2024 U.S. Open DFS Preview – Golf Picks, Strategy and Fades | The First Cut Podcast

Rick Gehman and Greg DuCharme preview the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 with picks, strategy and fades.

Intro, Course Breakdown: 0:00
10K: 12:16
9K: 22:53
8K: 26:36
7K: 36:22
6K: 43:49
5K: 53:25

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ABOUT THE SHOW: The First Cut brings you everything you need to know in the world of professional golf. Nearly every day Rick Gehman, Kyle Porter, Mark Immelman, Greg DuCharme, Sia Nejad and Patrick McDonald bring you the best analysis in the game. From DFS to betting previews, interviews and recaps… everything golf is on the table when you listen to The First Cut.

freaking first cut golly welcome to the first cup podcast I’m Rick ging and this is your DFS preview for this week’s Us open joining me to break it all down Greg du charm is here oh baby Greg it’s a major I’m so excited for this Rick um it kind of came up on us quick very quick but uh that being said this is setting up to be a real special major championship of Pinehurst number two the 1,000th USGA event ever held which is unbelievable USGA Championship um and and it’s our fourth Us open at Pinehurst and only four players have ever broken par at Pinehurst so I’m I’m really excited to see how this test plays out yeah it there’s that long break from the Open Championship to the Masters which feels like an eternity and then once you get back to the Masters these things just pop off and by the time you have decompressed from from one you are leading into the next it’s it’s it’s crazy when you’re in it it’s compressed and this is something that a lot of people in the golf world kind of cried for right we need a season that doesn’t last forever you know and look moving the PGA one month the PGA moved more than one month but the major season was reduced by one month uh which isn’t a huge deal but it makes it feels like a lot more than one month yeah it does well listen you already alluded to the fact that uh in its history Pinehurst number two has played incredibly difficult uh it did in 2014 it has historically Troy if you want to share my screen I’ve got the yardages and holes that it will play to for this week AP par 70 over 7500 yards Greg but there’s kind of a lot to unwrap here you know we’re already hearing on Monday some of the press about how fast these greens are and how diabolical they are and how on the edge they are I mean this is potentially setting up for Carnage again yes um and there’s a couple reasons for that one you’re coming in with some really long clubs at times I’m actually curious about how the distance is going to play Because when it’s this firm and fast the fairways are really fast too and and I actually think without any rough there there are two rough there are two grass cuts on this property Fairway cut and green cut there’s no fringe there’s no surround um like uh you know aprons chipping aprons it’s two cuts of moh height green and Fairway which is fascinating but I I do think in a way since it will be firm it really brings in a lot of the shorter hitters as well um I I think you lose some of that element of well if you’re in the rough and you got Club head speed you got shorter clubs in the ball carries farther so the total distance is farther a lot of that stuff we typically talk about in a US Open goes away here at Pinehurst I think that brings a lot more players into the mix also yeah Rick when scores get closer to par I also believe more players enter the mix with the potential to win on this on the spectrum of usop venues or at least of of recent years Winged Foot kind of on one end of the spectrum I think this course number two on the other end of the spectrum right you talk about lack of rough I mean that uh if you’re not playing out of the fairware you are playing out of native area Sandy spots Wire Grass which without that even that first cut balls will will roll through into that stuff it is not a thick four Ines of rough Bryson strongest man prevails type of major championship not at all and when you miss Fairways you know I was talking to Troy a little bit about this beforehand I think there are some pluses and minuses so one of the things that happens is you have an opportunity for recovery that would be a positive so a Miss Fairway doesn’t necessarily mean death right you have there’s a chance that you’ll be fine there’s a chance you’re not on the other end of the spectrum one that I’m not sure how I feel about and at this point I’m not crazy about it um it is either you’re fine and you can go for the green or you’re not and you’re chipping out and there’s no decision like the the rough brings in this decision can I get a six iron on this if I do is it going to jump is it going to come out dead do I need to Club up Club down um a lot of those decisions are taken away that being said considering that to be a negative it does fit in with the style of the golf course you may have just a terrible angle you may have no shot right this course was designed with the purpose of width because in order to attack the greens you had to come in from a certain spot the challenge isn’t necessarily the lie you’re going to get like it is at say a winged foot so that creates a a very different but still a very Stern test because it it really ultimately all comes down to what happens on the greens right so to just so that you can visualize what Greg is referring to when you’re missing the Fairway um you can be in a Sandy spot with uh kind of a bare lie access to the back of the golf ball no problems from there or you are in a spot where these little Wire Grass plants are either impeding your uh Club or including impeding the ball getting to the green and it’s kind of like one or the other it’s not like a oh it’s like a video game Greg where you’re in the rough it’s like an 80% red you know 80% power 70% it’s like it’s like 100% power or zero% power yeah yeah mean you could end up in a bush yeah right you could end up with taking an unplayable um and and the a very similar shot could end up with a perfectly clean swing which is it definitely brings in a mental challenge as well which is not in the decision but it’s in the ability to handle the fact that hey I I’m I might get lucky I might not and just because I’m having a tough day off the tea it doesn’t mean I’m going to get penalized um I and I could be penalized severely I could have a great day off the tea and be penalized severely so there’s a lot of elements of this setup I think bring in a lot more players in the field than we’ve seen in past us opens it we we’d also be remiss if we didn’t talk more about those greens because they they will play a huge story this week um you’re going to hear the word turtleback turtleback greens you’re going to hear that repeatedly the two words of the week wire grass and turtleback now um what that means Greg essentially they’re they’re 6,000 squ feet on average they’re rather large but effectively smaller because everything is rolling off we heard even the first or second press conference of the week Windam Clark was saying about how much um how much break you had to play he said a couple of guys in his group had putted off the green between between the speed the undulation and the way that they are uh complexed to create a lot of tricky situations yes I mean you can get on some fine lines and this is the reason why there doesn’t need to be any Fringe because the edges of the green you know if you think about what you saw at mirfield Village there’s uh let’s take some of the false fronts that you have there there’s a green and then there’s Fringe and then there’s an apron and that all kind of rolls off but the the rolloff area doesn’t start at The Fringe the rolloff area starts in some cases is near the middle of the green right and so there doesn’t need to be this Variety in the cut because the ball will have enough momentum to roll through the little uh lip that you get from Fairway cut to Green cut and that is a a very interesting factor it’s also why angles become a rather important element in this you get on the wrong side you got to carry a bunker a green becomes really shallow and on the other side is a is simply just a fall off and it once it falls off there’s nothing to stop it right and and so you end up with difficult very demanding small areas to land your ball in on approach shots um and then the last thing Rick when you get into short game you have a lot of options you can use any club in your bag assuming there’s no bunker in your way or you’re not in the bunker um which also brings a lot of different styles into play Martin kimer notoriously used putter everywhere off the green we saw uh during his Monday practice round Tiger Woods was hitting everything in his bag except wedges almost and except PUD excuse me except putter he was hitting a lot of four irons that he was just kind of spinning up there yeah there’s there is not one way to play this course Greg so so that’s why um you know looking back at wingedfoot and I use wingedfoot as an example because I think it’s the other end of the spectrum right that leaderboard ended up being built from one specific type of golfer this could be a wide variety of golfers between the luck um off the tea and on the approach shot the options of how to get to the green the options of how to get from Green side to on the green it seems like there is going to be a a lot of different guys who could get this done wide open completely wide open and we’ve seen that before right you have uh Martin kimer I’m not sure there’s a way to classify him as a player like I don’t know if you’d say oh well you know it’s certainly not like Henrik Stenson who’s also gotten in the mix here oh great ball Striker um Dustin Johnson who has finished well here great ball Striker great driver of the golf ball you look at a Michael Campbell similar to Martin kimer I’m not sure how you’d classify him as a player as far as Elite skill sets are concerned um you have a Phil Mickelson you have an Eric Compton you have a Ricky Fowler you have a lot of variety in the types of players um you know Jason Gore get these these guys getting in the mix come from all different styles of play which is um there’s definitely an element of that that is pretty darn cool it makes our job a little tricky um a little challenging tonight because it is so wide open well we’re gonna start naming some names we’re going to go through this field and try to figure out who’s good who’s bad who’s indifferent and help you make some educated decisions but first we are going to take a quick break and hear a word from our partners nwsl newcomers battle it out for the first time in league history Sunday on CBS Sports Network keep your eyes on me and we’re back uh Greg I’m showing my website rickun good.com I’ve got the cheat sheet open and we are starting with the DraftKings pricing here there are six golfers over $10,000 Scotty Sheffer is 13,000 even Ry Moy is 121 Xander Schley is 115 and then three live golfers round out the rest of this range John ROM at 109 Bryson D Shambo at 101 and Brooks kka at $10,000 do you just want to start with the Scotty conversation let’s start with the Scotty conversation um hard to stay away from him because whatever style you you want to favor he fits that mold right every single mold he fits I was telling you this before the show too um Scotty’s made $24 million on tour this year and official money that is 69th all time just this year he’s fifth through his whole career he’s fifth in official money on the PGA Tour Ever um if he wins this week this year alone will have him inside the top 50 in career ears of the PGA Tour so that just I know that purses have gone crazy and I know that official money is no longer a viable stat for determining success but I just I I believe that it really highlights um the dominance that he’s shown on the PGA tour this year you know he’s he’s more than doubled Xander Schley who’s second in official money this year it’s been an incredible run um I was kind of beating the drum that he could win the Grand Slam this year that is come and gone but it doesn’t remove the fact at all that I still think he is um going to win this championship and is the the guy to beat in this Championship gain nearly 13 bres on approach last week which was the sixth best in the shotlink era um he has routinely been the best player from Tia green he has uh not only putted but he’s putted well in in big spots Greg you know that we talked about this on you know Sunday I believe it was the the putty made on 16 to to save par and then five feet down the hill for the title pressure spots he rolls The Rock I think this is a highly strategic golf course I think that Scotty shuffler is probably the best strategizer on the PGA tour because not only does he have a good plan but he executes that plan better than anybody else um I mean it’s it’s just it’s all you can eat however many lineups you can fit them in I I think that’s the that’s the way to go um you look at what he’s done in US opens as well sometimes these kind of tournaments just don’t suit guys well he’s got a top seven finish in his last three U he was third at Lac that was when he just simply couldn’t putt um he was second at the Country Club and tied seventh in 2021 at Tory Pines so you know you still have a variety of styles there he’s shown the ability to win on a variety of styles of golf course this year the one similarity in all of his wins is that they’re BigTime fields and big-time golf courses and this is no different Big Time Field Big Time golf course I think he’s got every Advantage yeah I think he’s worth the price too honestly because the the rest of the the rest of the pricing is pretty soft and you could argue Scotty sheffler should be more expensive so if not Scotty then who right we’ve got the three live guys at the bottom Roy maroy Xander Schley where do we go next yeah I would go to Xander schlein next um you know he’s gotten the monkey off his back of winning a major but even if he didn’t you look at what he’s done in US opens and you know he’s played in seven of them and his worst finish is a 14th I mean that’s kind of hard to Fathom right his his worst is uh 14th yeah he’s done it at all different types of venues that’s the thing so the the the list of these the I mean Aaron Hills uh shinok Pebble Beach Wings foot Tory Pines the country cup laccc that’s the that’s the gamut right there yes and and I think um while like Wingfoot like you mentioned mentioned is kind of the other end of the spectrum I don’t think shinik I don’t well Aaron Hills may not count but when we look at other guys a Chambers Bay a shinok um maybe LACC to some degree these are the kind of similar kind of test to what we’re going to face this week where there’s a a lot of the golf ball on the ground a lot of rolloffs that you have to deal with a maybe a little wider driving corridors that you can deal with um I’m not even sure how much that has to do with it but but ultimately when it comes to Xander Schley he’s great off the te he’s in increased his accuracy this year as well as distance he’s been great in in his iron play the best player on tour from outside of um which I I think could go a really long way his short game is through his whole career has been spectacular and he gained eight Strokes putting last week yeah I I I think it’s hard to go away from from Xander and Scotty in my opinion yeah and I think the big thing that separates I agree with you um I think the big thing that separates Xander Scotty from Rory is you know Rory’s been like I I probably think higher of of Rory than than most even though the bar is very very high I’ve got two problems here um Scotty and Rory are both incredibly well-rounded and it’s not that Rory isn’t but he has shown the ability to make a big number here and there which I think is definitely in play at number two and the other thing is you know we knew he was gonna gain six Strokes off the te at Quail Hollow that Golf Course is set up perfectly for him to do that we knew he was going to gain five and a half at Valhalla that’s like the perfect spot for him to just Unleash the Beast I I’m sure whole gain Strokes off the te this week but that random nature if you’re missing Fairways and even if you’re Landing in the Fairway and it’s rolling through because of those firm fast conditions um now skill is a little bit removed and luck is replacing the skill that is being removed which then weakens the strongest part of Rory’s game yes I think that’s pretty well said um you know he would be better suited for a winged foot type test where speed is a huge Advantage carry is a huge advantage and I think that’s just leveled out a little bit this week especially with the firm and fast conditions I also am not a I mean I I would I was much higher on Rory at Valhalla given we had soft conditions heading our way Rory plays an aerial game and and part of this week whether it’s in short game uh whether it’s in your approach play there’s going to be an element of this week that’s on the ground and um I don’t like Rory’s ground game that as much as I like his air game so I still like I like Rory I wouldn’t fault you I think he can finish inside the top 15 and not even play that well right um but I just think Xander and Scotty are safer options yeah and again I think he’s I think he’s like the third best option in this field but he’s I think he’s firmly the third I think it’s yeah Scotty Scotty Xander Rory and and yeah unfortunately Rory $600 more than more than Xander so okay if you can only play one of the the the bottom three Rah dambo Kea which direction are you going um they’ve only played three rounds on live since the last major championship so what are we what are we doing here uh Bryson would be my choice I’m a little worried about John ROM’s injury I’m a little worried well the cut between his toes I’m worried about the mental state of John ROM and I think right now Bryson while I don’t love the fit but what I love about Bryson is I think he will find a strategy that can work I think he has made huge strides with his iron play I think that will help him this week distance is always an advantage and having the opportunity to use the putter from off the green everywhere I think would be a sneaky Bryson to Shambo Advantage around this golf course that’s kind of a good call yeah I mean you don’t see a whole lot of like I’m curious with the arm lock how that’s going to work if you if you utilize the Martin kimer model but I I think in some ways you can be a little more straightforward like I’m just going to learn the speed practice long lag putts and I think he will he can figure that out the other thing I I just feel like he’s he works harder than the other guys and I think his game is just in a better shape in general I think he’s more excited about playing golf yeah I mean it it’s I’ll tell you what I mean I i’ lean Brooks um but I would I I’ve been quite bullish on Bryson this year I would be very impressed if he contended again at this place and I I do like I had not considered him just pulling out putter everywhere and and going that that would make me feel a lot more comfortable around the greens with Bryson do you think I mean am I uh I I’ll be honest I looked I overlooked a little bit of these guys because I just think that Scotty and Xander are such great options it’s it’s hard for me to go elsewhere when it comes to Fantasy Golf um but you know separating these three Rah Bryson and Brooks my thought is putter for Bryson could work really well to think that this could be a scient ific type Golf Course could be dead wrong could be spoton at the same time I I just I don’t quite know if you can scientifically pick this place apart but it could also take out the weakest area of his game yeah I need to chew on that for a couple more days and luckily we do have a couple more days but we’re gonna move on we’re gonna move on to this 9k range of golfers which starts with Victor havland has lude viberg col Cal Patrick Klay and Windam Clark who we did hear speak on Monday afternoon so uh small 9k range here Greg what do you want to do first yeah two guys I really like uh first and foremost I think is colum morawa um the reasons are quite obvious to exactly what we’ve seen over the uh last little bit he’s extremely accurate off the te I don’t think he’ll be hampered At All by distance because it will be so firm and fast I think he’s playing with um more confidence than anybody else in this range right now yeah I think a short game has improved his putter is seeming to be quite confident and it seems like there’s still room to grow I imagine the talks he’s having with Rick cessing housee right now are very positive and and they’re not technical they’re about um they’re they’re about belief and I think there were a couple moments at the Memorial where he if he really believed he could have won he could have and that’s a nice place to be with your game hey I just gotta think better and I’ll win he’s in a great he should be yeah he should be overflowing with confidence his last three us opens are T14 Fifth and T4 uh the game looks to be very sharp very well-rounded and major championship setup should allow morala to to flaunt all his best strengths who’s the second guy here ludvic oberg sure um I get the sense that this is a maturing plant that already looks pretty darn mature right one of the best players in the world and I still think there’s talents that haven’t been realized I I don’t think ludvig has dominated golf courses off the tea the way he’s capable of I don’t think he’s dominated with his iron play the way he’s capable of which is kind of a scary thing for everybody else and as the golf course gets tougher his ability seems to improve Kyle made that point after the Masters and Valhalla wasn’t really that test so I kind of I think this is actually better suited for him in his game than Valhalla and I’m looking forward to it so it it’s a little more risky than Colin I’m surprised he’s more expensive than Colin yeah so I don’t love that but he would be my second play in this range also I wonder how much of the pricing coming out uh early I mean I Colin was playing great but he did not have that that most recent runnerup finish before this pricing came out so I wonder if that was kind of part of it I don’t know I don’t I don’t I don’t make ludig also off a Mis cut he didn’t have a T5 when it came out either you’re right you’re right um guys that I need to see more from absolutely Patrick Klay absolutely wam Clark and I will probably just hold off on Victor one more time it’s percolating for Victor yeah um but I think he’s you know the like the second round at the memorial was exactly what we needed to see third and fourth round kind of put put it uh in reverse a little bit I just think he’s too expensive I don’t think he’s worth 400 more dollars than morawa I agree um let’s continue the 8K range here obviously because it’s a major championship still plenty of great names here Justin Thomas cam Smith Max hom Tommy Fleetwood Wills Al tour matusz Patrick Tony fow Hideki uh I’ve got questions about some of these guys yeah yeah big questions I mean Wills Alat Tores you go on the rule um and and he’d be a guy that you think about but I have questions about it right now I I don’t think he’s informed so I’m I’m off of zalatoris I’m off of Justin Thomas um cam Smith is probably the most interesting to look at here because it it should be you just think about it should be perfect it should be but he’s been bad Greg bad really bad really bad is this the kind of venue I’ll tell you first first and foremost he did not make my list I looked at it thought he was going to be on the list said last night he was my low live guy and I’m second guessing that today um and he didn’t even make my list what but is this the kind of venue that can bring him back he is he still is a world a world class short game the problem for me is when you look at what his like his great success he was a world class short game an average to below average driver but he was very good on approach he in 2022 he was like fifth on tour in Strokes gained approach yeah he is a shell of a shell of himself in that category right now which now means you are solely reliant on having the best short game of anybody this week and finding something somewhere else right whether it be the putter which could happen and you are trying to be you know even par is a great Target score may not even be possible I I don’t know but even is going to be a pretty darn good finish if it doesn’t win um and and I think you can do that with short game to some degree but at the same time this just worries me I think iron play is going to be a little bit too important so the the struggle for me is I could see this golf course I could make a case for coming to pineur reminding you of the sand belt letting you play letting you be an artist on a canvas and it brings out something in you that wasn’t there before but it’s just it’s hard for me in this range uh to go with him when I think there are some really good options at the bottom of the range that that I feel pretty good about yeah I’m I’m I’m probably uh so I’m I’m I’m lukewarm on Tommy Fleetwood I think he’s fine I like Matt Fitzpatrick I like Hideki that that’s where I’m at in this range yep I wrote down three names I wrote down Fitzpatrick feno and Hideki yeah um and I let’s talk about feno because it’s one we disagree on a little bit his iron play has been really good and he’s kind of been killing me this year and I you know I I’ve been wanting to get off of him but I’m looking at these at his record at the US Open 2015 at Chambers Bay tied 14th uh 2018 at shinicok fifth um he also has a tie that Wing foot again other end of the spectrum but like he’s played some of these well and and it’s 18 and it’s 15 that make me think this could be a really good style of golf for Tony feno who has a very good short game and put it a lot better last week yeah and he has definitely turned the corner from like the guy that we saw at the end of 2023 and he has start you can see just kind of the way he started to to plug those gaps in his game and I agree that he’s in the best form that we’ve seen in probably six or seven months I I’m I’m I’m fine with saying that um I just don’t know if I like him as much as Fitzpatrick or had it’s very close I it’s not that I dislike him I just think that he’s third in that three-man pack for me I I’m that’s fair Fitzpatrick not a lot to go on this year but both of us like him what what do you what do you like about him I think he’s got a a adequate or above adequate short game I think that he uh is starting to play a little bit better I he has won this major championship and I like that he’s what I really like is that he spent all Monday playing 18 holes with Eduardo Molinari and Victor hin who will strategize their way around this golf course I think he’s going back out with them on Tuesday I think he’s gonna have a plan right that group’s like the most anal itical uh it’s like the European decade system right is what molari does for for these guys so uh I’m I’m taking a little bit of a flyer on him being Uber prepared peing at the right time and having a a decent enough skill set for this place and he can fill it up with the putter oh yeah of course which could be hu could be big this week so I’m I’m right there with you on it I think his short game too the the cross shipping method I don’t think he loses out this week I think you can play those shots um so it could I’m with you on Fitz on Fitzy I I like it Hideki is probably my favorite and he’s at the bottom favorite in the 8K range and he’s 8,000 flat well he’s like I mean there is nothing on a on a profile or on a sheet to dislike about Hideki Matsuyama it is just always the nagging voice in the back of your head that says please don’t WD please don’t WD please don’t WD look at his record in US opens he has not he he has missed one cut he has played the US Open a ton he has missed one cut it was in 2016 at Oakmont outside of that one two three four five six seven8 nine 10 other US Open starts he has not finished worse than 35th that is why Hideki is why I can’t go with Tommy Fleetwood right because Tommy fleetwood’s the the really high floor guy yeah I think ack he has a higher ceiling and I think in a US Open his floor is just as high Hideki on difficult golf courses is so good all styles yes and we say this all the time Hideki uh Hideki has one of the best around the green games in the world and it gets covered up by a lot of years of poor putting because it hurt his scrambling numbers it hurt his up and down numbers you would see the fact that he would miss too many putts but his around the green play and His short game in general is without exaggeration one of the best in the world and and it is the best on the PGA tour this year yes it won him the Masters in 2021 you go back and study that tournament his short game won him that tournament the Genesis Invitational this year we talked about it in the recap he won that with short game you don’t think that’s possible at Riviera he won that tournament with short game two shots at the end highlighted the win that were ball striking shots but he made like four birdies on the front nine that were up and downs in the first 10 holes it was incredible an incredible performance around the green gained five point eight Strokes around the green at the Genesis and it’s not the only time the series gained five Strokes around the green I have like 25 measured major championships for Hideki uh because the way that data comes through you don’t always get it but I’ve got like 25 he’s gained Strokes around the Green in 20 of them uh he’s gained Strokes ball striking in like 19 of them uh I mean he’s just he’s just really really good in these situations and he’s 8,000 flat I know it’s a solid play yeah I agree with you and and you’ve turned you’ve turned me on The Voice in the back of your head you got to shut that thing off yeah I don’t care you might he might WD but you know what um Tony fow might miss the cut exactly right and it’s not very not very much difference we’re going to continue this conversation we got to get to the sevens the sixes and those pesky little $5,000 golfers but first we’re going to take a quick break and hear a word from our partners there’s some new players in town and they brought the plague he got my attention you don’t want that what happened to Kingston mayor of kingtown new season now streaming exclusively on Paramount plus and we’re back massive $7,000 range here Greg I won’t read them all but it’s spe haton um cam young Dustin Johnson Sam Burns Ricky Fowler Justin Rose and then you know obviously more than that but where where do we start going here because this feels like the first the first time you get a drop off in caliber of golfer yeah yeah this is where we got to start uh digging deep and this is where this doesn’t always happen in Majors there are some times when it feels like the sevenk range is really comfortable spot you take a chance in the 9k range and you feel like in the sevens oh I feel good about this I don’t feel very good about this range um because when I look at the data the guys that I like are guys that I don’t get right yeah so I’m sure you could guess where I go first but this is this year this is the best player in this range and it’s sah the gala yeah [Applause] yeah he’s the be he’s the best player in this range I agree with you I I don’t like it I agree with you we got open I’m sure I’m sure that I have been let’s I’m just looking through the results and I don’t know this for sure but I am sure that I loved uh sah at the Canadian open the Zurich the Masters uh let’s see what else are is horrible finishes farmer genis yeah I I mean I just have NE I love him I I actually have him on a season long fantasy team and he crushes for me but that’s just because I just get to start him every single week and it’s not a big deal having to choose when and when not to play him is giving me gray hair well you don’t have to choose Rick you just play them every week I guess so right I mean you’ve said the answer in your season long when you play him every week he he rakes it in for you when you’re choosing you’re wrong him every time honestly it’s not just us so look at this so Harbor toown runner up 10% ownership then he jumps up to 25% misses the cut that’s that’s the xurxo so people give him a second chance 18% t52 now they all jump off 12% at the PJ Championship he finishes T12 so they hop back on 22% at the Canadian open misses the cut so they Hop Off 7% of the memorial he finishes T12 so everybody’s getting him wrong we were uh we brought it up last week play saw again we said the same thing with size and with pain um and if you did you did pretty well because he came in tied 12 I I’m just I’m trying to be objective and not emotional and I think he’s a play this week in that sense um and I think he’s just a continuous play all right well I you either at this point just play him every week or never ever play him that’s I’m fine with that okay all right now here’s the other guy again I I generally think this player is overrated when it comes to stuff like this okay um I and I I don’t mean I don’t think he’s that good I just I don’t think that his popularity is I think his popularity is above where he his legitimate ability is right now or performance has been better word than ability it’s performance that would be Min Woodley um but minw Le has shown some consistency since the Masters um four straight events that have been t26 or better none of them have been top 20s it’s extremely consistent um but so I like I like that to a degree what I also like is he done well in US opens he’s played in two he has a 27th and a tied fifth the last two years um that could be that could be a strong sign what are your thoughts on minwoo um I agree with your sentiment that he is usually more popular than he should be however uh he is starting to clean up the second shot that was remember that was kind of the concern is he could he might lose five Strokes on approach like that that that is not an exaggeration he did it in both Phoenix and at the V bar and he almost did it at the Players Championship but you’re starting to get either small gains or losses that are smaller losses you add that to an unbelievable driving ability which he has never lost and some uh what did you say abilities or talents or you know he is capable around the green and on the green so I I think this is definitely the best profile we have seen out of him since probably the start of 2024 is he a good play in the US Open this week in your opinion in the 7K range uh he is he is at above average play okay at 73 as well yeah I like that now I I I also do not really like the 7K range and I think the 6K is is is packed with guys yes so so based on the guys that are kind of around minwoo I think I think it’s a I think it’s a very solid one I got one more guy in the 7K okay I’ve got one too maybe they’re the same guy this is one of your boys oh maybe s JM oh yeah that’s him yeah um big big fan of what he’s been doing off the te we’ve seen now three out of the last four weeks he’s finished in the top 10 this is what sunjay does right Rick he shows us something’s coming you haven’t seen the fire approach play that we usually see out of sun J we’ve seen great putting great short game and and we’ve seen good performances on tough golf courses right all all three of those the Wells Fargo the Charles Schwab the memorial all really tough golf courses um you even go back to the cognizant classic well I guess that was in 2020 that’s a long time ago but he’s won on a tough go of course yeah he he is um like you said uh he generally foreshadows this stuff he gets in good streaks he plays well he continues to play well or he plays poorly and he continues to play poorly uh four top 12s in his last five and then you mentioned some of those golf courses the stat profile is is turning itself around um he does not have a problem on uh greens with like short grass around them he’s got all those shots right so I I I think that sunjay is certainly turning the corner and it’s a pretty good price at 7100 yeah possibly a really good price um but boy that is a range that just makes me so nervous yeah honor the guys right when I look at it yeah honorable mention Terell Hatton I think is interesting um and he’s played good major championship golf as of late but I I’ve got pretty significant questions about basically everybody else there now yeah the 6K range I might have 25 guys I mean this is just I I I might make lineups that are only sixk I is Scotty and five 6K guys would be like sign me up something I might rattle off so Adam Scott did get into this field uh was added to the field on Monday morning along with a handful of others so that that field is is final now so at the top of this range is Adam Scott Alex nor and Brian Harmon the middle of the range is OE Taylor Moore a little bit of sep straka the bottom of the range Bo Hustler Mark hubard web Simpson Matthew Pavone I I did not even mention so many of the names that are in there so Greg um let’s just start rattling them off and see where we go all right um well first of all I think you got to go one two three four five six seven I think the first eight guys the first eight guys in this range are all playable I don’t like I don’t like all of them but I wouldn’t say you’re wrong for any of these guys so that’s Adam Scott Alex norren Brian Haron Russell Henley Dean burmaster Keegan Bradley seu Kim Austin ekro yeah I would stop actually uh before E I’m not crazy about ekro okay so seven to see W Kim those are the seven Greg’s referring to Yes um but eo’s playable too I he he actually is but um all right so guys I like first and foremost Russell Henley $6,900 Russell Henley $6,900 Russell Henley the these fin I mean we talk about it all the time but since the Valero Texas open okay that was the week after the PLAYERS Championship that’s in March uh he’s made every cut he’s finished tied 38th or better the t38 was at the Masters you got a T10 at the Wells Fargo um t27 last week at the memorial t23 at the PGA his iron play has completely turned the corner from earlier in the year his putting has not slowed down it’s not bad let his short game has been great let me lay out a scenario for you because Russell Henley Is 2020 web Simpson okay when web Simpson won twice and Fairway through green web Simpson was like the second best player on tour Russell Henley whose lone uh flaw detriment weakness is that he does not hit the ball far yet he hits it incredibly accurately firm fast conditions he hits it down there he gets 30 extra yards of roll he keeps it in play now he turns into 2020 web Simpson he’s great from Fairway through green he can hit his spots he can putt well his around the green play is is is well above average bada bing bada boom Russell Henley finishes T4 he’s from Georgia Georgia y right I mean the same area of the world probably played a lot at Pinehurst before love this venue for Russell Henley yeah next Bradley in big in on Keegan I mean the guy’s been phenomenal he’s been spectacular with the putter um his driving this year has improved dramatically he had a tough weekend at the memorial um didn’t we all seriously seriously didn’t we all um so I I love what Keegan’s got going on he played here in 2014 he came and tied forth I I think this is one of those special places to Keegan Bradley I haven’t heard him talk about it but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was so way in on Keegan same um let’s go down to we’ll just keep it in order Thomas dietry oh interesting yeah you know this one I I wrote down late I didn’t write him down in order I just get this sense that he plays well on harder golf courses like in all the early like the West Coast Swing when he was playing well in Texas he’s playing well it’s like short game is important and the numbers don’t speak to me with what I see with him which is a great short game great scrambling ability but it looks like he does a lot more of it with the putter than anything else on the stats I just have a feeling about him okay not much more to say on that but Billy horel I’ve got him starred this could be a great major for Billy horel tied 15th last week yeah putter hot he has been brewing this since Honda yes and he won in between yeah opposite field event doesn’t feel like enough for him he won the memorial two years ago uh Billy is back to when he won I don’t remember which came first or second but when he won BMW PGA Championship and Memorial it was either I don’t know what order it was in but he is back to playing that well yeah yeah and I don’t think distance is going to be a big detriment this week like we said even though it’s a US Open in 7500 yards I want the guys that are playing well you know they’re believe in themselves I I think he checks both those boxes how about Seth straka $6,500 has seven top 16s in his last eight six of them no five of them why can’t I count five of them are top 11s uh plays out of the Fairway has turned into a a great second shot player has a good enough short game and we’ve been on him for all of them except I wasn’t on him at Wells Fargo or Masters yeah we’ve gotten we’ve gotten sep right a lot this year yep and keep let’s keep this train rolling right why I mean how could you not Why Stop Now Why Stop Now I got another Why Stop Now guy for you okay uh give me CZ he’s very cheap $6,200 6200 yes this has been an incredible year for him a huge turnaround with his iron play he his around the green and putting he’s basically gained Strokes in both of them every week since the Florida swing yeah I mean listen the one of the best Putters in the world is the 30th best approach player this year that is that alone is like all you need to know that’s going to be an unbelievable combination coming off of a fourth place finish yeah he’s been awesome so I mean sign me up yet again um and then I got one more guy I I’m I think you’re going to like this but I don’t know it would be uh Shamus power I don’t know if I do either um all right look here’s the case for Sheamus power yeah let’s do it um all right going through this year Arnold Palmer Invitational tough venue t21 valpar tough venue t26 RBC Heritage not a tough venue but T12 Wells Fargo tough venue t16 Memorial last week tough venue t27 iron play seems to be coming around um short game has been okay putted well last week Sheamus power will win the John Deere classic all right I don’t know what he’s going to do this week I definitely love the trend and I agree with the way that he’s going I didn’t want to scroll down too far because I wanted to ask and I don’t I don’t know the answer to this I I just want to guess has Sheamus power ever made the cut at a major my I’m gonna say I’m gonna take the no side I will say yes but I can’t tell you which one oh he has um okay he made the cut at the 2023 Masters the 2022 US Open he actually finished 12th the 2022 PGA finished n his 2022 I remember this actually he went 27th ninth 12th missed cut in 2022 he’s missed his last three Cuts he’s not gone four in a row no you can’t possibly go four in a row he’s 6100 I just think there I I just get the sense that there’s a lot of good golf in his brain right now I I get the sense that he is feeling very good about his game I I hope you’re right I I just don’t see a guy that’s going the wrong way I see a guy that’s going the right way 100% going the right direction I just wonder if this is too much of an ask too early in the in the process it could be but he’s 6,100 but then again CZ is 6200 so I I get it the 5K range is uh the leftovers I shouldn’t say that but the leftovers a lot of these guys open qualified or are like uh no I think a lot of them are just open qualifiers could be some other ones in here but Adam shank Adam senson David P Matt coocher at the top the middle of the 5K range is Zack Blair uh Max graser Nico etaria the Min priced golfers are these are almost certainly uh guys who qualified and there’s some amateurs in here as well uh John chin Willie Mack Brian Kim Colin Prader guys I don’t have any stats on because they’ve never played a um Rick rungood covered event before I have a question for you Rick on your Holy Grail the stats page that’s 23 and 24 yeah so it’s it’s combined 23 and 24 okay so I I I like that to get an idea it’s basically a year and a half I like that to get an idea of a players General ability um and it brings me now especially like when we get up near the top I’m looking much more at recently but sometimes picking out these flyers I don’t mind looking at that kind of stuff so one name who I would if I was clicking just clicking through I would never selected but he I I just looked at like the top 20 guys in a couple categories I looked at three putt avoidance four to eight feet Strokes game putting Strokes gain off the T driving distance uh and approach play outside of 200 yards and three times four times sh Kim was in the top 20 and he’s 5900 his second in this field put in from four to eight feet um he’s in the top 20 near the bottom in Strokes game put in uh 20th off the te uh 18th in driving distance yeah he can move it he can he can move it and it just makes me think at 5900 maybe he should be a a um consideration has made five of his last six cuts which includes a cut at the PGA Championship made cut the PJ Championship fourth at the Byron Nelson was his best finish finished 14th at the Texas open which was not included during that stretch $5,900 not um the rest of the guys in this range for me are like fun I think there’s some fun to be had down here okay see one of these guys being a story how much fun well this one this is like going back to the 7K range for me and it’s Nick Dunlap he had a good week last week yeah I know tied 12 but look what he’s done with his iron play it’s starting to get so much better he um he’s gained significant Strokes in five out of his last seven I should just say gain strokes but some of them have been significant uh the putting he has an ability to really pop off with the Putter and he’s he’s long off the te he’s starting to become an option he might be like a shame is power this is too too much too early but it wouldn’t surprise me so he’s won now this one Rick I think you’re gonna like um playing on the corn fairy tour now playing in his fourth major championship his third US Open Sam Bennett never missed a cut in a major seventh in Knoxville uh 15th at the Advent Health Championship that was in in miday uh he’s played one PGA Tour event this year it was Houston he made the cut there and his major championship record remember he popped up at the uh Masters in 23 t16 there yeah three three for three in in made Cuts this is his fourth one that’s what you said right yep okay so three for three um made it in two US opens really good really good stuff uh plays hard if you if you talk to him he likes hard golf courses corn fairy tour has been a real challenge for him because um it it’s a putting contest and he drives it really well right he kind of has one of those games so I’m I got my eye on him I like him at 5700 um how about how about Harry Hicks Fairways and greens has won twice on the corn fairy back toback in May qualifi like uh qualified for this on the longest day of golf he is playing Great Golf all playoffs all birdies in play I think he’s made birdie or Eagle on every playoff hole he’s played he’s played like seven playoff holes it’s Inc it’s incredible never play Us open as good an option as any as good an option as any he’s played three Majors T4 at kiaa 14th at the 2020 two masters miss the cut at Southern Hills it’s compelling it’s really compelling um all right I’m in on that let’s go a little deeper what do you say let’s um there are two guys at 5400 one of them is Frankie sapan the third love him this guy has been playing incredible golf he shot at 58 he won his qualifier I just get the sense he’s just brewing with confidence second at the visit Knoxville open fourth at the veritex bank Championship tied eighth at the lome Sun Coast Classic tied Ninth at the club car Championship he’s GNA be a PGA Tour player very soon yeah I saw him at LC he’s very impressive and he will be the the sentiment that was cast around him is that whenever he gets his PGA Tour card which is probably going to be this year he’ll be the PGA Tour rookie of the year next year that’s that’s the that’s the sentiment around and this could be a big coming out party for him this week who’s the other guy at 5400 Benjamin James I don’t know a thing about Benjamin James no you don’t and you wouldn’t he’s from Milford Connecticut um he’s played in two PGA Tour events The Travelers twice miss both cuts um but he won the Durham qualifier uh no I’m sorry he won in New Jersey at can Brook and Ben James plays at Virginia and he at at Virginia was one shot off of the individual Title One Shot out of a playoff for the individual title had a 15 foot putt to force a playoff and missed it uh and took a pace of play penalty on the first day oh my God I just get the sense that Ben James is going to be the low am um so take that for what it’s worth he’s 5,400 I don’t know if that makes him a smart fantasy play but he’s my prediction for low am uh and I wanted to get that get that in there yeah let’s it’s well it is officially on the record right now I’m wondering if I can find uh where’s the low am B I’ll see if I can find those before the Tuesday the Tuesday show that’ll be interesting say okay wow all right learn learned something new there Ben James $5,400 I think 54 is as low as I’ll go yeah yeah me too there’s not I mean Isaiah celinda plays PGA Tour events and he pops up uh and and he’s on the corn fairy tour and but he pops up here because he’s got like two corn fairy tour events so he’s like four or excuse me four PGA Tour rounds that like he’s green all over the place but that’s a very very very small sample size he was uh if you look at your course course fit yeah he’s first yeah because it’s like it’s like four measured it’s it’s um it’s not even it’s six measured rounds four of them he played at he got a t7 at Summerland which is where he plays out of so it’s like it could not be any more small sample skewed for Isaiah Sinda yeah y he did win the Panama Championship on the corn fairy tour finished tied 12 you know he’s legit he’s definitely legit it’s just like don’t don’t like freak out he’s not the best course fit that’s what you’re saying is not the best course fit that is correct yeah all right Greg well listen we are now off and sprinting on US Open week we are going to do a normal Tuesday pod that’s your mega preview storylines Best Bets one and done then on Wednesday 2 pm eastern time we’re back on the network CBS Sports Network we’ll be doing doing an hour pod there and then round by round Recaps Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday but wait there’s more next Monday we’re very busy with a network 2 pm Eastern recap show straight into the DFS show for The Travelers Championship which is phenomenal um so excited it’s such a good stretch of golf the sad thing is it’s like it feels like The Season’s coming to an end we’re going to be three quarters of the way through majors in a week it doesn’t feel that way for me yet but when I’m always I’m always very shocked that when you get through the open that there’s like no that the season’s over yeah yeah you got three playoff events they’re a little more lowkey it’s fun for us it’s still fun the D DFS players you know you’re watching this you got a lot more golf somebody’s gonna win every single week Greg yep and we’re g to pick them right here that’s right all right uh we’ll see you tomorrow that’s Tuesday if you’re watching live or watching it on Monday uh big thanks to producer Troy is all the hard work behind the scenes Greg du charm is available on Twitter at theal gfd and you can find me at Rick run good this has been the first cut we’ll catch you next time [Music] [Music]