Fantasy Golf Sleeper Report – 2021 Travelers Championship

The 2021 Travelers Championship Fantasy Sleeper Report

Fans of golf’s unique narratives needed no persuading to back Jon Rahm to win the U.S. Open.

Hell hath no fury like a golfer scorned, and Rahm’s positive Covid test – just as he was about to successfully defend his Memorial Tournament trophy – left the Spaniard cursing his bad luck.

Instead, he set his sights on Torrey Pines – another beloved layout, and likely to be the destination for his first major victory.

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And so it proved. Perennial nearly man in majors, Louis Oosthuizen, ran him close, but Rahm was stronger down the closing stretch and landed two mid-range clutch putts on the 71st and 72nd holes to lay down the clubhouse lead.

The South African could not keep pace, and it was left to Rahm to celebrate his first major victory with a trademark fist pump.

He’ll put his feet up this week, deservedly so, while many others in the U.S. Open field travel thousands of miles across the country to Connecticut for the Travelers Championship.

It’s all change – from west to east, and from a monster layout to something rather more tight and fiddly. TPC River Highlands only measures 6,841 yards, and with just a pair of Par 5s this Par 70 track has to be treated with respect.

Thick tree lines and doglegging fairways provide the best defense to this layout that not even Pete Dye was able to knock into shape, and if the wind blows it does provide a stern test – if it doesn’t, late teens under par is required to clinch the win.

The rough can be challenging at times, and that perhaps explains why the likes of Chez Reavie and Kevin Streelman have prevailed here in recent times. It does not indicate why Dustin Johnson won in 2020, but the fairways were particularly wet back then and so his drives clung onto the short grass more often than they otherwise might.

The Bentgrass/Poa mix greens are not to everybody’s tastes, but those comfy on these slow-ish surfaces will fancy their chances as long as they can keep their drives in play – or simply blast them 350 yards to leave a short wedge into the green, as you suspect Bryson DeChambeau might.

A week after a major, we always fancy the chance of there being a sleeper winner, and a number of talents have lifted the trophy here at sportsbook odds of 100/1 or even longer. Hope springs eternal.

With all of the above information coursing through our cerebral cortex, who has found their way onto our sleeper shortlist for the 2021 Travelers Championship?

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The 2021 Travelers Championship Fantasy Sleeper Report

Matthew Wolff – 50/1 – Back in the thick end of things at the U.S. Open, Matthew Wolff is making positive strides forward.

He’s still a work in progress after a horrid spell of form, but this is a young man with immense talent who will come good again.

Maybe that will come at TPC River Highlands, where his chipping yips will be less of a concern on decent-sized greens. Wolff may have to take the Bryson route to success here – cutting the corners of doglegs, but he is excellent at approaching from the rough so there’s no major concerns on that front.

Russell Henley – 60/1 – There’s a possibility that Russell Henley will suffer some sort of U.S. Open hangover after teeing off in the final group.

If he doesn’t, TPC River Highland sets up beautifully for the Georgian, who hits fairways and some fantastic irons. Courses with larger greens suit a player not renowned for his chipping talents too.

In four visits to this layout, Henley has a T6 and a T11 finish to his name – that’s a handy guide as to what to expect from him this week.

Si-Woo Kim – 66/1 – An excellent ball-striking performance was hampered by a cold putter for Si-Woo Kim at Torrey Pines.

And that was surprising – the Korean tends to enjoy life on greens laid with Poa Annua.

The hope is that he finds something on the dancefloor at TPC River Highlands, and with three top-30s in four trips – including a T11 – we can only assume he likes these surfaces.

Once Si-Woo fathoms out how to putt he will become one of the best players in the world….let’s hope for strides forward this week.

Adam Scott – 70/1 – To be honest, this is a pick based on wholly insulting odds rather than anything else.

There are players half Scott’s price this week that aren’t fit to lace his boots, and if nothing else bettors will arm themselves with a value play if they back them.

In exalted company at the U.S. Open, the Australian ranked inside the top 30 for SG: Around-the-Green and Putting and drove the ball pretty well too, and so the tournament represented a useful leap forward for a player that has not been busy of late.

Able to keep his big stick sheathed at TPC River Highlands, Scott can let the other aspects of his game shine.

Mackenzie Hughes – 120/1 – Having opened up with a round of 60 last year at TPC River Highlands, we can only assume this track suits Mackenzie Hughes’ eye.

And so after an excellent effort at the U.S. Open, we have to put two and two together and assume the Canadian has something worthwhile up his sleeve once more.

Hughes has a fantastic short game period, but it was noticeable how much better he was striking his irons at Torrey Pines – that is very handy indeed for a player who can convert birdie opps when the chance arises.

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Want more of this week’s fantasy predictions? Check out our full fantasy preview for the 2021 Travelers Championship here.

Sleeper Report Predictions This Season (2020-2021)

[skill_bar heading=”Total Top 3s” percent=”2.35%” bar_text=”4 out of 175 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Top 10s” percent= “10.00%” bar_text=”17 out of 175 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Top 25s” percent=”24.70%” bar_text=”42 out of 175 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Winners Picked” percent=2.94%” bar_text=”1 out of 35 events” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Runners-Up Picked” percent=”5.89%” bar_text=”2 out of 35 events” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Made Cuts (Includes Sleepers)” percent=”64.70%” bar_text=”110 out of 175 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″]

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