Valero Texas Open Daily Fantasy Picks and Predictions: Trust Gary Woodland After a Great Florida Swing

Valero Texas Open Daily Fantasy Picks and Predictions: Trust Gary Woodland After a Great Florida Swing

As we gear up for the first Major of the season, and possibly some breaking news that will turn the golf world on its head, let's not lose sight of the opportunity at hand this week for the Valero Texas Open. Held annually at TPC San Antonio on The Oaks Course, it's a difficult test that many will use as a last-ditch effort to get into the Masters field, while others are fine-tuning their game.

The main defense of the course is typically the wind, which if howling, can present problems for players. The fairways are generous and the rough is minimal, but there is definitely trouble that can be found off the tee for those wayward drives. At 7,500 yards in total, it would appear to be an imposing task for longer players but we have seen some shorter hitters prevail recently with Spieth, Connors, Landry, and Kevin Chappell as the last 4 winners.

I'm going to be focusing primarily on the given stats for almost any PGA Tour week, Ballstriking, and T2G game. Outside of that, I will look at Driving Distance as a spot to potentially gain some leverage in a lesser played path to success, but always possible. Finally, around the green game is particularly important at TPC San Antonio as the GIR percentage is low and many of the Bermuda grass greens are well protected by run-offs and strategically placed bunkers. Here are my favorite plays in each price range this week!

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$10k+ Range: Hideki Matsuyama $10,800

The great unknown here is the injury that forced him to WD from The PLAYERS and also miss the match play, but I think it could lead to lower ownership this week for Hideki which I will happily take. Before the injury, he was flushing his irons, ranking out 4th in Ballstriking and 3rd in T2G over his last 24 rounds. Given the weaker field, this could be an advantageous spot for him to catch another victory early in the season.

After winning the Masters last year, Hideki Matsuyama is +3300 to repeat at Augusta. Check out all the odds for the Masters on our odds grid.

$9k+ Range: Gary Woodland $9,300

After a great Florida swing, I'm comfortable rolling out Woodland in a lot of lineups this week. At the Honda Classic and API, he made his moves with the Putter, but it was encouraging to see the iron play kick into gear at the Valspar where he gained nearly 5 strokes on Approach. He finished 6th at this event last year coming in with relatively no form, so he should be in much better shape to contend again this time around. He also still hits the ball a long way and any course with a little forgiveness off the edge of the fairways is a nice setup for Woodland.

$8k+ Range: Adam Hadwin $8,900

Hadwin went super low at the PLAYERS, and then was able to back that up with a solid 7th place finish at the Valspar. For me, he really just fits the mold of many previous winners. Solid ARG, a reliable iron player, and a streaky putter that can get hot. He is top 5 in the field over his last 24 rounds in GIR, Putting, and Sand saves which will be important this week. I think the engine is primed for a good week from the Canadian.

$7k+ Range: Matt Kuchar $7,800

A bit of a flyer here, but Kuchar comes into this week with a ton of motivation to get into the field next week at Augusta. It means so much to him and he always has traditionally played well there, but he knows it's going to take his best stuff in San Antonio. He's so solid around the greens with his chipping and has some great history at this event to lean on, making the cut 9 straight years with a handful of top 10 finishes sprinkled throughout. KUUUUUCCCCHHH!

$6k+ Range: JJ Spaun $6,700

Spaun has been hitting his irons really well which gives me some confidence in this pick at a mere $6,700. He's been top 20 in SG: Ballstriking and Greens in Regulation of his last 24 rounds. JJ has been particularly good with his long irons and given his distance off the tee, he should be having a lot of long irons into greens this week. Let's see if we can get another top 40 out of JJ!

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Joe Idone's PGA Tour DFS Picks

• Cuts Made: 117/140
• Winners Picked: 7