While golf makes its Olympics return in Rio beginning on Thursday, some of the best in the world will tee off from the TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Illinois with the John Deere Classic set to begin on Thursday. We took the time to break down the numbers on DraftKings and we came up with the perfect combination of star talent and strong value plays to create a winning lineup for this week’s fantasy contests. Here is a look at the optimal lineup for this week’s PGA DraftKings tournaments.
Zach Johnson, $13,000
Every single fantasy lineup for this week should begin with Johnson at the top as he has proven his dominance at this course over the years. Johnson has recorded a win, three runner-up finishes and two third-place finishes at TPC Deere Run since 2009 and he has recorded 28 straight sub-70 rounds here. With the majority of the top-ranked golfers in the world taking this week off, Johnson should have no problem dominating once again as the obvious sports betting favorite to win this tournament outright.
Robert Streb, $9,200
Streb put together a very impressive finish at the PGA Championship a couple of weeks ago when he finished tied for 17th and he should be well rested and focused after he skipped last week’s Travelers Championship. The fact that he recorded a top-20 finish here a year ago makes him that much more appealing as he is now 3-for-3 in made cuts including a T-14th in this tournament in 2015.
Spencer Levin, $7,400
Levin is coming off back-to-back top-15 finishes and he has a decent track record at this course with three made cuts in a row. Consistency will be the key heading in to this week’s event and as long as he can remain focused he should be in line for another top-15 finish. At just $7.4K, Levin represents an excellent value pick for the John Deere Classic.
Johnson Wagner, $6,900
Wagner is on the bubble in the FedExCup standings heading into this week and a victory this week would make the difference in terms of him making that jump. He was cut last week at the Travelers and three weeks ago at the Barbasol Championship. While he’s been cut in three of the last five weeks, he had made the cut in seven straight events prior to that.
A three-time winner on the PGA Tour, Wagner is exactly the type of veteran player that is worth taking a chance on at under $7K to help balance out our lineup as an excellent value addition.
Henrik Norlander, $6,800
Norlander has emerged as a safe sleeper pick in DraftKings tournaments as he has made eight cuts in a row. He is currently 167th in the FedEx Cup rankings but he does enter with plenty of momentum. He is coming off his best finish over that stretch with a T-25 at the Travelers Championship and he should be confident heading in to this week’s event. On the year, he’s made the cut 14 times while missing it just 19 teams (with the lone Top 25 finish coming last week). There is a bit of a risk taking a golfer like Norlander but as long as he plays to his potential, he should be a strong sleeper pick.
Morgan Hoffmann, $6,700
The 27-year-old Hoffmann could be one of the most intriguing sleeper picks of the week with a chance to break through on the PGA Tour. Hoffmann is a former standout at Oklahoma State who flashes his skill set as a rookie here in 2013 when he shot a 64-63 in the middle rounds on his way to a T-13. However, you also have to know that he hasn’t been very consistent this season. He has missed the cut in two straight events before finishing 11th in the Barbasol Championship and 44th in the Barracuda Championship. Prior to that, he missed the cut in the Quicken Loans National, the St. Jude Classic and the Memorial Tournament. On the year, he’s missed 13 cuts. We’re hoping that his tournament history here comes into play and that he makes the cut for us. He will fly under the radar heading into this week’s John Deere Classic and that makes him a smart value pick to complete our optimal DraftKings fantasy lineup.
