GOLF

Daily Fantasy Golf Helper for the PGA Championship

Rory McIlroy is a heavy favorite this week. Is he still a good FanDuel play?

By now, you've probably dabbled in daily fantasy sports, but if not, don't worry. Now is a great time to start, especially with FanDuel now offering a revamped version of PGA golf.

Golf can be one of the most exciting DFS sports to follow, as tournaments span four days and allow ample time to prepare each week, so be sure to familiarize yourself with the basics of building a lineup on FanDuel, the scoring setup, and advanced stats to know about the PGA.

But whether you're brand new to the PGA or daily fantasy sports in general, we have you covered.

Let's take a look at some golfers to target for the PGA Championship.

Stats to Target

Key Stats for The PGA Championship at Quail Hollow
Birdie or Better Rate
Strokes Gained: Off the Tee
Par 5 Scoring
Strokes Gained: Approach the Green
Driving Distance


For more information on why we're digging into these stats, check out our course primer.

Best of the Best

Rory McIlroy (FanDuel Price: $10,300 | bet365 odds: 6.5) - Rory is the most expensive golfer on FanDuel, which isn't surprising. He has finished 17th at the Travelers, 4th at The Open, and 5th at the Bridgestone in his past three events. Rory has also dominated Quail Hollow in the past. He won in 2010 and was cut in 2011. Since then: five top 10s (2nd, 10th, 8th, win in 2015, and 4th in 2016). Per FantasyNational, McIlroy is first in the field in strokes gained off the tee, par 5 strokes gained, 7th in birdies gained, and 2nd in driving distance in his past 24 rounds among players in the field.

Rickie Fowler ($9,500 | 16) - Fowler's distance (46th in his past 24 rounds) and off-the-tee play (54th) isn't what you're looking for here, but he's 3rd on par 5s and 1st in birdies in his past 24. Fowler has finished 6th, 16th, and 1st from 2010 to 2012. He was 73rd and 38th in 2013 and 2014 and returned in 2016 to finish 4th. Fowler also has four top 10s in his past six events.

Hideki Matsuyama ($8,800 | 11) - Sure, recommending last week's winner is dumb, but if you're playing cash games, it's hard to ignore Hideki. Matsuyama has one missed cut in 17 events on the season and ranks seventh in strokes gained: approach in his past 24 rounds. Hideki has finished 38th, 20th, and 11th since 2014 at Quail Hollow.

Brooks Koepka ($8,600 | 22) - Koepka brings it in majors. Since 2014, he's played in 13 majors. He has 11 top 25s, 9 top 15s, and 4 top 5s. In his past four (the PGA last year, then the Masters, U.S. Open, and The Open this year), he's finished 4th, 11th, 1st, 6th. Koepka's current form is strong, and he's top 10 in driving distance, birdies gained, and strokes gained on par 5s among players in the field in his past 24 rounds.

Adam Scott ($8,400 | 35) - Scott has played Quail Hollow six times in the past 10 years but made just three cuts. However, he's 30th in strokes gained: off the tee and 12th in approach in his past 24 rounds. He's opting for his part-time caddie rather than Steve Williams, but at 35/1 to win, Scott is a tad underpriced on FanDuel.

Mid-Range Options

Paul Casey ($7,600 | 40) - Casey's course form isn't promising, but his recent form sure is. Last week at the Bridgestone, he was 5th. Casey was 11th at The Open, 5th at the Travelers, 26th at the U.S. Open, 10th at the DEAN & DELUCA, 22nd at THE PLAYERS, 12th at the Wells Fargo, and 6th at the Masters. He's not super long off the tee (72nd in distance in his past 24 rounds), but he's 5th in approach and 39th in strokes gained: off the tee.

Daniel Berger ($7,100 | 50) - Berger sits 2nd in approach, 15th in birdies gained, and 22nd in par 5s in his past 24 rounds. Berger has finished 28th and 17th the past two years at Quail Hollow, so that's in his favor. He did miss the U.S. Open cut after winning the St. Jude, but he was 2nd at the Travelers, 5th at the John Deere, 27th at The Open, and 17th in the short-field Bridgestone last week.

Tony Finau ($7,000 | 80) - Finau is top 5 in the field in strokes gained: off the tee, par 5s, and driving distance in his past 24; he's 14th in birdies, and he's 65th in approach. That's a strong stat profile for a guy priced at $7,000. Finau can pick up strokes off the tee and launch it off the tee. He's reeled off eight straight cuts and has finished 16th and 28th here in the past two years.

Marc Leishman ($6,700 | 60) - Leishman has no course form since 2012 but has seven straight cuts made since THE PLAYERS (eight if you count the Bridgestone). Excluding that no-cut event, Leishman has five top 17s in his past seven. Leishman ranks 11th in approach and 15th in par 5s in his past 24 and is 39th in distance and 33rd off the tee.

Charley Hoffman ($6,500 | 55) - Hoffman has been stellar statistically lately. In the field in his past 24, he's 7th in strokes gained off the tee, 30th in approach, 4th in par 5s, 5th in birdies gained, and 27th in driving distance. He's missed three of four cuts at this course from 2007 to 2011 and hasn't played Quail Hollow since. But Hoffman was 8th at the U.S. Open, 3rd at the Travelers, 20th at The Open, 2nd at the Canadian Open, and 3rd at the Bridgestone.

Low-Priced Picks

Gary Woodland ($6,300 | 90) - Woodland has made 18 of 20 cuts this year if you exclude the Zurich format, and that's pretty steady for $6,300. Woodland has also made all six cuts at Quail Hollow in the past (73rd in 2009, 68th in 2011, 61st in 2013, 18th in 2014, 4th in 2015, and 24th in 2016).

Xander Schauffele ($6,200 | 100) - Schauffele contended well with the big names last week at the Bridgestone and finished 13th. He was also 5th at the U.S. Open and 20th at The Open. Plus, he won the Greenbrier. That's all enough to think he won't be bothered by this field. X is 9th in distance and 16th in strokes gained: off the tee in his past 24 rounds.

Kevin Chappell ($6,000 | 66) - Chappell ranks 15th in distance, 9th in approach, and 3rd in birdies gained in his past 24 rounds and has made all five cuts here since 2012. Just two of those were better than 41st -- but they were 11th in 2014 and 16th in 2015. Chappell is an upside play at this price. He finished 7th at the Masters, 23rd at the U.S. Open, and was cut at The Open.

James Hahn ($5,500 | 200) - Hahn has a smattering of top 20s in his recent form (4 in his past 11 events), missed cuts (3 in those 11) and mediocre finishes. He finished 48th at the Masters and 74th at The Open, so that's promising. The real reason to like Hahn the most, though, is that he won the Wells Fargo at this course in 2016. He's also 28th in the field in strokes gained: off the tee, which is respectable for a guy priced this far down the list.

Patrick Cantlay ($5,000 | 125) - Cantlay pretty much never plays, but in his past 24 rounds, he checks all the boxes we're looking for. He's 9th in strokes gained: off the tee, 23rd in approach, 11th on par 5s, 12th in birdies, and 24th in distance. He has no course form and is far from a sure thing, but he has made all seven cuts on the year with three top 25s.