This article is part of our FantasyDraft PGA series.
PGA Championship
Charlotte, North Carolina
Field - 156 Entrants
Purse - $10.5M
The Preview
For the second consecutive week we'll see a vast majority of the Official World Golf Ranking's top-100 tee it up on a challenging layout, as the PGA Championship heads to the usual site of the Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow. The course features a plethora of lengthy par-fours, so a combination of distance, SG: Off-the-Tee, SG: Tee-to-Green and GIR percentage will be paramount. The forecast in Charlotte, NC calls for plenty of rain as wet conditions will certainly make the course play even longer. It'll take a dominant ball-striking performance to win on this beast of a course, so key in on those players who excel off the tee and have a tendency to hit greens at an elite rate. The WGC-Bridgestone Invitational provides solid insight regarding current form with these important stats in mind, so pay attention to last week's leaderboard as well.
Past Champions
2016 - Jimmy Walker
2015 - Jason Day
2014 - Rory McIlroy
2013 - Jason Dufner
2012 - Rory McIlroy
2011 - Keegan Bradley
2010 - Martin Kaymer
FantasyDraft Value Picks - based on $100,000 salary cap
Cream of the Crop
Rory McIlroy - $19,300
Due to his impressive track record at Quail Hollow combined with an ability to dominate off the tee, there's no denying McIlroy could be the most talked about golfer heading into this week's PGA Championship. Despite splitting with his caddy of nine years prior to last week's WGC-Bridgestone, McIlroy still managed to post his second straight top-five as he led the field in driving distance and ranked 14th in fairways hit at Firestone CC. He's won at Quail Hollow twice in the last seven years, while also notching four additional top-10s during that span.
Hideki Matsuyama - $16,900
Matsuyama looked unstoppable down the stretch at last week's WGC-Bridgestone Invitational where he tied the course record on Sunday at Firestone CC, ultimately winning the event by five whole strokes. He's only made three career starts at the Wells Fargo Championship hosted by Quail Hollow, but has improved each year with finishes of T11-T20-T38 since 2014. The No. 1 player in the FedExCup standings ranks second on Tour in SG: T2G and sixth in GIR percentage this season.
Brooks Koepka - $16,400
The 2017 U.S. Open champion hasn't missed a cut at a major since the 2013 Open Championship, while placing T4-T5-T15 in his last three PGA Championship appearances. He's an athletic gamer who thrives on the grandest of stages, placing no worse than T21 in his last nine major tournaments. Koepka ranks sixth on Tour in both driving distance and birdie average, and he's quietly T10 in SG: Putting as well.
Glue Guys
Thomas Pieters - $14,900
The "Belgian Bomber" is up to a career-best 23rd in the Official World Golf Ranking after a fourth-place finish at the Bridgestone, where he had a share of the lead heading into Sunday's final round. He does experience issues with his accuracy off the tee at times, but he still ranked second among the field in SG: T2G last week. He's also sixth among the field in SG: Approach throughout his last 12 rounds.
Daniel Berger - $14,400
Berger has ascended into the top-10 of the FedExCup standings with finishes of T17-T27-T5-2 in his last four starts following a win at the FedEx St. Jude Classic, so he figures to be a popular play this week at such an affordable price. He's actually leading the field in SG: Approach throughout his last 12 rounds, while also ranking 10th in SG: T2G during this stretch. He's also 26th in SG: Putting on the season, so elevated wedge play around the greens could result in Berger's first career top-five at a major.
Charley Hoffman - $13,600
Hoffman telling his caddy during the latter stages of last week's Bridgestone that he's "sick of taking second place" couldn't have been more perfect as he proceeded to pummel a three-wood over the green on his approach into a lengthy risk/reward par-five. It's pretty baffling how someone can average $145K in 26 events without a win during a season, but Hoffman has done just that as he's climbed to 11th in the FedExCup standings as well. Hoffman has finished top-three in back-to-back weeks and ranks first in SG: Total throughout his last 12 rounds.
Bargain Bin
Tony Finau - $13,100
Finau feels way too underpriced here at Quail Hollow, as he currently ranks third among the field throughout his last 12 rounds in SG: OTT. On the season he's sixth in driving distance, fifth in GIR percentage, 13th in birdie average and 10th in both par-four and par-five scoring. He's finished top-30 in two career starts at Quail Hollow and is currently riding a streak of eight consecutive top-40s.
Keegan Bradley - $12,500
Bradley is second among the field in both SG: T2G and SG: OTT throughout his past 12 rounds, while also ranking fifth in par-four efficiency. His elite play off the tee should set him up nicely at Quail Hollow where such ball striking is demanded, though he doesn't have a stellar track record here. The former PGA Championship winner could see limited ownership as a result, which only boosts Bradley's value even more at such a low price.
James Hahn - $11,900
It's true that Hahn won the Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow in 2016, but it should also be noted that he's 18th among the field in P4: 450-500 efficiency and 29th in SG: OTT throughout his last 12 rounds. He most recently finished 10th at the RBC Canadian Open to go along with two other top-20s in his last five starts.
Scott Hend - $11,200
In order to roster the likes of Rory and another expensive stud, a punt play or two might be in the cards for you as well. Enter Scott Hend. The Australian pounds the ball off the tee and is coming off a T10 at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational. He's also 37th among the field in P4: 450-500 efficiency throughout his last 12 rounds.
