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Dark Horses for the Phoenix Open

By Richard McCusker

PLAYA DEL CARMEN, MEXICO - DECEMBER 06: Adam Long of the United States plays his shot from the first tee during the final round of the Mayakoba Golf Classic at El Camaleón Golf Club on December 06, 2020 in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. (Photo by Hector Vivas/Getty Images)
PLAYA DEL CARMEN, MEXICO - DECEMBER 06: Adam Long of the United States plays his shot from the first tee during the final round of the Mayakoba Golf Classic at El Camaleón Golf Club on December 06, 2020 in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. (Photo by Hector Vivas/Getty Images) /
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Before I jump into things, I want to start off with a recap from last week’s tournament, the Farmers Insurance Open. My three dark horses were Joel Dahmen, John Huh, Kyle Mendoza. Dahmen missed the cut for a second week in a row which is unusual for him. On the bright side of things, Huh and Mendoza both made the cut, They did however take some steps backwards over the weekend. Both of them finished at +3 in a tie for 65th, but got four rounds of golf in, which is great for players as cheap as them! Pairing them with guys like Tony Finau, Ryan Palmer and Will Zalatoris (which is what I did) can help you climb towards the top.

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This week the PGA tour is heading to Scottsdale, Arizona for the Waste Management Phoenix Open. While there were a bunch of familiar names towards the top in 2020, we still saw some of those dark horses in the top 10. Lashley was T3, Homa was T6, and Long was T8 to name a few. I don’t know what their salaries were, but these are usually low 7K to high 6K guys through most of the season. These are the so called “dark horses” that we want to look for to come out on top in DraftKings tournaments.

This week I will be providing three dark horses, meaning players that are longshots, but could play really well for their salary. These dark horses are players that are $7,500 and below. Also I only use DraftKings, so these prices will be for their website, but the players can be used on FanDuel as well.

Dark Horse Number 1

Rory Sabbatini ($7,300): The past two tournaments (Farmers and AMEX) he finished10th and 12th. He hasn’t made the cut here the past two times, but came in T31 in 2018. I see around 8% ownership on him. The past two weeks should kick him over 5%, but two bad years here won’t let him get over 10% from my guesses. If he continues the little hot streak, he could help you finish near the top.

The stats I like for the course

SG Approach: 144th

SG Total: 55th

SG Ball Striking: 43rd

Par 4 Scoring Average: 193rd

Dark Horse Number 2

Adam Long ($7,100): I am mostly considering him for his 8th place finish last year. Last week at the Farmers he made the cut, but did nothing over the weekend. Before that he had 3rd, 30th and 11th place finishes. I wouldn’t put him a ton of lineups, but if you do play multi-entry, I would try him in a few. I love a guy who is on a streak, sometimes it bite you and other times you get in before it is too late. He gets a top 30 and he should be looking good in your lineup at $7,100!

The stats I like for the course

SG Approach: 182nd

SG Total: 166th

SG Ball Striking: 70th

Par 4 Scoring Average: 94th

Next. Brooks Koepka: 2021 FedEx Cup Contender or Pretender?. dark

Dark Horse Number 3

Matt Jones ($6,900): He is an Arizona State alum. I don’t know their schedule, but I am sure he played it a few times in college and than obviously in his pro career. He has been making a ton of cuts lately. At $6,900 he doesn’t have to do a whole lot, besides making the cut. Six of his last 12 rounds are in the 60’s. His stats are actually pretty good for the course when you compare it to his price and the type of player he is. He is a solid lower tier player that is going to score you points and help you jam in players like Justin Thomas or Rory McIlroy.

The stats I like for the course

SG Approach: 137th

SG Total: 80th

SG Ball Striking: 43rd

Par 4 Scoring Average: 76th

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