This article is part of our FantasyDraft PGA series.
Travelers Championship
Cromwell, CT
TPC River Highlands - Par 70 - 6,841 yards
Field - 156 Entrants
Purse - $6.8M
Conquering the Course
Playing close to 1,000 yards shorter than last week's U.S. Open, TPC River Highlands will show the Erin Hills haters what an easy golf course on Tour actually looks like. A 46-year-old Jim Furyk -- coming off wrist surgery earlier in the year -- fired a 58 at last season's Travelers Championship. Despite the track's inclusion of just two par-fives, birdies come in bunches at this event. Gaining strokes tee to green will therefore be essential to producing low numbers. The course has eight par-fours between 400-450 yards, so entrants will be able to hit less than driver off many tees as they pick and choose their approach yardages. Key in on players who hit green after green with elevated birdie-or-better percentages, and be aware elite putters won't have much of an advantage again this week.
Past Champions
2016 - Russell Knox
2015 - Bubba Watson
2014 - Kevin Streelman
2013 - Ken Duke
2012 - Marc Leishman
2011 - Fredrik Jacobson
2010 - Bubba Watson
FantasyDraft Value Picks - based on $100,000 salary cap
Cream of the Crop
Jordan Spieth - $18,700
Spieth will make his Travelers Championship debut as the highest-priced player in the field, more costly than both Rory McIlroy and Jason Day, who are seated ahead of Spieth in the Official World Golf Ranking. Aside from recent form, this pricing can essentially be attributed to Spieth's game translating perfectly to TPC River Highlands. He leads the Tour in both SG: approach and proximity to the hole while also ranking top-three in GIR and birdie-or-better percentage. Despite finishing T35 at the U.S. Open, Spieth was delighted with how well he struck the ball and it's only a matter of time before what has previously been an elite putting stroke follows suit.
Paul Casey - $16,500
A pair of triple bogeys ruined Casey's weekend at the U.S. Open after he shared the 36-hole lead, and he ultimately finished outside of the top 25 for the first time since the Arnold Palmer Invitational in mid-March. He still placed fifth among the field in SG: approach, and he currently ranks top-5 on Tour in both GIR percentage and proximity to the hole from 175-200 yards out. Priced $1,100 less than Justin Thomas, Casey could be somewhat chalky this week, albeit for good reason.
Second-Level Studs
Marc Leishman - $15,900
Winner of the 2012 Travelers Championship, Leishman has made 6-of-6 cuts at this event while posting no finish worse than a T39 over the past five years. The Aussie placed T27 at Erin Hills this past week and notched two top-15s in his last four starts. Leishman owns the seventh-best scoring average on Tour this season and ranks 28th in birdie-or-better percentage.
Brendan Steele - $15,700
The U.S. Open's birdie leader has finished top-25 at the Travelers five times since 2011, so he will be a popular pick thanks to a lethal combination of recent form and course history. He ranks second on Tour in proximity from 175-200 yards, sixth in par-four scoring and 14th in birdie-or-better percentage. Priced less than Daniel Berger, Brian Harman, and Bubba Watson, Steele figures to be a staple in cash-game lineups.
Kyle Stanley - 15,300
Well-rested after watching his peers compete at the U.S. Open from his couch, Stanley resumes what could turn out to be the best season of his career -- particularly if he is able to add a victory. Ball striking has been the name of the game for Stanley, who is currently sixth or better in SG: off-the-tee, SG: approach, and SG: tee-to-green. He's second on Tour in GIR percentage as a result, but he will need to start holing more putts in order to clinch his first win since 2012.
Mid-Tier Glue Guys
Webb Simpson - $14,600
Simpson, who just finished T35 at the U.S. Open, has never missed the cut in seven career starts at the Travelers Championship. He was top-20 in both driving accuracy and GIR percentage at Erin Hills, but putting continues to be an issue for the 35th-ranked player in the FedExCup standings.
Jamie Lovemark - $13,700
Lovemark sniffed the top page of the leaderboard at the U.S. Open after entering the weekend at six-under-par. He went on to finish in a tie for 27th, but he also placed top-10 in terms of SG: off-the-tee. Lovemark is sixth on Tour in par-four scoring and has finished no worse than T27 in his last three events.
Chez Reavie - $13,600
Reavie notched the best major finish of his career last week at Erin Hills, just one event after placing top-5 at the FedEx St. Jude Classic. He has made five consecutive cuts at the Travelers and he's currently fifth on Tour in driving accuracy.
Hidden Gems
Keegan Bradley - $13,300
Bradley has yet to finish top-15 at TPC River Highlands, but the 56th-ranked golfer in the FedExCup standings has never missed a cut in six attempts at the Travelers Championship. He's top-35 in driving accuracy and GIR percentage, and the Connecticut crowd figures to be behind the fellow New England native this week.
Lucas Glover - $13,300
Glover hasn't played well at TPC River Highlands since 2009, when he finished T11, but he's currently seventh in GIR percentage and eighth in SG: off-the-tee. He's averaging 3.8 birdies per round despite struggles with the putter, and his ownership could be somewhat reduced after missing the U.S. Open cut by just one stroke.
Nick Taylor - $12,500
Taylor has been a cut-making machine lately, missing just one cut in his last 11 events while posting five top-25s during this stretch. Another made cut this week would put him over $1M in earnings for the season, a feat he failed to accomplish by a significant margin last year. The Canadian 29-year-old doesn't otherwise stand out much statistically, but riding the hot hand at this price could be worth it.
