Top player to avoid
Rory McIlroy: $11,000 I am a HUGE Rory guy. I have loved his play ever since he burst onto the scene as a teenager, and have been rooting for him in pretty much every major since. The amount of torque and power he puts behind his swing shows he wants to punish his ball EVERY. DAMN. SWING. But I have to be real here and Rory's performance at the U.S. Open has me scared. Plus, 11 grand is a very large number for a player that's been good, not great all year. Rory is priced because of his name here, not because of his performance.
Guy Who will blow your cap but is worth it
Justin Rose: $10,200
Rosey has been on an absolute TEAR this year: 17 made cuts in 17 appearances, including 12 top 10s. The math just doesn't lie here: if going by his past performance, he has a 100% chance to make the cut, and a 70% chance to make the top 10. This is some Prime Tiger Woods play right there. He had his spotlight at the 2013 U.S. Open, but he hasn't had a top 5 finish in the British since his debut in 1998. Let's see if the Englishman can finally break through in the most prestigious tournament his side of the pond!
Great value picks
Andy Sullivan - $7,200
What can I say about Andy Sullivan, besides the fact that he has terrible hair for a 32-year-old man? To be honest, not much as we rarely ever see him over here Stateside. What I can tell you is that he has played very well across the pond this year, finishing with 6 top 10s a T6 at the Irish Open two weeks ago. Let's see if he can bounce back from last week's missed cut at the Scottish to continue his great campaign.
Matthew Fitzpatrick - $7,600
Fitzpatrick is one of the younger English players that has shot up the European Tour ranks over the past few years. He has only missed 4 cuts all year and impressed at Shinnecock Hills in the US Open this year. I believe he is primed to shoot up the leaderboard and hopefully play Carnoustie a little better than Jean Van de Velde.
MY PICKS
Yes, I am very unAmerican this weekend. Besides the Bronze God of Matt Kuchar (all hail the king of Sketchers!!), I have taken the side of 4 European Tour Players and a fifth Euro. Rose and my BOY Tommy Fleetwood are by far and away the two best European players on tour (eat it, John Rahm), and I think they could duke it out for the Claret Jug. Branden Grace is my key in this group: he hasn't racked up his usual top 10s, but he's made every cut this year. And with Draftkings, it's all about making that cut. So happy Open day, and hopefully we can make some money from this!