Last Week

Already in the middle of a blistering season, Nick Watney added some fireworks to his Independence Day weekend by winning the AT&T National. With his second victory of the season now in hand, Watney now leads the FedExCup standings. Meanwhile, Rickie Fowler entered Sunday with the lead but was already 3-over for the day after the fourth hole and finished outside of the top-10.

I turned in another fine week of picks. Watney was my Must Start and delivered with the aforementioned victory. Bo Van Pelt (T11) continues to churn out solid finishes and John Merrick (T15) also kept things rolling. J.B. Holmes (T47) was a combined 4-under in Rounds 2 and 3, but a disappointing 6-over during the bookend rounds. Ryan Moore finished T68 while Lucas Glover withdrew due to illness after nine holes.

This Week’s Fantasy Golf Picks

Steve Stricker – Must Start

There may not be a more obvious Must Start for any tournament than Stricker at the John Deere Classic. He’s won this event each of the last two years with a combined score of 46-under. In those eight rounds, Stricker has never exceeded par while going under 65 on four occasions. Over his last seven starts, Stricker has finished inside the top-20 with five top-15s and a victory at the Memorial Tournament. Stricker ranks first in birdies, third in strokes gained – putting, fourth in scoring and sixth in All-Around Ranking this season.

Jason Day

After finishing T15 in each of the last two years, Day has all the ability to set a new career-best finish at TPC Deere Run. Since missing the cut at the Shell Houston Open, he owns five top-10s and a pair of runner-up results in six starts. Day sits 11th in scoring, 13th in birdies and eighth in All-Around.

Louis Oosthuizen

After finishing T9 in the U.S. Open Championship, his best finish since winning the Africa Open in January, Oosthuizen has taken some time off. The South African is essentially using this event to warm up for his title defense next week at The Open Championship, which is just fine for fantasy owners. In eight events stateside, Oosthuizen has three finishes inside the top-20 over the last five. On the European Tour, Oosthuizen ranks 31st in greens in regulation and 34th in scoring.

Charles Howell III

Thanks to a pair of T3 finishes at the FedEx St. Jude Classic and the AT&T National, Howell is looking like a safe start despite failing to crack the top-20 at TPC Deere Run in the last two years. A year ago, he finished T9 in putting which is a big key to success here. Howell currently ranks 11th in scoring, 29th in strokes gained – putting and 35th in All-Around.

Bryce Molder

Players that catch fire with the putter can excel at TPC Deere Run. That makes Molder’s ranking of seventh in strokes gained – putting very appealing. In addition, he’s finished T6 at the Travelers Championship and T8 AT&T National in his last two starts. Molder did not start at this event last year but finished T30 in 2009.

Vaughn Taylor

Since 2004, Taylor has three top-15s and missed two cuts in five starts at TPC Deere Run. Last year, he finished a career-best sixth while ranking 12th or better in greens and fairways hit. Over his last eight starts, Taylor has missed four cuts without finishing better than 33rd. He carries some risks but Taylor ranks 27th in strokes gained – putting and has some decent history at this course.

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