This article is part of our Golf Barometer series.
Late November's RSM Classic served as the official finale of the PGA Tour's fall series as a month-long winter break now ensues, but last week's Hero World Challenge fielded an impressive 18-man entry list to keep things interesting following the conclusion of the 2019 European Tour season as well. The golf world's attention now shifts back overseas to the Presidents Cup hosted by Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Australia, where Tiger Woods headlines the event as a playing captain for the U.S. Team against a seemingly overmatched International squad. We'll now take a look at several fantasy trends with the autumnal schedule in the rearview as 2020 approaches.
VALUE RISING
Rahm ended his 2019 European Tour campaign with back-to-back wins at the Mutuactivos Open de Espana and the coveted DP World Tour Championship to ultimately become the first Race to Dubai champion from Spain since Seve Ballesteros. Having risen to third in the Official World Golf Ranking, Rahm nearly added what would have been his third consecutive victory at this past week's Hero World Challenge. While in the Bahamas he fired a final-round 66 that included four birdies and an eagle to zero bogeys, but fell just one stroke shy of Henrik Stenson atop the leaderboard. Rahm has finished top-5 in a ridiculous nine of his last 13 starts worldwide dating back to the U.S. Open in June.
Named the 2019 PGA Tour Player of the Year while residing one spot ahead of Rahm in
Late November's RSM Classic served as the official finale of the PGA Tour's fall series as a month-long winter break now ensues, but last week's Hero World Challenge fielded an impressive 18-man entry list to keep things interesting following the conclusion of the 2019 European Tour season as well. The golf world's attention now shifts back overseas to the Presidents Cup hosted by Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Australia, where Tiger Woods headlines the event as a playing captain for the U.S. Team against a seemingly overmatched International squad. We'll now take a look at several fantasy trends with the autumnal schedule in the rearview as 2020 approaches.
VALUE RISING
Rahm ended his 2019 European Tour campaign with back-to-back wins at the Mutuactivos Open de Espana and the coveted DP World Tour Championship to ultimately become the first Race to Dubai champion from Spain since Seve Ballesteros. Having risen to third in the Official World Golf Ranking, Rahm nearly added what would have been his third consecutive victory at this past week's Hero World Challenge. While in the Bahamas he fired a final-round 66 that included four birdies and an eagle to zero bogeys, but fell just one stroke shy of Henrik Stenson atop the leaderboard. Rahm has finished top-5 in a ridiculous nine of his last 13 starts worldwide dating back to the U.S. Open in June.
Named the 2019 PGA Tour Player of the Year while residing one spot ahead of Rahm in the OWGR, McIlroy followed his win at the TOUR Championship with finishes of T2-T9 at the European Tour's Omega European Masters and the BMW PGA Championship to maintain momentum heading into the fall series. The Northern Irishman would go on to tie for third at the Zozo Championship, foreshadowing yet another win the following week at the WGC-HSBC Champions. McIlroy didn't stop there, adding a top-4 result at the DP World Tour Championship as well. While Brooks Koepka (knee) remains sidelined, Rahm and McIlroy are battling for "best player in the world" honors.
Scheffler has made the cut in each of his first seven starts to lead the 2019-20 rookie class in FedEx Cup points heading into the turn of the calendar year, while also collecting a trio of top-10 finishes in the process. The former Texas Longhorn most recently tied for fifth at the RSM Classic, where he gained over five strokes from tee-to-green but also picked up nearly four strokes on the field with the flat stick. Scheffler carries an impressive 67.17 scoring average over his last 12 tournament rounds.
McCarthy's putter has been red hot since gaining 8.8 strokes putting to open the season at The Greenbrier, and much like Scheffler, the former has not yet missed a cut while compiling three top-10 results. McCarthy has gained an average of 6.6 strokes with the flat stick over his last five tournaments, ascending to 23rd in the FedEx Cup standings.
VALUE FALLING
Spieth failed to break par in two of his four rounds last week at the Hero World Challenge, ultimately finishing in 16th place out of 18 entrants as he failed to really bounce back from a first-round 75. He posted mediocre results of T43-T66 in his previous two starts at the WGC-HSBC Champions and the Zozo Championship, falling outside of the top-40 in the OWGR. Winless since the 2017 Open Championship, Spieth ranked just 157th on the PGA Tour in SG: Tee-to-Green last season.
Uihlein ended the 2018 calendar year at No. 82 in the OWGR, but he's since slid all the way outside of the top-250 due to 13 missed cuts dating back to January's Desert Classic. He notched just one top-10 through 32 events played this year, and he's lost strokes off the tee in nine consecutive measured starts. Driving accuracy has been the primary issue for Uihlein, as he hit only 50.55 percent of the fairways in regulation this past season.
Understandably, Chappell continues to shake off the rust after missing nearly an entire year on the PGA Tour following a significant back surgery. He's gathered no finish better than a T40 through five events to begin the 2019-20 campaign, while he's also missed the cut in two of his last three starts. A healthier 2020 could allow Chappell to return to form, but for now his fantasy value is limited despite the name brand of a former top-25 player.
INJURY UPDATE
Johnson has not made an appearance since undergoing left knee surgery to repair damaged cartilage in September, but as expected he'll return this week at the Presidents Cup. The World No. 5 should enjoy additional recuperation time following this week's stint in Australia, with his next start not expected until at least the Tournament of Champions in early January.
