This column is a quick-hitter article to give you the stats you need to make informed PGA DFS picks for your DraftKings and FanDuel daily fantasy golf lineups. We’re in search of a few recommendations for the second round of the Waste Management. In a typical Showdown GPP, DraftKings will offer upwards of $50,000 to first place for second-and third-round tournaments and sometimes up to $100,000 for the final-round contests. They also provide weekend-long contests that have been offering $25,000 to first place on average. FanDuel has also tried to get into the weekend-long and final-round contests, offering $10,000 and $5,000 to first place in their PGA DFS Showdown contests. Let’s take a look at PGA DFS picks for Round 2 of the Waste Management Phoenix Open.
PGA DFS Showdown Picks: Waste Management Phoenix Open Round 2
Previous Round Recap
A pristine, but much quieter TPC Scottsdale awaited the players on Thursday, as the action started off rather slow. Matthew NeSmith got things going after eagling his third hole to follow up an opening birdie. He wound up setting the pace at 8 under par. Mark Hubbard was able to navigate his way around the stadium course at TPC Scottsdale at 8 under as well, a new low mark for both golfers’ careers.
Nate Lashley has also risen from the dead; after an abysmal start to the season, he broke out in Round 1, shooting seven-under 64. He was matched Sam Burns, who continues his hot form. One thing these four golfers have in common is that they teed off in the morning. The leader from the afternoon wave Champions Tour member Steve Stricker, who found his stroke in Phoenix in Round 1. Also hitting his stride was Jordan Spieth, who gained almost 3 strokes with the putter in Round 1, his best performance in some time.
Today the course played on the harder side, with the average score coming in just shy of a half shot under par.
PGA DFS Showdown Picks: Slate Preview
Lock Time
9:10 EST
Fantasy Golf Contest Preview
DraftKings
- DraftKings is offering $50,000 to first and $150,000 guaranteed for the second-round slate.
General Strategy and Waste Management Phoenix Open PGA DFS Picks
While the top three golfers on the board had average driving accuracy of 78%, there is definitely a mix of golfers available. NeSmith and Hubbard both enjoy strong iron games, as does Lashley. Interestingly, there was only one golfer in the top 10 that didn’t gain strokes putting in Round 1: K.H. Lee. Every other golfer gained at least a half a stroke, and all 10 golfers other than Lee and Billy Horschel gained more than a stroke. That’s not something we typically see, which suggests that the course isn’t lending many chances for the elite ball strikers to take over, as compared to last week.
I don’t think it’s that much of a coincidence that better rounds came from the morning wave, so I’ll try and press that a bit tomorrow.
Top-10
There are not many options to choose from here if I want to pick a golfer going out in the a.m. tomorrow, but Horschel is probably the most intriguing.
Billy Horschel ($8,200)
After really struggling with his irons in his first couple of starts of the season, Horschel seemed to have fixed whatever the problem was, gaining over 3 strokes in Round 1. Playing with Spieth, they seemed to draft off each other especially on the greens. Maybe the comradery continues tomorrow.
PGA DFS Picks Outside the Top 10
- Justin Thomas ($10,300): Before reaching the driveable 17th hole, Thomas was 4 under and hadn’t missed a green. Then a silly decision to take it right at the hole left him short in the greenside bunker, with a diabolical hole location. He proceeded to put his bunker shot in the water, which led to a triple bogey. Take that out of his day, add in a close birdie, and we are talking about him as the favorite to win the tournament. I’ll take one bad hole and throw it out for my Round 2 contests.
- John Huh ($7,500): The form continues for Huh, who looks like he’s back to his where we saw when he first broke out on tour. He gained another couple of strokes with his irons in Round 1, and that’s not an anomaly — it seems to be the new norm for him.
Sneaky PGA DFS Pick for Round 2
Nick Hardy ($6,900)
While Hardy may not yet be a household name, he’s certainly growing popular in these streets. Making the most of every chance he gets, Hardy looked like a solid PGA Tour pro today, gaining almost 2.75 strokes ball striking in Day 1 and rather equally split among his off-tee and approach games.
DraftKings and FanDuel Farmers Insurance Open Lineup Fill-Ins
- Jordan Spieth ($7,100)
- Brendon Todd ($7,400)
- Dylan Frittelli ($7,000)
- Daniel Berger ($9,500)
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