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Hello and welcome back to Horse For The Course! Francesco Molinari claimed his first major at the Open Championship by holding off a star-studded leaderboard. The Italian has long been known as an elite ballstriker, but has been able to put it all together over the past few months. The win at Carnoustie was his third this season. This week we head to the great white north for the RBC Canadian Open. This week's event boasts a surprisingly strong and rather deep field that features eight of the top 30 players in FedEx Points. Jhonattan Vegas has won this tournament two consecutive years and will be looking for a three-peat. This edition will be a little abbreviated, as I'm on vacation with the family this week. Let's get to it!
Horse For The Course will take a look at players that have traditionally flourished at the course that hosts this week’s PGA TOUR event. This is not a traditional picks column, but rather an attempt to pinpoint players that have outstanding results at a specific course. "The Horse" is a player with an elite course history and that has a great chance to repeat his success in this week's tournament. "The Ponies" are players with very good course history, that might be entering this week's tournament under the radar or have a DFS price that is a great value.
For a full review of the DraftKings PGA Slate this weekend, check out Seth Finklestein's column reviewing picks at every price point.
Editor's Note: Our friends at Fantasy National have built some incredible DFS Golf lineup tools including a Lineup Optimizer, Stat Engine, Ownership Projections and Course Breakdowns. They are by far the best daily fantasy Golf tools in the industry. Seriously. You can read all about them here and see screenshots.
The Course: Glen Abbey Golf Course - Par 72 - 7,253 Yards
The Jack Nicklaus designed course will host the Canadian Open for the 30th time and fifth time in six years. After a week at a tough Carnoustie course, we are back to a player-friendly course that yield lots of birdies. Players will be able to swing away with drivers off the tee and will need to take advantage of the four Par 5s. Vegas won last year's edition with a score of 21-under par, so player's will have to pile up birdies and eagles to contend this week.
The Horse
Charley Hoffman (DraftKings - $8,700 & FanDuel - $10,800 )
Instead of opting for one of the more elite players in the RBC Canadian Open field, I'm making Charley Hoffman this week's Horse. The Californian has been quite comfortable in Canada throughout his career and has three Top-20 finishes in his last three starts at Glen Abbey. Hoffman nabbed a runner-up finish last year after finishing at 21-under par and falling to Jhonattan Vegas in a playoff.
After a spotty start to 2018, Hoffman has been rounding into form over the past month. The veteran has reeled off four consecutive Top-20s over his past four tournaments, including a T20 at the U.S. Open and a T17 at last week's Open Championship.
I love Hoffman's $8,700 DraftKings price tag this week. I have to admit, I was a bit shocked at how cheap he was when pricing was posted. I do think the affordable price tag will elevate his ownership, but I will gladly eat the chalk this week. I love the combination of Hoffman's course history, current form, and price. Use him in all formats.
The Ponies
Dustin Johnson (DK - $11,700 & FD - $12,500 )
This might be the rare week that DJ will go a bit overlooked. That might not be the right word, but Johnson definitely let lots of people down in last week's Open Championship. He played poorly at Carnoustie, logging a missed cut as the most expensive player. A very popular selection last week, DFS regulars might not be in a huge hurry to jump back on the DJ wagon. He once again carries the highest DK salary on the board.
The big difference in last week and this week is that DJ has actually always played well in the Canadian Open. Despite his spotty Open Championship history, DFS players opted to trust his talent last week. DJ has been a force at Glen Abbey, finishing T8 last year, with a pair of second place finishes in 2016 and 2013. Last week hurt, but I expect the most talented player in the world to bounceback in Canada.
Jhonattan Vegas (DK - $7,500 & FD - $8,700 )
I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the back-to-back RBC Canadian Open champion in an article that focuses on course history. Vegas finished at 21-under par and outlasted Charley Hoffman in a playoff to take home the title last year. In 2016, Vegas came out on top at 12-under par with the likes of Dustin Johnson and Jon Rahm just one stroke behind.
Vegas had a wild week at Carnoustie when some visa troubles almost prevented him from getting into the country and making his tee time. Hopefully, the Venezuelan will find his way to Glen Abbey with no issues. Vegas hasn't displayed much form in 2018 and has missed his the cut in his last two tournament appearances. He is strictly a GPP-only option that is a pure course history selection.
Chad Campbell (DK - $6,700 & FD - $8,000)
Those searching for some value this week might want to give Chad Campbell a long look. The veteran ballstriker from Texas isn't in the greatest form in 2018, though he did pop-up to log a T7 at the John Deere Classic two weeks ago. Digging in to Campbell's Canadian Open history reveals a surprisingly solid track record. He has made four consecutive cuts at Glen Abbey, finishing T32 in 2017, T26 in 2016, T11 in 2015, and grabbing a T16 in 2013.
Campbell is a value GPP-only option due to his current form. I love his record at Glen Abbey for the bargain basement price of $6,700 on DraftKings. His play at the John Deere recently gives us reason to believe that Campbell is still capable on certain courses. His ballstriking will be a huge asset at the Nicklaus-designed course this week. He is a perfect play for those multi-entering large field GPPs.
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