DraftKings Daily Fantasy Golf Helper: Farmers Insurance Open

Daily fantasy golf requires a new approach for each and every event.

The course and field change week after week, making no two contests alike. That means you need to refine your approach for each PGA Tour event to try to find golfers who are primed to excel for your daily fantasy golf lineups.

Each week, we have a course primer, and our daily fantasy golf projections and lineup builder can help you get started, but these golfers stand out specifically on DraftKings for the Desert Classic.

Key Stats

The first two rounds at this event are split between the North and South courses at Torrey Pines. Those who earn the right to play through the weekend find the much more challenging South course awaiting them twice more.

Let's get to the picks.

All stats are from Fantasy National Golf Club and are for golfers in the field over the last 50 rounds, unless otherwise noted.

High-Priced Studs

Rory McIlroy (DraftKings Price $11,100 | FanDuel Sportsbook Win Odds: 15/1) - McIlroy has been clear about his intentions to prioritize PGA Tour events this season at the expense of his European card, and after a fourth place finish at the Sentry Tournament of Champions, he makes his 2019 continental U.S. debut this week. McIlroy sets up quite well for this event despite never having teed it up at the Farmers. He is just 35th in strokes gained: approach, but otherwise boasts elite marks in all key stats. He's 3rd in bogeys avoided, 9th in birdies or better gained, and 12th in strokes gained: par 4s (450-500 yards). He is also 12th in proximity gained from 200-plus yards and 32nd from 175-200.

Tiger Woods ($10,500 | 15) - You were expecting someone else? Woods returns to the site of his last major victory looking to cement his incredible rise back to the top of his game. The South course is a bear for the old guy, but Tiger's ball striking was immaculate last year and he really cleans up with the long irons. He is 1st in strokes gained: approach, 2nd in bogeys avoided, 13th in birdies or better gained, and 14th in par 4s (450-500). His proximity ranks are top 22 in both ranges. He'll be popular and with good reason.

Tony Finau ($9,900 | 21) - Finau is 3rd in both birdies or better gained and strokes gained: par 4s (450-500), 10th in bogeys avoided, 30th in strokes gained: approach, 31st in proximity from 200+ yards and 36th from 175-200. His worst finish in four tries is T24, and he has back-to-back top-sixes in the last two years. He has played 54 events over the last two calendar years and has missed the cut just 6 times.

Mid-Priced Options

Rickie Fowler ($9,300 | 24) - Fowler looks the part this week. He is 1st in strokes gained: par 4s (450-500), 7th in bogeys avoided, and 11th in birdies or better gained. He is 15th in proximity gained from 200+ yards and 17th from 175-200. He has made 12 straight cuts dating back The PLAYERS in May, and he has finished no worse than T28 in that span. The only mark against him -- and it is not insignificant -- is that his course form is extremely poor. He has missed the cut four times in the last five years, with his lone finish just a T61. He is too good a golfer to not right the ship, and the fact that he entered the tournament at all shows he has confidence he can compete here.

Patrick Cantlay ($9,200 | 24) - A solid finish last week extended Cantlay's top-10 streak to four straight events. The California native is 4th in bogeys avoided, 7th in strokes gained: approach, and 21st in birdies or better gained. He has just two missed cuts in the past two seasons and has finished 25 of those events inside the top 25.

Gary Woodland ($9,000 | 31) - Woodland has been in incredible form of late, a flop and MDF at the Sony Open notwithstanding. He is second in birdies or better gained, fifth in approach, and sixth in the key par 4 range. He is 8th in proximity from 175-200 yards, 14th from 200-plus, and 21st in bogeys avoided. He has made the cut seven straight tries at this event and finished 20th or better four of those times.

Hideki Matsuyama ($8,000 | 44) - Matsuyama is priced way down this week relative to other top-tier golfers. Hideki's lowest rank in any key stat is 35th in strokes gained: par 4s (450-500), and his ballstriking puts him in a good position every week. Normally a player of his caliber needs to win to pay off his salary, but at this price even a top-15 is probably enough and he fits very easily with any of the studs plus another mid-priced golfer.

Low-Priced Option

J.B. Holmes ($7,900 | 65) - The poa annua splits for the win! Holmes is 24th in birdies or better gained and just 41st in strokes gained: approach, but his performance on poa greens and particularly at Torrey Pines are incredibly strong. He has five straight made cuts at this event and three top-10 finishes, including a T6 last year.

Sungjae Im ($7,800 | 65) - Im's stats do not exactly jump off the page, but the $7k range is full of golfers who pop in one or two stats and are a disaster in the others. Sungjae, however, is above average in all of them with a high mark of 22nd in strokes gained: par 4s (450-450). He showed on the Web.com Tour that he can get hot enough to take down a tournament, and he is finding his groove on the PGA Tour with four finishes of 16th or better so far this season including the swing.

Adam Scott ($7,500 | 75) - Scott was a disaster tee-to-green last time out at the Sony. He lost 8.6 strokes, by far his largest number in Fantasy National's five-year sample. The only other time in the last three years he's lost even half that many strokes tee-to-green he bounced back the following week and gained 9.1 to finish 3rd at the 2018 PGA Championship. The Aussie is 12th in both strokes gained: approach and birdies or better gained and 24th in proximity from 200-plus. Putting is always a question mark but poa is easily his best surface.

Kyle Stanley ($7,500 | 75) - Like Im, Stanley is a steady, consistent golfer who should be able to navigate this difficult track. He has a second place finish to his name way back at the 2012 Farmers, and he has turned in four straight made cuts. He is 10th in proximity from 175-200 yards, 12th in bogeys avoided, and 15th in both strokes gained: approach and strokes gained: par 4s (450-500). He is not without blemishes, ranking 84th in proximity from 200-plus and 85th in birdies or better gained.

Jason Kokrak ($7,100 | 160) - Kokrak is a decent flyer in this range, as he crushes the long irons and can make birdies in bunches. He is 3rd in proximity gained from 200-plus, 26th in strokes gained: approach, and 28th in both birdies or better gained and strokes gained: par 4s (450-500). He has historically played better in early season events and his splits on California courses are notable (1.827 strokes gained in California vs. 1.268 total strokes gained, according to Future of Fantasy).

Bargain Basement

Keith Mitchell ($7,000 | 160) - This bomber is first in the field in proximity gained from 200-plus yards. He is also 13th in the key par 4 range, 20th in strokes gained: approach, and 33rd in birdies or better gained. He finished T16 his last time out at the Sony Open despite losing 2.9 strokes putting. The ballstriking is there and if he sinks a few putts he can come out of the gate hot and linger through the weekend.

Bronson Burgoon ($6,600 | 250) - Burgoon has a low floor as evidenced by his three straight missed cuts, but he has some serious upside as well with three top-6 finishes in his last 13 events. He is 6th in proximity from 200-plus, 19th in strokes gained: approach, and 27th in birdies or better gained. Shopping in the $6ks is risky business, but Burgoon has shown enough flashes that he warrants tournament consideration.

Mike Rodden is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Mike Rodden also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username mike_rodden. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.