layout boasts the smallest greens anywhere on the PGA TOUR!

Happily, for the players at least, they will only have to negotiate 36 holes at the famous course, which will host the US Open later in the year. The other pair of opening rounds are played at the rather more agreeable Spyglass Hill, which offers some protection from the West Coast winds that have buffeted the area, and Monterey Shore, which is the easiest of the trio and routinely plays a good couple of strokes under par.

Besides, this is a pro-am event, and so we don’t expect Pebble Beach to be set-up quite in major mode as yet in order to give the amateurs a fair chance.

Speaking of the wind, there have been some almighty storms in the area of late, and these did some quite significant damage to hospitality structures and video screens over the weekend.

The weather forecast suggests the worst of these have now passed, but you can expect it to be a fairly wild week at times and in some cool temperatures to boot.

It’s probably not what the field was expecting when they signed up to play, but they will have to make the best of a bad situation now. Here’s five sleepers that might just do that at this week’s AT&T Pebble Beach.

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The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am Fantasy Sleeper Report

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The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am Fantasy Sleeper Report

Shane Lowry – Vegas Odds 50/1 – In Phoenix last week, the narrative was of a supremely gifted performer finally getting back into the winner’s circle.

And there was something similar in the desert of Dubai a couple of weeks ago when Shane Lowry, an excellent player, finally got his hands on a trophy after a wait of more than three years.

That came in the windy desert, and as somebody with a pair of top-10s to his name in the US Open we know that Lowry doesn’t mind a breeze nor a dogfight, which this week’s event could well become in the conditions.

The Irishman has an elite-level short game without the titles to prove it; perhaps now, after his Dubai win, we’ll finally see the best from him.

Sungjae Im – Vegas Odds 60/1 – Of all the Web.com Tour graduates, Cameron Champ has taken the headlines with his pair of PGA TOUR wins.

But actually, it might just be Sungjae Im who eventually becomes the best of the bunch.

The 20-year-old already looks a sublime talent, and with four top-20 starts in his last five appearances – including T7 in Phoenix – he’s already showing a consistency far beyond his years.

The boxes look to be ticked this week too, given that Im played his formative golf at the breezy coastal layout on Jeju Island in his homeland.

Last year he won in the windy Bahamas too on the Web.com Tour, and followed up by wining the Portland Open on the West Coast.

Russell Knox – Vegas Odds 66/1 – At short courses where ball control in the wind becomes a priority, Russell Knox often springs to mind. So, it was most welcome to see that the Scot has returned to form of late.

He was T18 in the Desert Classic – a split course, pro-am event in California, no less – and after a middling showing at the Farmers Insurance Open at courses which don’t really suit he came good again with T10 at the Phoenix Open.

A winner on the Links in Ireland in the summer and with good finishes in the US Open to his name, Knox could be a lively contender this week.

Beau Hossler – Vegas Odds 100/1 – The Californian shared the lead here at the halfway stage 12 months ago, and that came in among some fine form on home soil.

Perhaps a return to the West Coast will serve him well this week too, and his relatively straight hitting game could produce birdie opportunities at the two easier courses and hopefully keep him out of trouble at Pebble Beach.

His form has come and gone of late, but a 66 on Saturday at the Phoenix Open – not many bettered that on the day – does bode well.

Kevin Na – Vegas Odds 120/1 – UPDATE – KEVIN NA HAS WITHDRAWN FROM THIS EVENT

When you think of the skillset required to flourish at Pebble Beach, Kevin Na comes instantly to mind.

A proven wind player, Na has a majestic short game and his chipping abilities will be tested particularly in the two rounds played at Pebble Beach.

With two top 5s to his name here, and a couple of other top-25s, it’s good that his natural game has been rewarded, and while his form of late hasn’t been great this is the first time in a while he has visited a course that suits his eye.

As an alternate, you can sub in Ryan Palmer with the lower salary.

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Want more of this week’s fantasy predictions? Check out our full fantasy preview for The The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am here.

Sleeper Report Predictions This Season (2018-2019)

[skill_bar heading=”Total Top 3s” percent=”3.17%” bar_text=”2 out of 63 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Top 10s” percent=”12.70%” bar_text=”8 out of 63 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Top 25s” percent=”36.50%” bar_text=”23 out of 63 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Winners Picked” percent=”7.69%” bar_text=”1 out of 13 events” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Runners-Up Picked” percent=”7.69%” bar_text=”1 out of 13 events” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Made Cuts (Includes Sleepers)” percent=”68.25%” bar_text=”43 out of 63 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″]

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