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Hello RotoBaller PGA crew! It's great to be back with you guys and I appreciate you joining us here at RotoBaller for your PGA DFS research. With the Hawaii Swing now in the books, we return to the continental U.S. for a multi-week stay in California that kicks off with this week's American Express event.
In this article, we'll discuss some of the standout PGA DFS plays available on FanDuel for the AmEx. While it's impossible to hit on every player, we'll touch on some different plays across all price ranges, breaking the groups down into "High", "Mid", and "Low" price options that are worth considering.
Like always, the purpose of this piece is to help you put together your optimal daily fantasy golf lineups for FanDuel, whether that be from a GPP perspective or a cash-game mentality. Be sure to also read all of our other top-notch weekly PGA DFS and betting articles to help you win big!
The American Express - PGA DFS Overview
Stadium Course at PGA West
7,133 Yards - Par 72 - Greens: Bermuda w/ Poa Annua overseed - Designer: Pete Dye
The AmEx features a three-course rotation that includes the TPC Stadium Course at PGA West, the Nicklaus Tournament Course, and La Quinta Country Club. Players will play one round on each course before a 54-hole cut leaves the remaining golfers to play TPC Stadium Course in the final round.
The Stadium Course is classic "desert golf" and traditionally plays much tougher than the other tracks in the rotation. Players will face a difficult closing stretch that includes a 20-feet deep bunker on Hole 16, the infamous "Alcatraz hole" at 17, and a par-4 18th that is lined with water. The course rotation makes this a volatile tournament. I'm targeting strong ball strikers who I hope will gain strokes both off the tee and on approach this week.
For an in-depth breakdown of this week's course, check out RotoBaller's PGA Premium Course Breakdown by Josh Bennett!
Let's Look At The Stats
| Stat | Stadium Course | Tour Average |
| Driving Distance | 278 | 282 |
| Driving Accuracy | 58% | 62% |
| GIR Percentage | 65% | 65% |
| Scrambling Percentage | 60% | 57% |
| Average Three-Putts Per Round | 0.34 | 0.55 |
Key Stats
- Total Driving
- SG: Approach
- Birdies or Better Gained
- SG: Putting
- Par-5 Scoring
Fantasy Golf Lineup Picks for FanDuel (PGA DFS)
We have tons of great weekly PGA articles, DFS analysis, tools and DFS advice. Be sure to read our other fantastic articles regarding this week's event including DFS lineup picks for DraftKings/FanDuel, betting advice and DFS prop picks.
High-Priced FanDuel DFS Plays
Jon Rahm ($12,100)
Outside of trying to be contrarian in GPP formats, there's really no need to get fancy at the top of the board this week. Jon Rahm comes in as the top-ranked player in the world and the clear top option on this slate. He possesses both strong recent form - a runner-up finish at the Sentry Tournament of Champions two weeks ago - and elite course history - Rahm won this event in 2018 and posted a sixth-place finish in '19. The Spaniard is the defending U.S. Open champion, but he's routinely proven that he feels just as comfortable in easy scoring conditions. He ranks second in this week's field in Birdies or Better Gained over his last 50 rounds.
Patrick Cantlay ($11,900)
Patrick Cantlay checks a lot of the same boxes as the aforementioned Rahm. After an impressive postseason run that resulted in the 2021 FedEx Cup championship, Cantlay came out firing at Kapalua, posting a fourth-place finish in the Sentry. The Californian has also found success in the AmEx. He fired a final-round 61 last year to set the course record and finish in solo second, and Cantlay also boasts a T9 on his AmEx resume. Many will attribute his FedEx Cup run to a hot putter. That's fair enough, but we shouldn't overlook just how good he's been in every facet. Over his last five starts, Cantlay has gained an average of 4.8 strokes T2G and he also ranks first in this week's field in SG: T2G over his last 50 measured rounds.
Talor Gooch ($10,700)
As with the other "high priced" plays this week, Talor Gooch is a fairly straightforward option. Gooch has played the best golf of his career over the past six months and capped off a sterling Fall Swing that included a pair of top-fives with a victory at the RSM Classic. He looked solid during the Hawaii Swing, posting a T15 at the Sentry and a T27 at Sony, gaining over three strokes T2G in each. The OSU alum also possesses a nice AmEx track record, as he posted a fourth-place outing at La Quinta in 2019 and has top-25s in his two subsequent appearances in this event.
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Mid-Priced FanDuel DFS Plays
Will Zalatoris ($10,400)
This profiles as a pure talent play, as Will Zalatoris has few of the attributes we've touched on in the "high priced" section. Zalatoris didn't tee it up in Hawaii, looked sluggish in limited starts during the Fall Swing, and has no AmEx experience. Even with all those negatives against him, I can't shake the feeling that the 2021 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year is a strong bet-on-upside option on this slate. If we're willing to ignore the poor stretch during the fall and focus on long-term metrics, Zalatoris grades out sixth in this field in SG: T2G, fifth in SG: Approach, and 19th in Good Drives Gained. I have to believe folks will be a bit reluctant to roster him this week because of some of the negatives I just touched on, so I'm willing to gamble on the leverage he will provide in GPPs.
Adam Hadwin ($9,500)
If you're a believer in course history, Adam Hadwin is your man this week. The Canadian has put together a legendary track record in this event that includes a stretch from 2016 to 2019 during which he posted a pair of runner-ups and never finished worse than T6. Hadwin leads all entrants in this week's field in both career scoring average (67.58) and SG: Total (+45.58) at the AmEx. While his fall season wasn't anything to write home about, he did at least make the cut in each of his last five starts of 2021, which was highlighted by a T6 at the Shriners back in October.
Low-Priced FanDuel DFS Players
Russell Knox ($9,100)
I've been burned by Russell Knox so many times that you're never going to catch me with all my eggs in his basket. That said, there's enough here to make me willing to hop on the roller coaster for at least one more ride. Knox popped up for a T7 last week at Waialae on the strength of a blistering performance with the irons. He gained 5.1 strokes on Approach at the Sony and finished the tournament with a +7.2 mark in the SG: T2G category. The vet brings that form to an event where he's historically performed well. Knox owns a 68.85 career scoring average in the AmEx and has made the cut in five of his last six trips to La Quinta. His putting is always a roll of the dice, but he grades out sixth in GIRs Gained and 12th in Good Drives Gained over his last 36 rounds.
Michael Thompson ($8,500)
Similar to the aforementioned Knox, Michael Thompson heads to the AmEx off a strong outing last week and owns some intriguing course history. Thompson fired a pair of 63s at Waialae and finished the week 6.5 strokes to the good in the Approach category. He scored a T5 in last year's AmEx and also posted a T9 in the 2019 edition of this event. His strong finish at the Sony, coupled with his penchant for top-10s in the AmEx, make Thompson a viable high-upside salary saver in GPP builds this week.
Win Big With RotoBaller
Golf is back, and it's time for you to win big with RotoBaller! Our PGA DFS Premium Package features several savvy analysts and proven DFS winners.Our very own Joe Nicely recently took down a big DraftKings DFS tournament for the Travelers Championship. And as an encore, RotoBaller subscriber @tenndolly2 won $100K on FanDuel with the help of Joe and the rest of our Premium PGA team:
If you read my articles @RotoBaller or listen to @TheTurnGolfPod I’ve been telling y’all it was #WinningSeason when golf came back! Shoutout to the entire @RotoBallerPGA squad and all you guys that support my work for all the ❤️ pic.twitter.com/07a4ynvbSU
— Joe Nicely (@JoeNicely) June 28, 2020
Between all the incredible Premium PGA DFS content and tools we put out each week, and our Premium Slack Community where we chat with our subscribers before lineups lock, RotoBaller PGA subscribers are armed with the tools, analysis, and advice to win big.Congrats @tenndolly2 ???
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