Daily Fantasy Golf FanDuel Picks (PGA DFS) - Honda Classic

Joe Nicely breaks down the FanDuel slate for the Honda Classic, providing information of not only who will come into the week under-owned but also who should be avoided for your lineups.

Hello RotoBaller PGA crew! It's great to be back with you guys and I appreciate you joining us here at RotoBaller!

In this article we'll discuss some of the standout PGA DFS plays available on FanDuel for the Honda Classic. While it's impossible to hit on every player, we'll touch on some different plays across all price ranges, breaking the groups down into "High", "Mid", and "Low" price options, as well as a couple of GPP Value Plays worth considering.

Like always, the purpose of this piece is to help you put together your optimal daily fantasy golf lineups for FanDuel, whether that be from a GPP perspective or a cash-game mentality. Be sure to also read all of our other top-notch weekly PGA DFS and betting articles to help you win big!

The Honda Classic - PGA DFS Overview

PGA National - Champion Course

7,125 Yards - Par 70 - Greens: Bermuda - Designer: George & Tom Fazio, Jack Nicklaus

The players are facing a daunting task this week at PGA National. The Champion course routinely ranks as one of the most difficult layouts on the PGA Tour schedule with a score of 8-10-under par usually being enough to win the tournament. The infamous 'Bear Trap' is a brutal three hole stretch (Holes #15,16,& 17) that can destroy a players' scorecard at the end of a round.

Water is prevalent on the Champion layout and over 75 sand traps lay waiting around the course. As if all that weren't enough, the Florida wind can always wreak havoc when it starts gusting! If you want to dial in some key stats for this tournament, golfers this week will face SEVEN Par-4s that measure between 400-450 yards and the largest number of approach shots will fall in the 150-200 yard range. I'm looking for players that have the ability to succeed on hard courses, can avoid bogeys, and are solid ball strikers with strong proximity numbers in the 150-200 yard range. We can also throw in a dash of Bermuda putting splits.

For an in-depth breakdown of this week's course, check out RotoBaller's PGA Premium Course Breakdown by Josh Bennett!

Let's Look At The Stats

Key Stats

• Strokes Gained: Approach
• Strokes Gained: T2G
• Total Driving
• Scrambling
• Bogey Avoidance
• Wind Play

Fantasy Golf Lineup Picks for FanDuel (PGA DFS)

We have tons of great weekly PGA articles, DFS analysis, tools and DFS advice. Be sure to read our other fantastic articles regarding this week's event including DFS lineup picks for DraftKings/FanDuel, betting advice and DFS prop picks.

High-Priced FanDuel DFS Players 

Daniel Berger ($12,000)

Not a huge surprise to see Daniel Berger atop the salary scale in this rather weak Honda field. He certainly has the required credentials, as he brings both sharp form and strong course history to PGA National this week. Berger was one of golf's most consistent players throughout 2020 and has picked up right where he left off this year, with a win last month at Pebble Beach and a top-10 at the PLAYERS last week. He doesn't have a win on his Honda resume, but a T4 last year and a runner-up finish back in 2015 indicates he possesses all the tools needed to handle this tough PGA National layout. With the lack of quality depth available in this week's field, it sure feels like a "Stars & Scrubs" type of tournament, so I'll be heavily invested in Berger, as well as some of the other high-priced options this week.

Sungjae Im ($11,800)

Sungjae is the defending Honda Classic champion and sticks out as one of the top options on this week's slate. The young Korean grabbed his maiden PGA Tour win last year in a dramatic Sunday at PGA National. The popular factoid to spew is that Im likes Bermuda greens, but a combined +15.4 SG: Putting mark over three tournaments since the start of the Florida Swing drive home the fact that the saying is much more than just hyperbole. Despite the hot putting and top-25s in his last two at THE PLAYERS and the API, Sungjae still feels a bit wobbly as a whole. He’d lost strokes on Approach in three straight before finishing just on the positive side with his irons at Sawgrass (+0.2) and he’s also lost strokes Around The Green in three straight and five of his last six. Despite those slight concerns, Im qualifies as an elite play in this spot.

Lee Westwood ($11,500)

What a story the Englishman has been the last couple of weeks! Westwood has posted back-to-back runner-up finishes at the API and PLAYERS, and now heads to a PGA National track on which he's logged two top-fives and two top-10s over eight career Honda starts. Can this Cinderella story continue or does the 47-year-old eventually run out of gas? It's a question we must consider strongly now that his price tag sits at a massive $11.5k. There are lots of positive indicators here obviously, but at this price I'm more likely to lean on Berger/Im in the majority of lineups.

Joaquin Niemann ($11,300)

Young Joaquin Niemann's Honda track record isn't great - a MC and a T59 - but the Chilean fits the "ball striker mold" that has historically been so successful on this PGA National layout. Niemann grades out fourth in this week's field in SG: Ball Striking over long-term measurements. Perhaps Niemann's previous struggles at the Honda can be attributed to a short game that's always been on the wrong side of average. However, that area of the youngster's game continues to evolve and he's surprisingly gained strokes Around The Green in four of his five 2021 starts.

Shane Lowry ($11,100)

Lowry has, for the most part, been MIA since a career-defining win at the Open Championship in 2019. We've seen a couple of decent stretches of golf from him, but nothing to indicate he was in the type of form that helped him triumph at Royal Portrush. However, Lowry's top-10 outing last week at THE PLAYERS is rather encouraging. He gained strokes in every major area, including a +7.5 mark T2G, his best tee to green output in nearly a year. There are heavy winds in the forecast for a couple of days this week and we know Lowry can handle any type of weather thrown his way. The combination of his play last week and ability to handle tough conditions (and tough golf courses) puts Lowry squarely into consideration for me this week.

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Mid-Priced FanDuel DFS Players

Russell Henley ($10,900)

A former Honda winner that's continued to thrive in this event in subsequent years, Russell Henley has been solid, if unspectacular, this year. Henley closed out 2020 in blistering fashion, ranking atop ball-striking numbers on almost a weekly basis. The UGA product's irons have cooled a bit in '21, but he still ranks first in this Honda field in SG: Approach over the last 24 rounds. His fondness for this track - and Bermuda greens - coupled with his ball-striking prowess, makes him a standout option in this sub-par field of entrants.

Chris Kirk ($10,500)

I've been on a huge Chris Kirk kick as of late and he's rewarded me with some strong play, though he did fade Sunday at THE PLAYERS. However, we're now faced with a very significant price tag for the Knoxville native. Kirk has received a nearly $2,000 price increase on FanDuel this week, something that takes him out of the "no-brainer value" category that he's been in for most of 2021. Despite the price tag - and a rather ho-hum record in the Honda - Kirk still deserves consideration due to his recent play. He ranks first in this week's field in both SG: T2G and SG: Around The Green...areas that will be crucial on this PGA National layout.

Brendan Steele ($10,400)

Yes, this $10.4k price tag is gross for Brendan Steele, but it's just a fact of life with this week's field strength. While we might be hesitant to pull the trigger on Steeley at this salary, there's some good stuff here. He's made the cut in all seven of his 2021 starts, with a top-five and two top-25s among those outings. The vet has also been very successful in previous trips to PGA National, posting a T4 last year, as well as back-to-back T14s in 2016-17.

Low-Priced FanDuel DFS Players

Matt Wallace ($9,700)

Matt Wallace is kinda a poor man's Patrick Reed. He's never gonna look great on the stat sheet (he grades out a mediocre 35th in this field in SG: T2G for last 12 rounds), but the Englishman is a player with a sum-is-greater-than-the-parts type of game. Wallace is also a guy that's always going to catch my eye when: A.) The golf course is very tough. & B.) There is expected to be heavy win and/or bad weather.

Wyndham Clark & Benny An ($9,700 & $9,600)

Listing these two together because they both fall into the same "could be a disaster or could post a top-five" GPP bucket for me. Both have the type of upside I like to target in large-field DFS formats and both have tremendous course history at PGA National. An has recorded top-five finishes in two of his last three trips to PGA National, while Clark had a chance to win this event in his Honda debut in 2019 before eventually settling for a T7 and following it up with a T11 last year. In Clark’s case specifically, a T8 at the Genesis indicates he isn’t too far removed from playing good golf.

Brandon Wu ($9,300)

I might be playing with fire here, as Brandon Wu is a player that's making his Honda debut on a PGA National layout that's traditionally tough on first timers. Despite that fact, I'm intrigued with Wu in GPP formats, as I believe he's a young player that will be a regular on the PGA Tour within a couple of years. Wu was in the same college class as the famed Wolff, Morikawa, & Hovland trio, but elected to stay in school a bit longer. While it was likely a great life decision, it has perhaps derailed his professional career slightly. He's been stuck on the Korn Ferry Tour, where he won the season-ending KFT Championship event in August. Wu also popped for a T7 at the Puerto Rico Open in his only start on the PGA Tour this year.

Jhonattan Vegas ($9,200)

A nice collision of recent form and course history here with Jhonny Vegas, a player that popped for a runner-up finish in Puerto Rico a few weeks ago and has also ran off five-straight made cuts in the Honda, with a T4 back in '17. The Columbian is a two-time winner of the Canadian Open, an event that was held on a Nicklaus-designed Glen Abbey golf course at the time, so we also have a bit of Nicklaus-course synergy going here. Like the upside and the price tag.

GPP Value Options

Michael Thompson ($9,100)

A former Honda winner that's posted top-25 finishes in two of his last three trips to PGA National. Thompson has put together an under-the-radar solid 2021 to this point, with a top-five and two top-25s in seven starts this year. He's an excellent wind player and has demonstrated the ability to handle this week's tough layout.

Will Gordon ($8,600)

Like the aforementioned Brandon Wu, Will Gordon is a player that's making his Honda Classic debut this week, but brings lots of raw talent to the table. After a spectacular run last year at the Travelers, the Vandy product appeared on the verge of being golf's "next big thing", but Gordon struggled in subsequent starts and failed to capitalize on the status that his Travelers performance afforded him. However, he's settled in nicely as of late, making the cut in five of his last six starts, with solid finishes at Pebble Beach and in Puerto Rico.

Jason Dufner ($7,600)

With the expected winds this week, I'm interested in targeting experienced veterans. The Duff Daddy has the ability to handle the week and he's also NEVER missed a cut at PGA National in 12 career Honda Classic starts. Dufner has posted three top-25s on this golf course since 2015 and has made the cut in two of his last three 2021 starts.

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