The European Tour’s flagship tournament returns to the West Course at Wentworth, where it’s been hosted for many, many years. There were some changes to the course this season worth mentioning, but the meat of the course is the same. They’ve removed some bunkers, changed a couple of green complexes, and are planning to firm up the greens a bit. Ultimately, the course is still a ball-striker’s paradise, and I expect the usual suspects to pop up on the leaderboard. Wentworth is a par-72 measuring nearly 7,300 yards, and has a lot of trouble lurking for the players. You’ll see everything from eagles (maybe a couple aces) to quadruple bogeys this season. Last year, Englishman Chris Wood broke through for the largest victory of his career. This event has been a springboard for several players, including Matteo Manassero, Byeong-Hun An, and Wood.
Because this is a ball-striker’s course, I’m going to focus on veterans instead of rookies. We tend to see a lot of the same names play well here every year, and this should be no exception. Statistically, here’s what I’m targeting at Wentworth:
Key Stats:
- Driving Accuracy
- Birdie or Better %
- Greens in Regulation %
- Course History
Let’s look at my favorite plays this week:
The Favourites:
Justin Rose ($11,700) – Choosing one of the top-2 studs is key this week, and I’m choosing the Englishman. Although Stenson fared much better at The Players, his form this year has been poor overall. Rose, on the other hand, has contended many places including a playoff loss at The Masters. Rose also has a better record here, including two runners-up finishes. Rose is an elite ball-striker, and Wentworth always lends itself to a little English flair on the leaderboard.
Francesco Molinari ($10,400) – Molinari has been on a roll in the States, but still can’t get that first PGA Tour victory. The Italian veteran hasn’t had those closing issues in Europe, where he most recently won the Italian Open. Since then, Molinari has finished 4th in the DP World Tour Championship, 6th in the Players Championship, and posted several other top-10s on the PGA Tour. Molinari continues to knock on the door of a huge victory, and comes to a course on which he’s posted strings of top-10 finishes.
Bernd Wiesberger ($9,900) – There isn’t a hotter player on the European Tour than Bernd Wiesberger. He won in China, backed it up with another top-10, and then finished 12th at The Players. Wiesberger struggles on difficult courses and it tough fields (typically), but seems to be ready to make the leap. This course hasn’t been great to him over the years, but he’s had his two best finishes in the past four seasons. Wiesberger should be able to improve on his 15th place finish last season.
Tyrrell Hatton ($9,700) – Hatton was one of our DFS darlings earlier this season, when he was posting top-10 finish after top-10 finish. He struggled mightily in his Masters debut, but backed it up with a solid performance at Harbour Town. He posted a mediocre finish at The Players, but showed enough to get me on board this week. Hatton finished 7th here last season, where he was sitting in 2nd heading into Sunday’s final round. Hatton has been a force on the European Tour the past year, and is ready for his big time victory.
Matthew Fitzpatrick ($9,000) – Last we saw of Matt Fitzpatrick, he was missing the cut at The Players and at the RBC Heritage. Those courses suit his eye perfectly, so it was strange to see the struggles. That was especially true after a solid Masters performance, where Fitzpatrick was atop the leaderboard on Thursday. He made his debut here a year ago, but finished a mediocre 47th. The Englishman is ready for a breakthrough victory, and this is the perfect venue for him.
Thomas Pieters ($8,900) – We haven’t seen Pieters since the Masters, where he contended all weekend and finished 4th. That wasn’t a surprise, as the new Belgian Bomber was a trendy pick at the bomber’s paradise. Here, however, he’s had a shaky history. Wentworth demands accuracy, patience, and ball-striking, and Pieters’ fiery temper could get him in trouble. He’s a new player recently, and has dramatically improved his iron play and putting. If he can stay within himself, Pieters has the game to win.
Chris Wood ($8,300) – The defending champion took some time off when his wife had their first child, but came right back with a 4th place finish in the China Open. Wood nearly won this event in his debut in 2010, so Wentworth is a place that the Englishman loves. He’s a fantastic ball-striker, and is coming into his own on Tour. Wood made his Ryder Cup debut last fall, and should be a contender for many teams in the future.
Alexander Levy ($7,700) – The streaky Frenchman has been on a tear lately, winning the China open for the 2nd time. He had to WD before last year’s event, but was 12th in 2014. Levy is an excellent ball-striker who won’t be intimidated by anyone in the field. His birdie rate has been absurd lately, and he should be able to continue his hot putting on these new bentgrass surfaces.
David Lipsky ($6,900) – Lipsky is one of my favorite sleepers this week at Wentworth. He’s posted a top-5 here before, and is exactly the type of consistent ball-striker who can excel here. Lipsky is a dynamic birdie-maker, which is great for any DFS format. The American has been on the verge of a win recently, and it would be cool to see it happen on the big stage. He’s one of the streakiest players on Tour, and comes into Wentworth with eight straight cuts made, including three top-5 finishes.
James Morrison ($6,600) – Another sleeper this week, the Englishman has been on a tear lately. Morrison has made nine of ten cuts this season, and has rattled off five top-13 finishes. He’s been knocking on the door for a win, but it would be a huge surprise to see it happen in this field. He’s prone to a blowout hole (or round), but Morrison is brimming with confidence this week. He should have some fond memories of last year’s event, where he made a hole-in-one.
Good luck this week!
Ryan
