Round 3 of the U.S. Open will commence Saturday morning, so let’s dive into some players for this single-round format.
It’s important to remember that since it’s the third round, you won’t receive any placing bonuses. Making birdies is even more important in this format, even pars are worth +1.5 points while bogeys are -1.8.
Studs
The only golfer I’d look to target from $10,000 and above on DraftKings for Round 3 would be Brooks Koepka ($10,400). At the time of writing, he ranks second in Strokes Gained: Approach and fourth in Strokes Gained: Ball Striking through the first two rounds. The only thing holding him back is the fact he ranks 95th in Strokes Gained: Putting. Granted, he’s sitting at 4-under, so he really hasn’t been “held back.”
Golfers to Buy
Chez Reavie ($7,400) would be an excellent form of salary relief for the third round. He’s ranked inside the top three in all of the metrics that matter: Strokes Gained: Approach, Strokes Gained: Ball Striking, and Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green.
Emiliano Grillo ($7,700) is only sitting at even par right now, but his ball striking has been as good as it gets this week. He ranks ninth in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green, but he’s lost 2.7 strokes putting. If his putter gets going, Saturday could be a solid day for him. Although, there is some risk if his bogeys start to snowball. He ranks just 28th and 34th in birdies and pars gained, respectively, but the fact that he’s even-par right now could depress his ownership in tournaments.
I’d have to imagine if salaries weren’t released so early on Friday, Gary Woodland ($8,200) wouldn’t be this cheap. It’s not often he gains strokes putting, but he’s +5.2 in that department through two days. Even if/when the putting regresses, he’s still gained 4.7 strokes ball striking and 5.8 strokes tee-to-green.
Golfers to Fade
Justin Rose ($9,400) has hung around the top of the leaderboard thanks to the 5.7 strokes he gained from his putter. Meanwhile, he ranks just 101st in Strokes Gained: Approach and 82nd in Strokes Gained: Ball Striking. I’d like to think his poor iron play will catch up to him on this course.
DFS players probably aren’t chomping at the bit to roster Brandt Snedeker ($7,600) after he nearly missed the cut, but Sneds birdied No. 18 to squeeze inside the cut line. I’d continue to pass on him considering he ranks 96th in Strokes Gained: Ball Striking and 110th in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green. He’s not a great iron player, which isn’t a good recipe for success at this course.
Jordan Spieth ($9,000) ranks eighth in Strokes Gained: Putting so far, but he’s been abysmal with his irons, ranking 86th Strokes gained: Ball Striking.
Quick Hits
- Dustin Johnson ($9,800) is also worthy of a buy since he’s been excellent everywhere outside of his putting. He ranks inside the top 10 in Strokes Gained: Approach, Ball Striking and Tee-to-Green.
- Surprisingly, Jon Rahm ($8,600) leads the field from tee-to-green, ranks 10th in Strokes Gained: Ball Striking and ranks fifth in Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green. Rahm is another buy for me with how his irons are going. He just needs to get the putter going, plus he will fit well into balanced builds at his current price.
- Viktor Hovland ($7,100) could be a worthy salary-relief option. He struggled on Day 2, but ranks inside the top 20 in both Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green and Strokes Gained: Ball Striking.
- Aaron Wise ($7,300) ranks first in the field in birdies gained, which makes sense given his ball-striking has been solid and he ranks fifth in Strokes Gained: Putting.
Good luck, and be sure to check out The Action Network if you’re looking for more golf coverage!
Note: Strokes Gained data via Fantasy National.
Pictured above: Gary Woodland
Photo credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
