Fantasy Advice
Travelers Championship DFS picks 2024: It's a perfect spot for Patrick Cantlay
After a thrilling week at Pinehurst No. 2, the PGA Tour heads north to TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Conn., for the Travelers Championship, another signature event. The Travelers Championship has long been a favorite for players, caddies and fans alike, and TPC River Highlands provides a distinct atmosphere, and one that will play a sharp contrast to what we saw last week at the U.S. Open. After Keegan Bradley triumphed at 23-under par last year, the PGA Tour made some notable changes to the Pete Dye-designed golf course, pinching in multiple fairways and enhancing the risk of hitting driver with reckless abandon. The golf course stayed exactly the same length at 6,852 yards, and it remains the shortest course on the entire PGA Tour schedule. Yet many of the longer hitters might now think about such an aggressive approach.
Coming off his worst finish of the season, Scottie Scheffler looks to rebound on a golf course that he finished fourth at last year. Sticking with the signature format, a truncated field of 72 players will be guaranteed all four rounds, and it will be fascinating to watch some of the best in the world take on a dramatically different golf course to what we have experienced the past couple of weeks at Muirfield Village and Pinehurst. Let’s dive into the slate.
$10,000 range
Play: Ludvig Aberg, $10,200:
Ross Kinnaird
While Ludvig Aberg’s performance over the weekend at Pinehurst left a lot to be desired, I expect the young Swede to bounce back in a big way at TPC River Highlands. Aberg has a surprisingly strong resume on short, positional golf courses—outside of winning at Sea Island last fall, he also contended this year at Pebble Beach, TPC Sawgrass and Harbour Town, three signature venues that surprisingly curb distance in exchange for elite wedge play and putting.
Fade:
My original fade, Rory McIlroy, has withdrawn. With just three players in this price range, it’s hard to find a real fade. In general, I think the course changes will hurt players with Rory’s type of skill set the most.
$9,000 range
Play: Patrick Cantlay, $9,600:
Patrick Cantlay put together a wildly impressive, complete performance at the U.S. Open last week, gaining strokes in all four major categories en route to his highest-ever major finish. Now he returns to one of his most comfortable golf courses on tour, where he has recorded seven top-25 finishes in nine appearances, including a fourth-place finish last year. Long overdue for a win, Cantlay’s game is rounding into form at just the right time.
Fade: Sam Burns, $9,000:
Sam Burns’ ninth-place finish at Pinehurst was certainly encouraging, but this price bump still feels like an overreaction. Burns has been just okay in four appearances at TPC River Highlands, and his approach play still raises a major red flag. Burns has now lost over a stroke on approach in back-to-back starts this season, and this aspect of his game will need to be in tip-top shape to generate enough scoring opportunities on such a benign golf course.
$8,000 range
Play: Brian Harman, $8,300:
Jared C. Tilton
Brian Harman possesses some of the strongest course history at TPC River Highlands with six top-10 finishes in 12 appearances, including three top-10s in a row. Harman is coming off a rock solid 21st-place finish at the U.S. Open, and his best finish of the season came on another short, positional Pete Dye track in TPC Sawgrass. I’m expecting another impressive performance from the Reigning Champion Golfer of the Year this week in Hartford.
Fade: Matt Fitzpatrick, $8,000:
I was fairly disappointed in what I saw from Matt Fitzpatrick last week at Pinehurst, and TPC River Highlands is a far worse fit for his skill-set. I far prefer the former U.S. Open champion in more difficult scoring conditions, and he has failed to record a top-40 finish in each of his two appearances at TPC River Highlands.
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$7,000 range
Play: Sepp Straka, $7,900:
Tracy Wilcox
I love Sepp Straka’s fit at TPC River Highlands, and he is coming off another great ball-striking performance at the U.S. Open. While Straka's short game sank him at Pinehurst, the two-time PGA Tour winner will face a much softer landing this week around the greens. Straka will be able to rely on his accurate driving and elite wedge far more at this golf course, and his success at tracks such as TPC Deere Run, TPC Sawgrass, and Harbour Town provide strong indication that he is up for this type of challenge.
Fade: Byeong Hun An, $7,600:
I really thought that Pinehurst No. 2 would be a great fit for Byeong Hun An, but he reminded us just how volatile his putting can be. An now travels to a shorter, more positional golf course that will curb his power off the tee, and he has non-coincidentally failed to finish top-40 in all five of his appearances at TPC River Highlands. An will be forced to rely less on the strength of his driver, and more on his wedge play and putting at the Pete Dye design, which may be too much of an ask right now.
Flier: J.T. Poston, $7,300:
Andy Lyons
J.T. Poston possesses the ideal skill-set for TPC River Highlands, and despite a volatile track record at the Pete Dye design, the Postman has experienced considerable success at many of the comparative courses I am looking at this week. Poston has recorded wins at both Sedgefield and TPC Deere Run, as well as multiple top-10 finishes at Harbour Town and TPC Potomac. Coming off a 32nd at the U.S. Open, Poston is now entering a great part of the schedule for his style of play.
$6,000 range
Play: Adam Svensson, $6,400:
Alex Slitz
Adam Svensson has quietly developed into one of the better ball-strikers on tour, and he is coming off another strong tee to green performance at Pinehurst. Svensson has now gained over a stroke ball-striking in six straight starts, and while the putter is always a concern, the Canadian simply possesses too much upside for me to pass up in an otherwise shaky $6,000 range.
Andy Lack is a PGA Tour writer and podcaster from New York City who now resides in Los Angeles. He hosts Inside Golf, a twice weekly podcast focused on the PGA Tour, betting, daily fantasy, golf course architecture, and interviews, as part of the BlueWire podcast network. As well as contributing to Golf Digest, Andy is also a data analyst and writer for Run Pure Sports, where he covers PGA Tour betting and daily fantasy. He came to Golf Digest’s betting panel after previously writing for RickRunGood.com, the Score and GolfWRX. In his free time, Andy can likely be found on a golf course. Follow him on Twitter: @adplacksports