Sia 
The PGA Tour heads back to the east coast for The Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Connecticut. This week we are TPC River Highlands which is a shorter Pete Dye track Par 70, measuring just over 6800 yards. I’m looking for golfers who are great BS (‘ball striking’ – a metric that combines OTT and APP). You’ll also want to find guys who have the ability to get hot with the putter. More on course dynamics and proximities on tomorrow’s Win Daily PGA Livestream. Let’s get into my Initial Picks at The Travelers.
Dustin Johnson (11400) – Ball striking was good last week, but the putting was pretty pedestrian, with the exception of one round where he gained almost 5 strokes. Either way, I feel like the game is starting to come around and if the upward trajectory continues, he could really do some damage here.
Patrick Cantlay (10400) – Cantlay had a horrible time with the putter earlier this year, losing strokes PUTT in six tournaments in a row. Since that time he’s strung together two very positive putting performances since then (The Memorial and The U.S. Open). APP game was a little off last week at the U.S. Open, but at the Memorial he gained almost 10 strokes ball striking.
Paul Casey (9900) – There’s a lot to like about the 9k range, but Casey feels like one of the safer plays with upside. He has a great track record at The Travelers and he’s coming in with great form. The putter hasn’t been great as of the last few tournaments so he’ll need to be at least average there.
Scottie Scheffler (9600) – He can get red hot with the putter and red hot with the ball striking and that makes him a perfect candidate for a birdie fest at The Travelers. Just like anyone else, he can get cold, but the instances where Scottie has been cold are far fewer than his hot streaks as of late. I’ll note that I think Wolff is an interesting GPP play if ownership is low. I’ll note that Ancer and Streelman are also good cash options in the 9k range.
Harris English (8200) – His history here is flat out bad, but he really is a different golfer now versus when he last played at The Travelers in 2019. English has really bounced back from a tough stretch earlier this year. That tough stretch was due, in part, to a back injury that appears to have resolved. He’s finished Top 15 in 3 of his last 5 tournaments and he’s coming off a 3rd place finish at the U.S. Open. Great value here.
Keegan Bradley (7900) – Keegan hasn’t lost strokes ball striking since the PGA Championship…in 2020!! That’s 20 tournaments in a row (it’s likely 22 in a row as there were two tournaments in that stretch where he finished 4th and 32nd but the rounds weren’t measured). Historically he’s been a bad putter but has actually gained with the putter in 6 of his last 8 tournaments. I should note that he’s also from this area. Lock him in for cash games and feel free to give him the free square treatment in GPP.
Aaron Wise (7400) – He’s gained ball striking in 11 out of the last 13 tournaments. His big issue during that entire stretch was the putter (lost strokes putting in 9 out of 10 tournaments including losing over 10 strokes putting at the Waste Management). However, Wise has gained strokes putting in his last two tournaments and I’m going to assume he’s found something.
Emiliano Grillo (7300) – He’s been losing strokes OTT but he does tend to keep the ball in the fairway. I need to admit the OTT game scares me a bit, but I think he’s a good enough ball striker overall to overcome it. His putter has turned a corner and I like the value he presents here at The Travelers.
Kyle Stanley (7000) – This is a leap of faith as Kyle Stanley simply can’t putt. However the OTT and APP game are definitely in good form. Somehow, he’s made the cut in 5 straight tournaments in spite of losing significant strokes putting in 4 of those 5. If he finds a hot putter he’s gonna race up the leaderboard but don’t go heavy on Stanley and he is strictly a GPP play.
Hank Lebioda (6700) – Play has been a little erratic OTT and APP over the last few tournaments but he’s managed to gain BS in each of the last three tournaments. Add to that his putter can get hot at times (gained significant strokes putting in 3 of the last 4). He’s made four cuts in a row which immediately followed 4 missed cuts in a row, which tells me that Hammerin’ Hank has found something and is trending upward.
Satoshi Kodaira (6500) – His main issue earlier this year was a bad putter but he’s managed to gain 4 or more strokes putting in his last three tournaments (that’s a significant amount). He’s gained ball striking in 5 tournaments in a row. The ARG game is spotty but I don’t think that will be a big factor here. A good option if you’re dipping down into this range.
Vincent Whaley (6400) – Somehow managed to lose over 5 strokes on APP at the Palmetto, but the good news is that kept his price down in the abyss this week. Don’t forget this guy made 9 cuts in a row prior to the Palmetto so you could definitely do worse.
Secret Weapon (less than 7k/less than 5% owned) – Current record is 37-10. See you in Discord.
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