Josh Culp's Blog, page 31

CIMB Classic Fantasy Golf Happy Hour Podcast

This week Joel and I break down the CIMB Classic on DraftKings.

Millions are given away each week playing fantasy golf at DraftKings.com, get in the action now!

Shriners Hospitals for Children Open Fantasy Preview

The course this week is TPC Summerlin. It’s a par 71 track that is extremely manageable considering its played in altitude and just over 7,200 yards. There isn’t one path to success this week as we’ve seen bombers, plodders, scramblers, and putters all succeed here.

With the course being one of the easiest on TOUR annually, it’s all about mindset and staying patient while capitalizing on the par 5s and short par-4. There are plenty of eagle out there for the taking this week.

Check out the Fantasy Golfanac for more course and tournament information.

Players to Watch

Scott Piercy… When I think desert golf, I think Scott Piercy. He is a Vegas guy, so it makes sense that he’s enjoyed plenty of success at this event. He is a top specialist on easy courses, easy GIR courses, and bentgrass greens. The man is just built to play this event. I think he makes a solid OAD play, and a very good GPP option across daily fantasy sites.

Charley Hoffman… He does a lot of work with this tournament so he often gets sidetracked. Because of that, his hit-or-miss results here point toward GPP-only.

Jason Bohn… Top 25s in five of six tries here at TPC Summerlin. We are back to weak fields which means Bohn is back to being a top option.

Tony Finau… You fire the Utah boy up anytime the course features bentgrass greens. That would mean full-steam ahead this week at TPC Summerlin.

Brooks Koepka… The field is weak, the greens are easy to hit, the par 5s are scoreable, the short par-4 is eagleable, These are all things going in Koepka’s favor this week. Any format that heavily rewards eagles is where you want to be most invested in Brooks this week.

Daniel Summerhays… His brother caddied for Finau here last year because of his familiarity with the venue. That’s the kind of insider info that could help Summerhays finally take a step into the winner’s circle. He was one of the four golfers to circle three eagles here last year. Yes, please.

Cameron Smith… He played too good last year to be priced this low (DraftKings). This is a case where you plug-and-play regardless of his lack of course history.

Emiliano Grillo… I said to play the wait-and-see game, except for GPPs, last week and Grillo gave me a big slap in the face. He was not waiting for anybody and is now a PGA TOUR winner. That being said, I always back off the week following a win, especially a maiden win. Say no to Grillo this week.

Patton Kizzire… The man gained over 150 strokes over the field on the Web.com Tour last year. Easily the #1 golfer on the lower circuit for the season. I would suggest to play the wait-and-see game, but look how that turned out with Grillo last week. Go ahead and invest if you want to be ahead of the curve.

Freddie Jacobson… The Swede took time off from the TOUR last summer due to his son having surgery for a heart defect. Now he’s playing in the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open! #KarmaAlert #NarrativeStreet

Shriners Hospitals for Children Open Cheatsheet… Head over to Daily Fantasy Solutions and grab this week’s DraftKings cheatsheet for just five bucks. This includes guys that fit the stat profile, golfers that are in good form, course history, recommended cash game targets and more! I love hearing about the success people are having with the weekly DraftKings cheatsheet so check it out!

Top 25 for the 2015-16 Shriners Hospitals for Children Open

1. Brooks Koepka

2. Rickie Fowler

3. Scott Piercy

4. Kevin Na

5. Jimmy Walker

6. Webb Simpson

7. Jason Bohn

8. Ryan Moore

9. Charles Howell III

10. Kevin Streelman

11. Tony Finau

12. Brandt Snedeker

13. Keegan Bradley

14. Graham DeLaet

15. Charley Hoffman

16. Daniel Summerhays

17. Brendon Todd

18. Cameron Smith

19. Will Wilcox

20. Emiliano Grillo

21. Ollie Schniederjans

22. Russell Knox

23. Hudson Swafford

24. Kevin Chappell

25. Ryan Palmer

Frys.com Open Fantasy Golf Preview

Pardon me if I don’t make a really funny joke about how short the off-season is. I already made that joke in my Searching for a Specialist column on RotoGrinders. Let’s get right into it, instead.

The course this week is Silverado Resort and Spa’s North Course. It’s a par 72 track at a very pedestrian 7,203 yards. The tight pin placements and poa annua greens are really the unique features this week. Even though they are separated by 400 miles, many golfers have compared this test to Riviera Country Club, where the Northern Trust Open is held.

Check out the Fantasy Golfanac for more course and tournament information.

Players to Watch

Hideki Matsuyama… The success of Jimmy Walker in California is well known by now. However, we have a new contender in the running for King of Cali, and that man is Hideki Matsuyama. Early in his career he has gained 2.051 strokes over the field, per round. Let’s see if he can add some hardware to that California resume. He is my favorite play across all formats this week.

Rory McIlroy… Its hard to fade the (arguably) best golfer on the planet, but that might be a smart move this week. He’s playing due to obligation, and not because he truly wanted it on his schedule. That being said, this would be a nice spot to bank some eas(ier) FedExCup points. Fade him in cash games, but hes fair game in GPPs, for sure.

Jason Bohn… We saw Bohn nosedive at the end of the season. It wasn’t unexpected since he’s always struggled against strong fields. This week, its closer to the weak side of things, in terms of field strength. Time to get back on board and lets the birdies rain in.

Tony Finau… Last year’s rookie trio of Finau, Thomas, and Berger are getting a lot of love. Finau is the only one with course fit on his side. The bomber out of Utah is a poa annua specialist and a specialist in the state of California, in general. Add in a Top 15 here last year, and its a no-brainer in my mind.

Bryce Molder… Another poa specialist who is slowly returning to his old self. He’s been a $1MM+ earning guy for five of the last seven years. Newcomers to DFS golf may think the end of last year was a fluke when compared to the two years prior, but it was more of him returning to true form.

Brooks Koepka… It won’t be shown on the California Course Horse page but Brooks has gained 22.9 strokes over the field in 12 Cali rounds. It’s well documented that he can feast on par 5s, so even if he doesn’t land in the top 10, he is still a valuable fantasy asset in daily formats that reward eagles and birdies at a higher level.

Daniel Summerhays… The Utah boy loves returning to the West Coast for some golf. Poa greens have never bothered him, so jump on board. He owns a career clip of 22% of his starts landing for top 25s. I put that likelihood of a top 25 closer to 40% this week.

Hunter Mahan… Last year was all about finding (or not finding in his case) the balance between elite play and fatherhood. I think a re-dedication to his craft is in order this year, and no better place to start for the California native. He’s always played great golf in the Golden State.

Emiliano Grillo… I love me some Gree-O but lets hold the train here this week. He’s a little spendy throughout the industry and we really don’t have an established course profile for him. He was great to invest in last year when he was bargain bin, but I will play the wait-and-see game for the most part this week. Still a great GPP option, I just don’t fully trust yet.

Michael Kim… My super darkhorse of the week is Michael Kim. The youngster grew up in San Diego and attended the University of Cal. Golfing in this region will be right in his wheelhouse. He didn’t win on the Web.com Tour last year but he was sneakily one of the top performers, grabbing five top 10s, including a pair of podium finishes. Throw him on a GPP roster or two and hope his PGA TOUR adjustment period is non-existent.

Ryo Ishikawa… Not to bring race into this, but I’ve spotted a trend of guys I’m targeting (Matsuyama, Kim, Ryo). Ishikawa spent his offseason winning on the Japan Tour, per usual. It’s just a matter of time before that translates. Consider him if you are putting together multiple GPP entries this week on DraftKings.

Frys.com Open Cheatsheet… Head over to Daily Fantasy Solutions and grab this week’s DraftKings cheatsheet for just five bucks. This includes guys that fit the stat profile, golfers that are in good form, course history, recommended cash game targets and more! I love hearing about the success people are having with the weekly DraftKings cheatsheet so check it out!

Top 25 for the 2015-16 Frys.com Open

1. Hideki Matsuyama

2. Rory Mcilroy

3. Brooks Koepka

4. Justin Rose

5. Ryan Palmer

6. Tony Finau

7. Kevin Na

8. Robert Streb

9. Daniel Summerhays

10. Brendon Todd

11. Hunter Mahan

12. Webb Simpson

13. Ryan Moore

14. Jason Bohn

15. Justin Thomas

16. Charl Schwartzel

17. Bryce Molder

18. Steven Bowditch

19. Brandt Snedeker

20. Will Wilcox

21. George McNeill

22. Chris Kirk

23. Nick Watney

24. Graham DeLaet

25. Emiliano Grillo

BMW Championship Fantasy Golf Preview

Don’t look now but we’re just two tournament away from closing out the 2014-15 PGA TOUR season. Its been an eventful year. A year that has seen DraftKings explode the DFS golf industry, giving out millions of dollars every week. It’s not over yet, though!

This week we head to Lake Forest, Illinois, for the BMW Championship. The course is Conway Farms Golf Club and its a par 71 track that is very manageable in length. The fairways are generous, but they also force you into playing smart golf and clubbing down on many holes. Playing from the fairways will be key this week as the greens measure in at a minuscule 5,000 square feet on average. Positioning off the tee will be crucial as golfers try to attack but also know the correct places to miss.

Check out the Fantasy Golfanac for more course and tournament information.

Players to Watch

Jason Day… He’s the favorite in Vegas this week, and its hard to argue with that given his current form. Keep riding the Aussie until the wheels fall off.

Rickie Fowler… Its so hard to win back-to-back on the PGA TOUR, but we saw Jason Day pull off the feat no more than a month ago. Puma’s orange hero continues to flourish in the face of the “overrated” poll. Even if he doesn’t win again, another top 10 is certainly a good possibility.

Jason Bohn… Remains a statistical stud. His problem lies in the strength of field. His success rate when the OWGR SoF rating is over 400 is less than stellar. In fact, its flat out disappointing. On paper, he’s a great play this week though.

Kevin Kisner… He’s been on the fence of breakout town all year. It would not be surprising to see him finally breakthrough. This week’s venue favors iron precision over length and that could certainly work for Kiz this week.

Sergio Garcia… If we had more information on his skipping the first two legs I’d be all over this DraftKings price. However, we don’t know if there is a personally reason behind the holdouts or if he just wants to play the minimum amount he need to.

Brooks Koepka… Back-to-back missed cuts but he’s still an elite talent. He’s yet to enter superstar status, but the DFS community knows just how good his A-game is.

Jordan Spieth… His iron switch may be getting overblown, but it will continue to do so until he rights the ship. I think this is the perfect course to make that happen. The Golden Child has hidden length but he really excels on course management and out-of-this-world putting. Perfect for Conway Farms.

Justin Thomas… Speaking of Spieth, his good buddy JT is still on the prowl for a breakthrough win. We can mock all we want, but until he gets in the winner’s circle he will be known as Spieth’s good buddy. I think he makes that jump before the 2016 calendar year rolls around.

BMW Championship Cheatsheet… Head over to Daily Fantasy Solutions and grab this week’s DraftKings cheatsheet for just five bucks. This includes guys that fit the stat profile, golfers that are in good form, course history, recommended cash game targets and more! I love hearing about the success people are having with the weekly DraftKings cheatsheet so check it out!

Top 25 for the 2015 BMW Championship

1. Jason Day

2. Jim Furyk

3. Henrik Stenson

4. Jordan Spieth

5. Rickie Fowler

6. Zach Johnson

7. Rory McIlroy

8. Justin Rose

9. Dustin Johnson

10. Bubba Watson

11. Hideki Matsuyama

12. Justin Thomas

13. Sergio Garcia

14. Brooks Koepka

15. Matt Kuchar

16. Tony Finau

17. Louis Oosthuizen

18. Kevin Kisner

19. Russell Knox

20. Danny Lee

21. Bill Haas

22. Keegan Bradley

23. Brandt Snedeker

24. Kevin Chappell

25. Jerry Kelly

BMW Championship Fantasy Golf Happy Hour Podcast

Joel and I take a deep dive into this week’s BMW Championship. We look at DraftKings and finish with Yahoo picks. We also talk about some exciting Daily Fantasy Golf news involving FanDuel.

Play in this week’s FREE $100K NFL Contest on DraftKings that we mentioned on the show. Draft Now!

–Try StarsDraft Fantasy Golf for a unique twist on the game! Check it out Victiv now!

–Fantasy Aces is the new kid on the block when it comes to DFS Golf. Test Your Skills at Fantasy Aces

–Take a shot at turning $3 into $100,000 on DraftKings! … Reserve Your Seat Now!

–DraftDay always provides a fun experience with their scoring system. Draft Today

–Fantasy Feud offers a strong format that usually brings out the best fantasy golfers. You must pick 10 golfers, so the overall skill is increased, in my opinion. Give Fantasy Feud a Look

Joel Harrington writes for 4DeepGolfBlog.

Josh Culp writes for Future of Fantasy, RotoGrinders, and Rotoworld.com.

BMW Championship on DraftKings

Welcome back Daily Fantasy Gamers!

It was just a one-week break, but it felt like a lifetime. We now head into the final stretch of the FedExCup Playoffs before the super-long offseason.

Before I preview the full tournament tomorrow, lets have a look at DraftKings. The Future of Fantasy Golf Tour is heading down the home stretch and we’ve got a few gamers vying for player of the year. Enter this week’s Future of Fantasy Golf Tour contest and check out the standings at the bottom.

This Week’s DraftKings Value Play

Danny Lee ($7,700)… Lee’s breakout season isn’t over yet. He’s playing relaxed golf and is becoming a weekly threat to contend. That wasn’t the case last year, but this price is reminiscent of what his salaries might have looked like last year.

Deutsche Bank Championship Fantasy Golf Preview

The first week of the Playoffs was a raging success! Except for the part where a couple superstars sat out, because they could. Then you have the fact that Snedeker, Spieth, and Koepka all missed the cut! Turns out it wasn’t such a great start to the 2015 Playoffs after all.

This week will be much better as we head to TPC Boston for the Deutsche Bank Championship. The course is a par 71, average in length. The main thing we need to know about the course is the fairway generosity. With wide landing spaces, golfers are able to grip it and rip it. This means plenty of wedges and short irons into greens. When you give PGA TOUR pros short irons, they tend to go low. Don’t be surprised to see a couple 8 or 9-under rounds thrown on the board this week.

Check out the Fantasy Golfanac for more course and tournament information.

Players to Watch

Brandt Snedeker… Last week was one of the most surprising missed cuts I’ve seen in a long time. It was the perfect course for Sneds and he’s been in great form. Bad rounds happen though. I’m willing to forgive and forget and jump right back in the pool this week.

Henrik Stenson… Unlike Sneds, the Swede did not disappoint owners last week. He continues to be a monster in strong fields. Keep rolling him out in the “big games”.

Rory McIlroy… He’s taking a backseat to Jason Day this week, but he’s still the number one golfer in the world over the past two years, by the numbers. Lets not pretend the OWGR is a good system for ranking players. His ankle looked fine at the PGA Championship, so treat this superstar as usual moving forward.

Justin Thomas… Continues to improve as a professional golfer. Even since joining the TOUR, he’s flashed his upside, but last week’s top 20 on a course that doesn’t suit his game is a great sign of things to come. The breakthrough victory is coming sooner rather than later.

Bubba Watson… I was on the Bubba Fade Train last week and I said it was risky. It came back to bite me and Bubba apparently learned how to play Donald Ross courses. This week, I am steering clear again. Dumb? Perhaps. Logic: He doesn’t have a single top 10 in nine tries here at TPC Boston.

Will Wilcox… Wavegod Wilcox pulled out of the tournament, so make sure you go change all of your rosters. There is always next year. Hopefully he has that full DraftKings head-to-toe sponsorship by then.

20/20 Club… The obvious member of the 20/20 Course & Form Club is Jason Day. Don’t forget about Matt Kuchar or Jim Furyk though. They are very, very sneaky and both qualify this week as well.

Justin Rose… Much like Bubba, his course history is very sub-par, by his standards. He’s finished outside the top 50 in five of his last six starts here. Missing the cut in three of those. His form is so good right now, that he’s still a decent play. A repeat of last year’s T16 is certainly in the cards. Just not my favorite star-play this week.

Bill Haas… Looking right down #NarrativeStreet, we see that Haas needs to show up in a big way to make the Presidents Cup team that his dad is captaining. We already know he’s not going to accept a Captain’s pick since it would seem like favoritism, so the motivation factor is deep this week.

Brooks Koepka… He’s still waiting for his time to shine (on TV). He’s already arrived for quite some time in the Daily Fantasy Golf world. Let’s give him a pass for last week’s MC on a short par-70 track. This birdiefest should be right up his wheelhouse.

Keegan Bradley… Just got engaged so perhaps this is what gets his game back into the winner’s circle. With friends and family rooting him on this week, the local boy has a lot of narrative factors in his favor this week!

Jordan Spieth… He switched his irons ahead of last week’s Barclays and went onto miss the cut. Hmmmm. I’m not one to question the golden child, but it seems like odd timing. I’m guessing Spieth knows his game better than I do and probably felt amazing about the club switch. I would guess its business as usual this week as Spieth returns to contention.

Deutsche Bank Championship Cheatsheet… Head over to Daily Fantasy Solutions and grab this week’s DraftKings cheatsheet for just five bucks. This includes guys that fit the stat profile, golfers that are in good form, course history, recommended cash game targets and more! I love hearing about the success people are having with the weekly DraftKings cheatsheet so check it out!

Top 25 for the 2015 Deutsche Bank Championship

1. Rory McIlroy

2. Jordan Spieth

3. Jason Day

4. Henrik Stenson

5. Brooks Koepka

6. Dustin Johnson

7. Hideki Matsuyama

8. Jim Furyk

9. Justin Rose

10. Zach Johnson

11. Brandt Snedeker

12. Matt Kuchar

13. Tony Finau

14. Paul Casey

15. Bubba Watson

16. Justin Thomas

17. Bill Haas

18. Keegan Bradley

19. Robert Streb

20. Louis Oosthuizen

21. Jimmy Walker

22. Webb Simpson

23. Phil Mickelson

24. Ryan Palmer

25. Kevin Chappell

Deutsche Bank Championship on DraftKings

Shoutout to dtevans13 who took down last week’s Future of Fantasy Golf Tour on DraftKings. It was just his fourth start on the TOUR. He hasn’t met the five tournament minimum to qualify but I’ve included him on the leaderboard to show where he currently stands, first!

It takes a lot of talent to remain at the top once the sample size increases so keep an eye on there.

DraftKings Value Play of the Week

Tony Finau ($7,700)…WThere were so many golfers that could have been included here. Given the softness of salaries this week, there are heaps of value plays. Finau is just one of my favorite as he combined the consistency with the upside, as well. With 16 top 25s on the season, this price point is a must-have.

Top 40 Future of Fantasy Golf Tour Standings

Deutsche Bank Championship Fantasy Golf Happy Hour Podcast

Joel and I take a deep dive into this week’s Deutsche Bank Championship. We look at DraftKings and finish with Yahoo picks.

–Take a shot at turning $3 into $100,000 on DraftKings! … Reserve Your Seat Now!

–Try Victiv Fantasy Golf for a unique twist on the game! Check it out Victiv now!

–Fantasy Aces is the new kid on the block when it comes to DFS Golf. Test Your Skills at Fantasy Aces

–DraftDay always provides a fun experience with their scoring system. Draft Today

–Fantasy Feud offers a strong format that usually brings out the best fantasy golfers. You must pick 10 golfers, so the overall skill is increased, in my opinion. Give Fantasy Feud a Look

Joel Harrington writes for 4DeepGolfBlog.

Josh Culp writes for Future of Fantasy, RotoGrinders, and Rotoworld.com.

The Barclays Fantasy Preview

Let the FedExCup Playoffs begin!

We start out our 2015 postseason in Edison, New Jersey. The course is Plainfield Country Club. It’s one of the shorter tracks these pros will play all year, barely stretching out past 7,000 yards. The greens are large, but if we know anything about the course designer, Donald Ross, we know that doesn’t mean much. Ross is known for turtleback greens and creating many tiers on his greens. So, while these greens may be larger than average, I don’t think they will be easy to hit into or putt on. Strangely, they are also poa annua, which is rare to see out here in the Northeast.

Check out the Fantasy Golfanac for more course and tournament information.

Players to Watch

Brandt Snedeker… Last week I said if you designed a perfect course for Sneds, it would be Sedgefield but played on the West Coast on poa annua greens. Lucky for us, Plainfield Country Club is basically Sedgefield CC but with poa annua greens. Fire Sneds back up, and give him a pass for that Sunday crumble.

Bill Haas… Another built in the same mold as Snedeker. Anytime you get a short course, Haas can go pin seeking. It just comes down to how hot the putter gets during the week.

Matt Kuchar… Doesn’t rely on length off the tee, a short par 70 like Plainfield CC is perfect for him. With three top 15s in his last six, it looks like Kooch is back to his usual top-10 machinery.

Jim Furyk… Starting to see a trend? Another plodder that rarely gives back strokes. Look for him to par this course to death and deliver just enough birdie to contend. If the putter gets rollin’ then we could see him at the tippy top.

Bubba Watson… I admittedly always look for a reason to get on the Bubba Fade Train. This week it’s his Donald Ross performance. In 11 starts on Donald Ross designs, he’s lost strokes to the field in seven of them. Maybe its the turtleback greens, maybe its the bunkering, maybe its the blind tee shots. Whatever it is, I say no thanks to Bubba this week. Always a dangerous fade though, since he can win any time he tees it up.

Will Wilcox… This will be our first glimpse of Wilcox against a stacked field. We already saw him tweet about his score being high last week because he was admiring and rooting for Tiger. It was said jokingly, but you wonder if it was actually half-true. With no strong field history and poor history on short courses, its best to leave him off your fantasy sports betting tickets this week.

20/20 Club… Nothing this week as Plainfield CC is on that funky Barclays rotation.

Justin Rose… If you follow him on Instagram, you’ll know he went back to England to “get away and go fishing” or something along those lines. As gamers, we just hope that little trip didn’t get him out of the zone he’s been in lately. All signs point to another great finish this week.

Camilo Villegas…Playing another Donald Ross design, so fire him back up. He’s played 10 tournaments on Ross designs since 2008, and gained at least two strokes over the field for the week in eight of those. For someone that is fighting for Playoff survival, he is worth another look this week.

Brooks Koepka… He’s starting to look superhuman. We don’t really have enough data to pinpoint what his specialties are yet, but right now you just plug and play until he proves otherwise.

Dustin Johnson… the defending champ here at Plainfield CC, I had him pegged for a monster week. After pulling out of the Pro-am due to illness, I have regressed my stance on him just a bit. The safe play is to just avoid him this week. Same goes for Jason Day who enters off an emotional high and also tweaked his back forcing him to pull out of the Pro-am, as well.

Harris English… You don’t often see it associated to a bomber like Harris, but he’s established himself as a short course specialist. He’s gained three or more strokes over the field for the week in 11 of his last 12 tournaments held on courses under 7,100 yards. Fire away this week, and watch the top 25 roll in.

David Lingmerth… The Swede is en fuego! This is still David Lingmerth we are talking about. His price across DFS sites has risen to all-time highs. He actually prefers the longer courses so I’d say this is an easy week to fade him in my opinion.

Adam Scott… He’s gained strokes to the field in 21 of his last 23 tournaments against strong fields. Sure his form has lacked recently, but this is a course he can tear apart. Over his last 11 events on par 70s, he’s gained 4+ strokes during the week in nine of them.

Barclays Cheatsheet… Head over to Daily Fantasy Solutions and grab this week’s DraftKings cheatsheet for just five bucks. This includes guys that fit the stat profile, golfers that are in good form, course history, recommended cash game targets and more! I love hearing about the success people are having with the weekly DraftKings cheatsheet so check it out!

Top 25 for the 2015 Barclays

1. Jim Furyk

2. Justin Rose

3. Jordan Spieth

4. Matt Kuchar

5. Brandt Snedeker

6. Dustin Johnson

7. Henrik Stenson

8. Adam Scott

9. Jason Day

10. Bill Haas

11. Brooks Koepka

12. Rickie Fowler

13. Keegan Bradley

14. Kevin Chappell

15. Tony Finau

16. Paul Casey

17. Patrick Reed

18. Jimmy Walker

19. Brendan Steele

20. Webb Simpson

21. Charl Schwartzel

22. Ian Poulter

23. Harris English

24. Bubba Watson

25. Kevin Kisner