Fantasy Golf: Wyndham Championship preview

It was a good week for Team TG at the US PGA Championship as Jason Day and Jordan Spieth helped us claim 271 points. That was nothing compared to weekly winner Simon Hooper’s efforts, though. As well as the top two, his ‘Thames Ditton & Esher Golf Club’ team included Branden Grace, Dustin Johnson, Robert Streb and David Lingmerth. That added up to 468 points and propelled him to 55^th in the overall rankings.

From the heady heights of last week’s major and triple points we return to normality at this week’s Wyndham Championship. However, the event does mark the start of our game’s 14-round Knockout Cup which concludes at the DP World Tour Championship in November. So, wherever your team lies currently, there is still plenty to play for and great prizes up for grabs with the Cup winner scooping a brand new TaylorMade R15 driver!

One of the oldest events on the PGA Tour, this year is the 76^th playing of the Wyndham Championship. The roll of honour is stunning with Snead, Nelson, Player and Ballesteros amongst the former winners. Tiger Woods is a notable absentee from that list and makes his debut in the event this time around as he seeks to find the win or runner-up finish he requires to make next week’s FedEx Cup play-offs. The 14-time major winner is one of six former world number ones in the field this week alongside Donald, Els, Kaymer, Singh and Scott.

If Woods is to find that elusive victory he, like the rest of the field, will require a lot of birdies. The last seven renewals have been held here at Sedgefield Country Club with 18-under the average winning score in that time. Standing at just 7,127 yards this par 70 in Greensboro, North Carolina ranks as one of the easiest on the Tour. With its small, slick targets, greens in regulation, scrambling and strokes gained putting are the key areas this week. On his way to victory last year, Camilo Villegas ranked eighth, first and 16th in those three categories respectively. Here’s my line-up…

Hideki Matsuyama, £3.0m
No missed cuts since the Farmers Insurance Open at the start of February – a run of 11 events. He was 15^th here two years ago and lies 23^rd in greens in regulation and 22^nd in scrambling on the PGA Tour.   

Billy Horschel, £2.6m
Continues to go along very solidly. His 25^th-place finish at Whistling Straits was his ninth straight of 33^rd or better. Not missed the cut in three previous starts here and the stats bode well – 15^th in greens in regulation and 17^th in strokes gained putting.

Brandt Snedeker, £2.4m
Will have felt good after last week. Went 68-69 over the weekend and sunk a 75-foot birdie at 18 on Sunday to finish 12^th. That was his fifth top-15 in his last seven starts and he likes it at Sedgefield – winning in 2007 and fifth here last year. Fifth in scrambling and seventh in strokes gained putting.

Bill Haas, £2.0m
The man from North Carolina will have plenty of support this week and usually thrives on that. He was runner-up here last year and has three other top-20s at Sedgefield since 2009.

Paul Casey, £1.4m
Stays in my team after a decent showing at the PGA that saw him finish 30^th despite a Sunday 74 – his seventh straight cut. The Englishman was 18^th here last year and is fifth in greens in regulation.

Will Wilcox, £0.7m
Plenty going for the man from Alabama this week. He’s been no worse than 21^st in his last four starts and finished 24^th here last year. He sits fourth in greens in regulation and 19^th in scrambling.