PGA DFS Core Plays: Zurich Classic
Top-ranked DFS player, Notorious, breaks down his favorite PGA DFS picks at various salary ranges for this week’s tournament. Who should you be building around? Find out below.
While I prefer the standard stroke play events, it’s fun to mix it up every now and then. It’s hard to believe the PGA TOUR axed the match play event and kept this one, but we aren’t here to talk about the shortcomings of the TOUR (how they managed to have a Monday finish last week still baffles me). We have a team event on the docket this week, and it features a unique format. Rounds 1 and 3 will be played as four-balls (best ball), and Rounds 2 and 4 will be played as foursomes (alternate shot). There are 80 two-man teams in the field, which means there are 160 golfers teeing it up this week. The top 33 teams and ties will make the cut and play the weekend.
Given the fact that we don’t have ShotLink data from this course over the last 5 years (given the team format), we won’t spend too much time breaking down the specifics of the course. With that said, it would be a disservice to the loyal readers of this article not to cover the basics. TPC Louisiana is a Par 72 that measures 7,425 yards. It was designed by Pete Dye and features water hazards on 6 of the 18 holes. Like many Dye designs, there are a number of less-than-driver holes. However, given the format of the event, this week is all about making birdies. We tend to see players get a little more aggressive off the tee in the two best-ball rounds. The greens here are small in size (5,200 square feet) and feature poa trivialis overseed.
Noto’s PGA Model Download & Video for the Zurich Classic
I’m not focusing too much of my attention on statistics this week, but ball striking tends to travel well to all courses and in all formats. As noted earlier, making as many birdies as possible is essential for the two best-ball rounds. When it comes to alternate shot, teams will try their best to hold onto the score that they generated in the best-ball rounds. One angle that makes a lot of sense this week is targeting teams that have chemistry. This could be relation (there are three sets of brothers in the field), experience in the Ryder Cup together, experience in the Presidents Cup together, experience at this event together, or experience playing together in college. It’s not that the random pairings can’t play well, but they might not have as much patience for their teammates as some of the other teams.
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PGA DFS Picks: DraftKings & FanDuel Core Plays for the Zurich Classic
Field Size:
- 80 teams of two golfers
Cut Rule:
- Top 33 teams and ties
Weather Forecasts
TPC Louisiana
- Location: Avondale, Louisiana
- Par 72 — 7,425 yards
- Number of holes with water hazards: 6
- Green type: bermudagrass with poa trivialis overseed
- Green size: 5,200 square feet
Event and Course Notes
- Team event that features different formats
- Rounds 1 and 3 will feature four-balls (best ball)
- Rounds 2 and 4 will feature foursomes (alternate shot)
- There is a cut; only the top 33 teams and ties will play the weekend
What to Look For
- Strokes gained approach
- Strokes gained off the tee
- Birdie or better %
- Strokes gained putting
- Team chemistry
Core Plays
Xander Schauffele / Patrick Cantlay
DraftKings: $11,200 / pOWN%: 46%
This duo is as close to a Scottie Scheffler type of play as we are going to get this week. They are listed at +400 to win, which is similar to what we’ve seen Scheffler at in the outright market the last few weeks. I’m not sure this duo offers the same floor as Scheffler in a stroke play event, but they aren’t quite as expensive either. They have more team-play experience than any other duo in the field, as they’ve been paired together for many Ryder Cups and Presidents Cups. On top of that, they have played together in this event three times, finishing 4th, 1st, and 11th. They are great friends off the course and have similar skill sets, so there really aren’t any holes that we can poke in them for DFS, with the exception of projected ownership.
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