Honda Classic Daily Fantasy Picks and Predictions: Spend Big on Daniel Berger
Honda Classic Daily Fantasy Picks and Predictions: Spend Big on Daniel Berger
Welcome to what I have coined "Tilt-week"! Early morning golf is back, and so is waking up to see your players +3 Thru 2 holes. The Champion Course at PGA National annually plays as one of the most difficult non-majors every season in terms of player scoring average. There is an abundance of water and trouble to be found off the tee for those players that are loose. We get the infamous "Bear Trap", which consists of holes 15-17 that are a brute, even though it consists of two par 3's. Both play completely over the water and you pay the ultimate price for anything pushed slightly to the right or short.
The volatility this week I believe alters the approach when building lineups for Draftkings. I'm willing to take a few more chances than usual, particularly in the lower price ranges. Ultimately, success is going to come down to Ballstriking, as this course demands precision and a complete control over your swing. The coastal winds tend to be tricky, but don't look to be a huge factor this week given the forecast.
I live only a few miles away, and let me tell you, we need some rain. I'm sure PGA National has done a good job of keeping the course watered down but I would expect the greens to be firm and lightning fast like usual. I'll look to factor in some course history, but I'm going to really hone in on Ballstriking, accuracy, and players who putt well on quick Bermuda-grass greens. I will be in attendance multiple days this week so hoping to cheer my lineups on in person. Here is who I like the best in each price range!
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Honda Classic DFS Picks
$10k+ Range: Daniel Berger
I honestly thought he should have been the favorite this week but concerns over the back injury suffered during the final round at the Farmer's still loom large. He said before the WMPO, it felt much better, albeit he missed the cut that week. But here we are two weeks later, in a tournament where he has 2 top 5 finishes and checks in #1 in Ballstriking rankings over the last 24 rounds played total. With 15 water hazards in play this week, he also hits the most fairways of anyone in the 10K range by a solid margin and should find plenty of comfort back home in Florida.
$9k+ Range: Keith Mitchell $9,100
With a full understanding that I am taking on a ton of ownership, I'm still clicking Keith Mitchell. The 2019 Honda Classic champ comes into this week with terrific form. He's played 13 consecutive events without losing strokes off the tee which is key around PGA National. He's mentioned before he is fond a really quick Bermuda grass greens like we will see this week as well. He's also very underrated at sand saves, scrambling, and avoiding bogey which will help mitigate the big numbers that you just can not post.
$8k+ Range: Christian Bezuidenhout $8,000
Here is your winner! Bez is a wizard on and around Bermuda grass greens as he ranks #2 in Putting and #1 in sand saves coming into this week. He also hits a ton of fairways which should set him up well for plenty of scoring opportunities. Anything can go wrong with a closing stretch as volatile at the Bear Trap, but I'm confident Bezuidenhout has all the necessary tools to succeed at a course like PGA National.
$7k+ Range: Lucas Glover $7,400
Glover is without a doubt extremely difficult to get right, but possesses proper upside that makes him worth a flier in this range. Take for instance the start to his year, he lost over 5 strokes on Approach at the TOC, and came back the following week in Hawaii gaining 9.5 on approach! He's seen this course plenty of times with over 20 rounds played at PGA National, where he ranks top 10 in both Ball Striking and OTT over that span.
$6k+ Range: Satoshi Kodaira $6,600
Freshly minted into the field this morning as an alternate, Kodaira checks plenty of boxes. He's top 20 in the field in terms of proximity to the hole from 150-200 yards. Even the PGA National is not a long course, there is not a lot of "Driver" holes, so many players lay up with iron off the tee which gives them longer approaches into the green vs. what we typically see from 7,000 yard courses. He also came in top 20 in terms of Putting and Fairways gained against the field.
Thanks once again for reading and good luck this week!
Joe Idone's PGA Tour DFS Picks
- Cuts Made: 100/120
- Winners Picked: 7