The descent into a post-Masters hangover is steep. Imagine trying to follow that act. The next course is right up the Atlantic coastline but diverges from Augusta National in nearly every way. Another jacket is up for grabs in a signature PGA Tour stop with an elevated prize purse. This time, only 69 golfers will duke it out for a chance to slip on a red plaid jacket.
Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina is a quaint 7,200-yard track that plays to a par-71. It is among Pete Dye’s least inspired designs, but the bones are there to tell you from whose brain it was derived. Harbour Town is a tactical golf course. One must plan their shots with the next one in mind and put every ounce of emphasis on accuracy and precision. The fairways are well-guarded by trees and lined with Bermuda rough. Stray branches often pollute angles and sight lines and lead one on a meandering path to minuscule green complexes.
PGA DFS Advice & Picks: RBC Heritage (2024)
(Salary Prices Courtesy of DraftKings)
Despite falling well below Tour average in length, Harbour Town is in the middle of the pack in scoring difficulty. As with most Dye courses, a golfer’s entire repertoire must remain solid over 72 holes to claim victory. Key metrics in my weighted statistical model include fairways gained and proximity on approach, along with strokes gained around the green and putting on Bermuda surfaces.
There is also plenty of value to be found in DFS gameplay. Leveraging the field against chalky players will be paramount to profiting this week. The strong feeling I have is that the optimal lineups will include two or three players with extremely low rostership in tournament play. Under the lighthouse, decked in tartan, let’s dig in.
High-Priced ($9,000 & Above)
- Chalk Plays: Xander Schauffele, Ludvig Åberg, Tommy Fleetwood, Matt Fitzpatrick
- Chalk Fades: Scottie Scheffler, Patrick Cantlay, Wyndham Clark
- Leverage Plays: Rory McIlroy, Collin Morikawa, Will Zalatoris
Mid-Priced ($7,600 to $8,900)
- Chalk Plays: Sahith Theegala, Russell Henley, Si Woo Kim, Christiaan Bezuidenhout
- Chalk Fades: Cameron Young, Shane Lowry, Corey Conners, Brian Harman, Akshay Bhatia
- Leverage Plays: Justin Thomas, Jason Day, Denny McCarthy, Chris Kirk
Value-Priced ($7,500 & Below)
- Chalk Plays: Taylor Moore, Tom Hoge, Matthieu Pavon
- Chalk Fades: Cameron Davis, Lucas Glover, Austin Eckroat
- Leverage Plays: Harris English, Sungjae Im, Stephan Jaeger, Brendon Todd, Adam Hadwin, Erik van Rooyen, Justin Rose, Nick Taylor, Chandler Phillips, Erik Barnes
