PGA DFS Golf: 2018 The CJ Cup DRAFT Rankings

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Welcome to this edition of PGA DFS Golf rankings for DRAFT.com from FantasyCPR, covering the 2018 CJ Cup at Nine Bridges. The DRAFT app can be downloaded to your mobile device through your app store, or you can access the desktop site here.

I play quite a bit on DRAFT, and have always been a big fan of the snake draft format. On DRAFT, for PGA, you simply roster five golfers. They offer head-to-head, 3-man, 6-man and 8-man drafts that start upon filling. In the DRAFT lobby, you will find me in the six-man and eight-man contests, which payout to the top two spots.

The always evolving DRAFT app now offers auctions for PGA, but I personally have not dabbled in those quite yet for PGA. This week, the PGA continues the Asian swing, and we will see another Wednesday night start. Action shifts to Jeju Island, South Korea, where just the second ever CJ Cup will take place. Last years winner Justin Thomas is back, and looking to continue his fantastic run on this Asian swing over the last two years. Also back in the field this week, is last seasons PGA player of the year Brooks Koepka.

This week, you will get two targets in what is now called the early rounds, two in the mid rounds, and two for the late rounds . I will also of course throw out some others to consider based on where they are being drafted. There are basically no more low-tier players available according to projections, so this format should be just as easy to follow.

The Field:

Since this is just the second year of the CJ Cup, I will skip the section where we usually talk about the event history. Thomas won the inaugural event last year, and last weeks CIMB Champ Marc Leishman was the runner-up. Again we have no-cut, and a 78 player field. Joining Koepka and returning to action this week, is one my favorites in young Chilean Joaquin Niemann. Also in action again, will be last years third place finisher Cameron Smith, who shot -16 at last weeks CIMB Classic, which was good for a T-22 finish. As we get into the extended PGA season that not many care about, the fields will get progressively better. I personally like what we have to work with here, so let’s dig right in.

PGA DFS Golf Early Round Targets:

Marc Leishman – (3)

Of course it’s tough to look past JT and Koepka as the top options this week, but since they are the obvious first two picks, let’s instead focus on what to do if you get the third pick. Leishman was brilliant last week, en route to a massive five stroke victory at the CIMB Classic in Malayasia. He ended up with 139.5 DP last week, and it turned out that if you didn’t have him in the 8-man’s. you probably didn’t cash.

Like Justin Thomas, Leishman has also been fantastic on this mini Asian swing over the last couple years. In the debut of the CJ Cup last year, Leishman was tied with Thomas after 72 holes, but ultimately settled for a second place. I really like the golfers who played well here last year this week, as this is not an easy course, and they battled wind all week. Thomas and Leishman both finished -9 last year before the playoff here, so scores will likely not be as high this week as they were the last week in Malaysia.

Cameron Smith – (10)

Another golfer playing well lately, while also doing well on the swing is Austrailian Cameron Smith. Briefly mentioned above, Smith shot -16 at the CIMB Classic last week, which was good for a T-22 finish. The 25-year-old struggled at the BMW Championship in early September, with a final round +2 and a T-65 finish. He bounced back well from the final round disappointment a couple of weeks later at the TOUR Championship, where he flipped the script with a final round -2, and a solo 20th place finish.

Smith shot -8 here last year good for third place, and he should be another solid, safe player this week. I have seen him go as early as the 10th pick, and most recently I was able to grab him early in the third round. I see no problem taking him anywhere in the second round.

***Also Consider:  Adam Scott (5) – Byeong-Hun An (8)***

PGA DFS Golf Mid-Round Targets:

Sungjae Im – (15)

We caught a glimpse of how good this 20-year-old South Korean native can be, when he charted his first top five finish on tour, with a T-4 at the Safeway Open two weeks ago. He should be a popular option this week for a couple of reasons other than that however.  Im was the Web.com overall money leader last season, with two wins, and three additional runners-up for starters. And on top of that, this is home country and where he was born and raised.

After spending a season on the road dominating his competition while still a very young man, one can only guess he will be fired up to play at home this weekend. I have Im locked in as a third rounder if he is still there, but some are drafting him in the second. I have came close to myself, but Cameron Smith has been available in that spot as well, who I slightly favor. Either way, if I can get one or the other or both, I am doing so every draft.

Abraham Ancer – (23)

My first pivot off those drafts when I miss Im is Ancer. Last time I wrote up Ancer, he ended up withdrawing from action, so I hope I don’t curse him by doing so again! In all seriousness, Ancer is another golfer playing well of late, with two top-10’s in his last three outings. He was fantastic last weekend at the CIMB Classic, firing on all cylinders, and managing to fire all four rounds at -4 or better. A final round -7 led to a four day total of -20, which was good for a T-5 and 117.5 DP. Ancer seems like a steal for a third round pick in this field, so is he another player I will have plenty of shares of.

***Also Consider: Louis Oosthuizen (16) – Kyle Stanley (22) – Stewart Cink (25)***  

PGA DFS Golf Late Round Targets:

Si Woo Kim – (27)

Sticking with the theme of players who are playing well on this swing, Si Woo Kim is a golfer certainly a bit overlooked this week. It might be because he didn’t fare well here in this inaugural event like some of the others. Kim shot +6 here at Nine Bridges, which equaled a T-44 finish. While that isn’t great and not quite in tune with the theme here, his recent form has me liking him quite a bit.

Kim finished up the season at the BMW Championship like most, and was playing solid golf, making cuts, but never quite putting it all together. His start to the 2019 season has been promising though, as he started with a top-10 last weekend at TPC Kuala Lumpur. Kim shot -19, and the hope is he carries that momentum into this week, while returning to his home country. No reason to jump into the fourth round here at this point. Kim should be around in the fifth round of most drafts.

Keith Mitchell – (28)

Speaking of jumping up a round, if you like Mitchell this week, you may want to reach up to the fourth round to grab him. The more I draft, the more I see him going a little earlier than I would like him to. Mitchell started his 2019 season with a -16 at the CIMB Classic last week, which put him in a tie for 22nd. He played bogey-free golf in the final round, and he is another late round guy who could make some noise this weekend. This will be his first appearance at the CJ Cup, but he is another player who finished the 2018 season playing well, and started 2019 even better. Mitchell should make for a great last pick if you can get him there.

***Also Consider:  Austin Cook (31)  – Whee Kim (33)***

PGA DFS Golf DRAFT Rankings: Top 40

My rankings are pretty easy to follow. I have ranked the top 40 overall. Following each golfer is their DRAFT fantasy point projection in parenthesis.

1. Justin Thomas – (74.7)

2. Brooks Koepka – (70.8)

3. Marc Leishman – (62.8)

4. Paul Casey – (63.6)

5. Adam Scott – (59.5)

6. Hideki Matsuyama – (65.5)

7. Kevin Tway – (75.3)

8. Byeong-Hun An – (59.6)

9. Billy Horschel – (56.9)

10. Cameron Smith – (59.4)

11. Gary Woodland – (61.0)

12. Joaquin Niemann – (59.0)

13. Emiliano Grillo – (68.3)

14. Rafael Cabrera-Bello – (65.3)

15. Sungjae Im – (47.5)

16. Louis Oosthuizen – (56.3)

17. Brandt Snedeker – (73.8)

18. Xander Schauffele – (59.8)

19. Ryan Moore – (73.8)

20. Tyrell Hatton – (57.4)

21. Alexander Noren – (57.9)

22. Kyle Stanley – (59.1)

23. Abraham Ancer – (55.3)

24. JB Holmes – (64.5)

25. Stewart Cink – (57.7)

26. Chez Reavie – (62.8)

27. Si Woo Kim – (53.9)

28. Keith Mitchell – (58.6)

29. Beau Hossler – (56.3)

30. Kevin Na – (61.6)

31. Austin Cook – (59.6)

32. Cheng-Tsung Pan – (57.2)

33. Whee Kim – (55.5)

34. Brian Harman – (60.7)

35. Kevin Chappell – (56.0)

36. Jamie Lovemark – (49.2)

37. Chesson Hadley – (53.2)

38. Joel Dahmen – (57.5)

39. Charles Howell – (59.2)

40. Pat Perez – (58.2)

That is all for this weeks PGA DFS Golf DRAFT rankings for the 2018 CJ Cup at Nine Bridges. If you have any questions, give me a follow on Twitter using the link at the top of the page. You can also leave a question right here in the comments, and I will do my best to respond before lock. Good luck this weekend, enjoy your golf, and happy drafting on DRAFT!