The First Tee at The Wells Fargo (Quail Hollow)

The First Tee at The Wells Fargo

Congrats to first time Tour winner, Brian Stuard, who took home the Zurich Open championship in a weather shortened 54 hole event. Stuard made no bogeys in 54 holes, which was incredible considering how many big scores were out there, specifically on Friday. Stuard played with a putter that he plucked out of demo bag the week of the tournament, a choice that ended up playing a big part in his first win. Stuard was 44 for 44 from inside 10 feet, which would be an incredible performance with a seasoned putter in the bag, but to put it in play the first week and have the success he had, is a highly unlikely story. Stuard matched his putting brilliance with his wedges as well, getting up and down successfully 20 out of 20 times. If he can continue to play even half as well as he did this past week, Stuard will have continued success in 2016.

The Field

After several weeks of subpar fields, the Wells Fargo has a dearth of talent in play this week. 8 of the top 12 players in the world are playing this week, minus Dustin Johnson who withdrew from the field on Tuesday.

Leading the way is world #3, Rory McIlroy. McIlroy, despite not winning yet in 2016, is the clear favorite this week having won multiple times at Quail Hollow. He also set the course record last year with a blistering third round 61. McIlroy has the type of game that can overpower this course, and with the green surfaces having drastically improved over the last year, he should continue to light it up.

Aside from McIlroy, there are quite a few superstars in the field. Rickie Fowler, Adam Scott, Justin Rose, Patrick Reed, Hideki Matsuyama, Phil Mickelson and Henrik Stenson. All have the pure talent to win at Quail Hollow, and I'd be surprised if any of them miss the cut, making it a week where you can have lots of different lineup constructions find success.

The third wave of talent is bountiful too, with JB Holmes and Paul Casey, as well as youngsters Byeong-Hun An, Daniel Berger, Jaime Lovemark and Justin Thomas in the field. All are priced very softly this week with McIlroy in the field, and I'll have heavy exposure to each of them. Veteran Jim Furyk makes his return this week from early season wrist surgery. With his price at $8000, it'll be very interesting to see where his ownership settles, as well as how he performs in his season debut.

The Course

Quail Hollow is a par 72, and can be stretched out to 7400 yards and change. It was designed in 1961 by George Cobb, and the goal was to capture the beauty and challenging terrain of the Piedmont region of North Carolina. Over the years the course has seen several renovations and redesigns, first by Arnold Palmer in 1986, followed by Tom Fazio in 1997 and 2003. Most recently, Quail Hollow did an extensive renovations of its greens, tearing up old bentgrass surfaces in favor of the new rage, MiniVerde ultra dwarf Bermuda. The new greens made a huge difference in its first edition, with total putting down several strokes on average. As I mentioned above, McIlroy shot the course record with a 61 in the third round, which can be directly attributed to the new greens. In previous seasons, the greens were bumpy and only got crustier as the tournament progressed, but those days are in the past.

With the 2017 PGA Championship coming to Quail Hollow, all of the surfaces—from tees to fairways to greens—will be reseeded, and that means excellent conditions for the players. Although there is precedent (Pebble Beach namely), it is somewhat rare for a regular tour event to host a major championship, but Quail Hollow has the type of setup that can be tweaked depending on the type of event that is being played.

The last three holes at Quail Hollow are nicknamed “The Green Mile" due to their difficulty and length, and they make for a very interesting finish to a course that otherwise offers many scoring opportunities. Aside from 16, 17 and 18, the beginning 15 holes are definitely gettable, but there isn't one specific skillset that seems to excel. If anything, a balanced skillset, especially with the new greens, seems to be the best approach.

This is the best news for DFS golfers this week, as with the soft pricing, you can build a lot of different looking lineups without sacrificing upside. The two approaches I have chosen, are either with McIlroy or without, meaning my lineups without Rory tend to look very balanced and not dip below $7000 for any player. The teams with McIlroy are also more balanced than you'd see in an average week, although there is the need to drop down to the $6500 and lower range to take a shot with one or two players.

The Rankings

• 1.) Rory McIlroy: No wins in 2016 aside, Rory is the clear cut #1 choice this week. The only multiple winner at Quail Hollow in the field, he owns the course record and is tearing up the par 5's this year. No need to overthink the anchor to your lineups, this is the week to deploy McIlroy in full force.
• 2.)Rickie Fowler: Won his first tour title at Quail Hollow in 2012, but hasn't repeated the success of that magical week in repeat appearances. He's 1^st in all-around and par 4 scoring, and 3^rd in par 5 scoring. Has the all-around game to be a force this week, and my guess is he and Rory have a Sunday funday showdown.
• 3.)Hideki Matsuyama: T20 in 2015, his ballstriking is his calling card and that is a recipe for success at Quail Hollow. Five top 20's in 2016, which includes a win in Scottsdale.
• 4.)Adam Scott: Two time victor in 2016, Scott is enjoying a renaissance year. He's improved his putting to the point that it's not holding him back, but also become a strength of his game. Third in proximity and T1 in Par 5 scoring. Despite his lack of previous course history at Quail Hollow, he is playing too good not to put in play at a soft price this week.
• 5.)Webb Simpson/Bill Haas: This is a tie, considering both are horse for the course considerations. Simpson is a member at Quail Hollow and T2 last year, as well as having other notable finishes in recent years. Haas is a resident of Charlotte and is in his 13^th appearance at Quail Hollow…he's playing consistent golf this year and should have a considerable edge with respect to course knowledge.