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

Joe Nicely breaks down the FanDuel slate for the Mayakoba 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 family! I hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving and appreciate you joining us here at RotoBaller!

We head to Mexico for the final PGA Tour event of this calendar year. Like many tournaments in 2020, the Mayakoba Classic is seeing an influx of talent in the field and is shaping up to be a great PGA DFS slate. In this article we'll discuss some of the standout PGA DFS plays available on FanDuel for the Mayakoba 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.

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!

Mayakoba Classic - PGA DFS Overview

El Camaleon GC

7,017 Yards - Par 71 - Greens: Paspalum - Designer: Greg Norman

If Brendon Todd's win last year isn't a good enough indicator, let me be clear: distance doesn't matter on this golf course. Yes, players can go low here, but they will need to consistently hit fairways and greens to do it. In other words, it's something of a "plodders paradise", as you'll notice when looking at the list of recent champions below. A 2006 Greg Norman design, El Camaleon is a unique course that takes advantage of a beautiful and interesting natural landscape. It is perhaps most famous for its "sinkholes" that can give golfers fits.

This is a short course by modern standards, but not one that can be easily overpowered. Accuracy off the tee is crucial and we will see lots of players hitting less than driver this week. Ball striking will also be at a premium at El Camaleon in order to find fairways and greens in what is typically windy coastline conditions. A hot putter never hurts and that is again the case this week on a Seashore Paspalum putting surface that we basically never see on the PGA Tour. I'll be targeting accurate ball strikers who are capable of working their way around this course with precision and getting in a groove with the flatstick.

Let's Look At The Stats

Key Stats

• Strokes Gained: Approach
• Strokes Gained: Tee to Green
• Birdie or Better %
• Driving Accuracy
• Fairways Gained
• Putting: Paspalum Greens (Present at Mayakoba, Corales, and Puerto Rico Open)

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 

Justin Thomas ($12,600)

Justin Thomas sits head and shoulders above lots of fields in lots of events. That's certainly the case this week for the Mayakoba Classic, as JT heads to Mexico as a 6/1 favorite to win this tournament. Obviously, he sits atop the FanDuel salary scale as well, sporting a hefty $12.6k price tag. If you are able to find the salary, its tough to argue that you shouldn't pay it, as Thomas does have a legitimate shot to dominate this event.

El Camaleon isn't a track that screams JT, but his game translates everywhere, because he's good at everything! Thomas ranks first in this field in SG: Total and DK Points scored, while also grading out first in Birdies or Better Gained. His game has no weaknesses outside of a putter that can run cold. That's been the story for him as of late, as his putting ranks just 45th in the field and is the only thing that's prevented him from adding to his 2020 win total.

Harris English ($11,500)

Consistency is the word that comes to mind when discussing Harris English. The former Georgia Bulldog has been the picture of it over the past year, making the cut in 20 of 25 starts with six top-10 finishes among those. Since an impressive top-five outing at the U.S. Open, he's notched top-10 finishes in two of his subsequent four starts.

In addition to his rock-solid form, English also possesses a strong track record at El Camaleon. He won this event in 2013 at 21-under par and posted a fifth-place finish on this layout last year. The sum of his game is greater than any of the individual parts, which means English is simply very good in every facet. He’s a tremendous option this week.

Daniel Berger ($11,400)

Daniel Berger is very similar to Harris English in that he's been extremely consistent throughout the past year, though I believe he does carry more win equity than English. He's a player that's easy to overlook because he doesn't really stand out in one area, but Berger's overall excellence should play well on this El Camaleon layout. He has a win and three additional top-three finishes since the restart and has gained strokes on Approach in a ridiculous 10 of 11 tournaments since June. My only (slight) concern is that he hasn't teed it up in over a month, but it would be unwise to sleep on Berger in this spot.

Abraham Ancer ($11,100)

Lots of factors are coming together to point in Abraham Ancer's direction this week. He heads to Mayakoba - a tournament where he's posted top-10 finishes in two of the last three years - off a very impressive performance at the Masters. The 29-year-old was in serious contention in his Augusta National debut, but a final-round 76 dropped him into a T13 finish. It was the latest in a string of good outings for Ancer, who also posted a top-five at the Shriners last month.

His past success on this El Camaleon layout can be attributed to his steady precision both off the tee and on approach. He grades out eighth in this week's field in Fairways Gained and 11th Good Drives Gained, while coming in 14th in Greens In Regulation Gained. Ancer's relative lack of length won't be a detriment this week and he'll be able to rely on his accuracy. He's been knocking on the door of a win for the last couple of years and he could very well score his first victory on the PGA Tour this week in his home country.

Russell Henley ($10,900) 

If you've read any of my articles over the last couple months, you probably know I've been on a Russell Henley kick. It's paid off nicely for us, as Henley has continued to be a solid producer since putting things together at the end of summer. He's posted two top-five finishes in his last five starts, while flirting with top-25s in the other three. His tremendous ball striking puts him near the top of my player pool once again this week at Mayakoba. Henley grades out first in this field in SG: Approach over the last 24 rounds, while ranking third in SG: T2G and ninth in Fairways Gained. His weakness in an inarguably-spotty putting stroke, but it's a chance I'm willing to take, as it feels as though he's merely a hot putting week away from a victory.

Corey Conners ($10,800)

Corey Conners is very similar to Henley...very sharp ball striker with a questionable short game. However, the Canadian has been on a roll as of late, posting top-10s in three of his last four starts - including a very impressive T10 at the Masters - while grading out second in this week's field in SG: Ball Striking over the last 24 rounds. The concern with Conners is the same as Henley...can he make enough putts to win this type of event? He's actually looked better on the greens lately, gaining an average of 0.4 strokes putting over his last five tournaments, which leads me to be optimistic on his prospects this week.

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Mid-Priced FanDuel DFS Players

Emiliano Grillo ($9,900)

Let me expressly say that Grillo should not be considered a "safe" play in any form or fashion. However, this might be one of those weeks that it's worth embracing the volatility with him in pursuit of his upside. His track record at Mayakoba is very strong - he's made four-straight cuts with two top-10s - and he's looked solid in the new season, making the cut in six of his last seven starts with two top-25s among those.

Another reason I'm interested in Grillo might be a stretch, but is intriguing nonetheless...Paspalum greens. It's a surface we rarely see on the PGA Tour, with Mayakoba, Corales, and the Puerto Rico Open being the only regular Tour stops with Paspalum greens. Grillo is a notoriously-horrible putter, but he's historically played well here, logged a T21 recently at Corales, and scored a third-place finish in the Puerto Rico Open earlier this year. Maybe Paspalum is the secret code to unlocking his putter?

Scott Piercy ($9,700)

A veteran that fits the mold at Mayakoba. Scott Piercy is an unquestionably-streaky player, but the veteran has been consistent over recent three trips to El Camaleon, going T26-T6-T4 since 2017. In addition to the great course history, Piercy heads to Mexico in rather sharp form at the moment. The veteran has made the cut in each of his last five starts with three top-20 finishes among those results. He’s gained strokes T2G in each of his last five and grades out 14th in this week’s field in SG: T2G over the last 12 rounds. Piercy has the ability both to make birdies (25th in the field Birdies or Better Gained) and dodge big numbers (sixth in field Bogeys Avoided).

Russell Knox ($9,600)

A true course-history beast, Russell Knox has posted a third and a T2 over his last four starts on this El Camaleon layout. The once-dependable Knox has been anything but over the past year or so, missing a ridiculous 10-straight cuts at one point in 2020. However, he's slowly been turning things around as of late and has flashed some form over recent starts by logging a top-10 at the Safeway Open and top-16 finishes in both Bermuda and Houston since October. For years, Knox made his living on the strength of his iron play and he's looked more like himself lately, gaining strokes on Approach in four consecutive starts and in seven of his last eight outings.

Adam Long ($9,500)

He'll strictly be a GPP play for me, but I'm intrigued by Adam Long's sneaky upside. He's unbelievably streaky, but heads to Mayakoba - a tournament where he posted a runner-up finish last year - in a very nice groove. Long has went T30/T11 in his last two starts and gained an impressive 3.5 (RSM) and 5.3 (Houston) strokes on Approach in those outings. If - and it's definitely an if - his irons are still firing this week, he brings legit tournament-winning upside to the table. Unfortunately, his volatility makes him almost impossible to truly rely on in cash or single-entry formats.

Brian Gay ($9,400)

The price tag feels inflated, most likely due to his recent win in Bermuda, but Brian Gay still deserves a look this week. The veteran is perhaps the "King of the Short Track" on the PGA Tour and his win in Bermuda reinforced that notion. Unsurprisingly, Gay has also fared well in previous trips to this short, manageable El Camaleon layout, winning this event way back in 2008 and making the cut in his last four trips to Mayakoba, with two top-25s among those starts.

Doug Ghim ($9,400)

A highly-touted amateur player, Doug Ghim's pro career failed to launch as expected. However, the former Texas Longhorn has quietly put together a very strong Swing Season resume, notching top-25 finishes in four of his last five starts. His game has been firing in all aspects as of late, as he ranks seventh in this field in Good Drives Gained and 12th in SG: Approach over the last 24 rounds. Ghim is coming off the best iron performance of his career at the RSM Classic, an event where he gained over five strokes on Approach. There's a good chance that he'll go overlooked this week.

Low-Priced FanDuel DFS Players

Denny McCarthy ($9,200)

Denny tanked my core builds at the RSM Classic with a missed cut, but it's tough for me to completely ignore him on a short track where birdies will be needed. While his ball striking can fairly be called inconsistent, McCarthy is adept at finding fairways and ranks 13th in this week's field in Fairways Gained. He shockingly lost strokes putting at Sea Island, but we have to consider that an outlier performance as he's long-been one of the best putters on the Tour. I look for him to rebound this week.

John Huh ($8,900)

The light-hitting Huh is a former winner at Mayakoba and his recent form puts him on my radar this week. He's looked solid as of late while playing on a Major Medical exemption after missing the majority of 2020 with an injury. Huh has made the cut in his last three starts, posting top-20 finishes at both the Safeway and RSM Classic on the strength of positive T2G and Approach numbers. He's a fairway finder that ranks third in this field in Good Drives Gained over the last 12 rounds.

Peter Malnati ($8,800)

My obsession with Peter Malnati continues this week. He's been one of the hottest players in golf during the Swing Season, making four of five cuts with two top-five finishes. We were concerned about his horrible course history at the RSM Classic, but Malnati came out firing with an opening round of five-under par before eventually fading into a T48. I'm willing to roll the dice on him again this week at Mayakoba, an event where his track record is undoubtedly a mixed bag (a T10 and three missed cuts since 2017). My line of thinking is similar to what I felt at Sea Island a couple of weeks ago...the guy is playing great golf and is a tremendous course fit "on paper"...why not take a stab at this discounted price?

Brian Harman ($7,000) *Wow!*

If you've read this far, congratulations, because you've just found the steal of the week! We've seen FanDuel misprice players before and that's certainly the case with Brian Harman here, as he comes in at just $7k (!) even though he should arguably be priced in the mid-to-high $9k range. He's been in rock-solid form and has made four-straight cuts at Mayakoba. Harman will undoubtedly be a popular choice due to the ridiculous price - so there's a game-theory line of thinking that supports a calculated fade in GPPs - but he's something of a "free square" and a player that you should take advantage of in single-entry and cash builds.

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Our very own Joe Nicely took down a big DraftKings DFS tournament for the Travelers Championship. And as an encore, RotoBaller subscriber @tenndolly2 won $100K on FanDuel with the help of Joe and the rest of our Premium PGA team:

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