BlogWorld Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba Preview and Picks

The Buzz:

The Tour moves from Bermuda to Cancun, Mexico. Both places have one thing in common: both play by the ocean and wind, making it complicated. We saw what wind could do in Bermuda. Sunday was brutal, especially in the morning, with gusts up to 30 mph. Things got better later in the day, But the conditions made for a tough day. Still, it was a week of players doing well that we hadn’t heard of. One of those players was Seamus Power. He won for the second time on the PGA Tour, and many don’t know much about him. Power was born and raised in Waterford, Ireland, went to school at East Tennessee State, and decided to stay in America and play on the PGA Tour. Despite the expense and his lack of money, some members at his West Waterford club said they would finance him. He tried to qualify for the Korn Ferry Tour but didn’t make it, so he played in several mini-tour events. In 2014 he won twice on the eGolf Tour and was the leading money winner. At the end of the year, he finished T-5th at the Korn Ferry Tour Q-School, thus getting his card to play on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2015. He had a good year on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2016, winning the United Leasing & Finance. He finished ninth on the Korn Ferry money list to earn a PGA Tour card. He had some tough times on the PGA Tour, and in 2017 and 2019 had to play in the Korn Ferry playoffs to secure his PGA Tour card. In 2020 he struggled with a worn-out elbow, but because of COVID, he couldn’t get it operated on and played for 12 months in pain. In November 2020 underwent surgery that turned into a game-changing process. The surgeon said it would be six months before he was decent and nine months before he was back to normal. Sure enough, it would be eight months before his big breakout when he won the Barbasol Championship beating J.T. Poston on the sixth hole of a playoff. Since then has never had to look back, in 2020, in 26 starts, he was in the top-ten five times and finished 43rd on the FedExCup playoff list.

We haven’t heard much of others that finished in the top ten: Ben Griffin, Kevin Yu, Max McGreevy, Justin Lower, and Harrison Endycott. We will watch these players in the last three events of the year and into the new year. We knew there would be a lot of unknown players that would play well, and they did. That is what you get in lower-tier events like Bermuda Championship. One other player that contended and played well is Aaron Baddeley. He has been on the PGA Tour for 20 years, the Australian is one of the best putters in the world, but his tee-to-green game has kept him back. He finished T-6th in Bermuda, his first finish since finishing T-2nd at the 2019 Puerto Rico Open.

To keep up with the players better, check out our GOLFstats fantasy Handbook on the home page, you will find a lot of information on all the players in the field.

For some, this week will be critical.

After this week, there are just two fall events, Houston and RSM Classic. The goal of a dozen in this week’s field is to finish the year in the top 50 of the Official World Golf Rankings. For those, it’s a ticket to unlimited golf. You get to play in not only the best events on the PGA Tour but also get invites to play in the majors. This is a perk worth more for the sanity of knowing where to play and the golden ticket to play in the majors.

Here is a list of those that are on the bubble:

• #45 Mito Pereira – Not in the field this week
• #46 Harold Varner III – LIV player, so not in the field
• #47 Jason Kokrak – LIV player, so not in the field
• #48 Paul Casey – LIV player, so not in the field
• #49 Alex Noren – Playing in Mayakoba
• #50 Harris English – Playing in Mayakoba
• #51 Mackenzie Hughes – Won Sanderson Farms, so will get into some majors, not playing Mayakoba
• #52 Bryson DeChambeau – LIV player, so not in the field, still exempt from majors due to 2020 U.S. Open victory
• #53 Sahith Theegala – Not in the field this week
• #54 Lucas Herbert – Not in the field this week
• #55 J.T. Poston – Playing in Mayakoba
• #56 Scott Stallings – Not in the field this week
• #57 Dean Burmester – Playing in Mayakoba
• #58 Min Woo Lee – Not in the field this week
• #59 Russell Henley – Playing in Mayakoba

A good cheat sheet is this list of odds from the top bookmakers in England.

Another cheat sheet is this list of odds from the top bookmaker in Las Vegas.

Course information:

• El Camaleon Golf Club
• Playa Del Carmen, Mexico
• 7,017 yards     Par 36-35–71

El Camaleon was built by Greg Norman and opened in 2004. The course meanders through three distinct landscapes tropical jungle, dense mangroves, and sand-lined oceanfront. The design even incorporates a cenote – an underground cavern common to the area – into the heart of the first fairway. The PGA Tour made its first stop in 2007, spending six years opposite the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship until getting its own fall date this year.

Located 45 minutes south of Cancun, in the heart of the Riviera Maya, Camaleon is aptly named for its diverse layout and ever-changing landscape, always in total harmony with the region’s natural beauty.

For those who think this is a resort course and pushover, that’s not the case.  So what will the field be challenged by?  Conditions of wind on holes that get close to the sea, the par 3 7th and 15th are on the beach.  Course water hazards come into play on six of the holes, and there are 36 bunkers to avoid.  The greens average 7,000 square feet, with the grass being a special blend called Sea Isle 1 Paspalum, which is unique because you can use a seawater blend in irrigating the fairways, tees, and greens.  The course has a rating of 73.8 from the back tees with a slope of 137.

The course is located in an area that gets lots of wind, but the difference between El Camaleon and Port Royal, the course that held the Bermuda Championship, is protection from the elements.  Port Royal has no protection from trees or even buildings.  The course slopes back from the ocean, so in just about every hole, you get the full force of the wind. So at Port Royal, every hole is vulnerable to winds. At El Camaleon, only eight or nine holes have that problem.  That is because the course ventures into the Jungle and has many big mangroves that block the wind.

In looking at long-range forecasts, the weather is supposed to be a bit stormy on Thursday and Friday and ok over the weekend.  The good news is that the winds will be light each day and under 12 mph.  Temperatures will be good, averaging around 85 each day.  There is a good chance of afternoon thunderstorms on all four days.

Let’s take a look at vital stats that are important for those playing at El Camaleon

This is based on the most vital stats from El Camaleon based on data from last year’s World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba and using data from all the players in the field with stats from 2023.
This is the 16th year of the World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba at El Camaleon. With it played in Mexico, we don’t have true Shotlink stats to work with, so we are stuck with the old-fashion stats of fairways hit, driving distance, greens hit, scrambling, the number of putts, birdies, and eagles made. The one thing to understand about this week, last year El Camaleon played to a 69.10 average which was almost two shots a round under par as it ranked the 40th hardest course on the PGA Tour (out of 50 courses ranked). So it played just about a shot easier than the 70.07 average from the year before, and the 69.18 average was the lowest in the tournament’s history. The main reason for the lowest scoring was the winds that didn’t blow hard the first three days. In comparison, in 2018, it played to a 70.32 average, while in 2016, it was played at 70.02, both years in windy conditions. Looking at the long-range forecast, they expect perfect scoring conditions daily with low winds under 10 mph. On top of that, there are going to be thunderstorms on Thursday and Friday, which could soften the course and make it easier.

So the course did play easier, in driving accuracy, it ranked 15th hardest, while in 2018, it was the 32nd hardest. In driving distance, it ranked 5th last year, T-6th in 2021, and 5th in 2020 compared to 15th in 2019 and 4th in 2018, meaning that players don’t hit it very long on this course. Last year it averaged 288.1, probably due to soft, perfect fairways. Maybe that is the reason that short hitters tend to do very well on this course, as Charley Hoffman in 2015 was the only long hitter. Last year Viktor Hovland won and ranked 8th in driving distance and T-2nd in driving accuracy, for the year was 37th in driving distance. The year before when Hovland won, and he ranked 8th in driving average and T-13th in Driving Accuracy, making him, along with Hoffman, the longest winners at Maya. In 2020 Brendon Todd won, and he was 187th in driving distance for the year, meaning he is one of the shortest hitters on tour. In 2019 Matt Kuchar won and ranked 135th on tour in driving distance. The point is that this event doesn’t see bombers doing well; you need many other things to win, so you can’t call El Camaleon a bombers delight.

So what can we look at historically to help us find players that should do well this week? Looking at the field from last year, all of the players that made the cut averaged hitting seven and a half out of 14 fairways (56.74%), a very low percentage when you consider that the Plantation Course at Kapalua they hit 12 of 15 fairways (73.82%). They also hit many greens at El Camaleon, 12 of 18 (67.12% ranked 29th). Of the greens they missed, they got it up and down under 6 out of every 10 tries (63.52%) and averaged 27.80 putts per round. So it’s easy to see how each player in the field averaged 4.39 birdies per round and either made birdie or eagle on a quarter of the holes that they played. So frankly, for the average pro, El Camaleon is a layup.

In looking at the 28 players that have finished 5th or better in the last five Mayakobas, the trend is that driving the ball is unimportant. Of the 28 players, only seven finished the week in the top ten in fairways hit, and seven finished in the top ten in driving distance. In 2018 only one player in the top ten finished in the top ten in fairways hit, while in 2019, two finished in the top ten. Of those same 28 players, 13 were in the top ten of greens hit, with two players leading that stat. Of the 28 players, 17 of the players finished in the top ten in putts per round (last year, 3 of the top five were in the top ten). Also, looking at the 28 players, they averaged playing the par 3s in 4 under, the par 4s in 6 under, and the par 5s in 8 under. The 28 players average making 23 birdies, so it’s very important to play the par 5s well and make lots of birdies.
In looking at last year’s winner Viktor Hovland, he was 8th in driving distance, and T-2nd in fairways hit, so he beat what we said in driving being meaningless at El Camaleon. Now he was t-5th in greens hit, 5th in scrambling and T-10th in putts per round. Going a step further, Hovland had one 3-putt and was T-8th in one-putts, showing that around the greens and on the greens were important in his win. On the par 3s, he played them in 4 under, T-18th best of the week. On the par 4s he was 8 under, which was t-2nd best of the week. But on the par 5s, he played them in 11 under, which was the best of anyone. Hovland made 28 birdies, the most of anyone in the field.

So, in our four categories, we will bring a premium on putting and hitting greens. To lead off, we will use strokes gained – putting, with the understanding that of the six events played, they have numbers to do this stat. Last year El Camaleon didn’t have that stat but was 49th in putting average (out of 50 courses). Our next important stat is greens hit, again that is a stat that is important for El Camaleon, last year on tour, it was 29th (remember Hovland was T-5th in this stat and led the previous year). Our third important stat is par breakers, again making lots of eagles and birdies is important, last year, it ranked 43rd best. Last we will look at Par 4 leaders since this was an important stat for those on top of the leaderboard, on tour El Camaleon ranked T-T-27th last year.

One last thing to watch for is players that did well last year, and be sure not to forget about Korn Ferry.Com tour players. Remember, last week in Bermuda was a good amount of Korn Ferry players, the field this week is loaded with 13 top-50 in the world rankings.

*Strokes Gained – Putting: A look at who gains the most strokes in putting.

*Greens in Regulation: Who hits the most greens during the week.

*Par Breakers: A combination of eagles and birdies made during the week to see who has the most.

*Par 4 Leaders: A look at who plays the par 4s the most for the week.

118 of the 128 Players from this year’s field with stats from 2023

Click any column title in the table header to sort columns.

#	Name	*Strokes Gained – Putting	*Greens in Regulation	*Par Breakers	*Par 4 Leaders	Total Rank All Categories	DraftKings Salary
1	Tom Hoge (Plyr/Tnmt/YTD)	21	6	21	9	57	9500
2	Justin Lower (Plyr/Tnmt/YTD)	29	27	12	22	90	7600
3	Dean Burmester (Plyr/Tnmt/YTD)	22	52	7	16	97	7700
4	Danny Willett (Plyr/Tnmt/YTD)	6	83	21	9	119	7000
5	Aaron Baddeley (Plyr/Tnmt/YTD)	35	74	7	22	138	6500
6	Brian Harman (Plyr/Tnmt/YTD)	77	24	35	5	141	8900
7	Brendon Todd (Plyr/Tnmt/YTD)	40	72	17	17	146	9000
8	Aaron Rai (Plyr/Tnmt/YTD)	49	27	35	42	153	7600
9	Taylor Montgomery (Plyr/Tnmt/YTD)	3	135	7	17	162	9600
10	Greyson Sigg (Plyr/Tnmt/YTD)	16	74	61	22	173	7300

Here is a link to all the player stats

DraftKings tips

First let’s look at the field and the top-40 who have the best average Draftkings earnings since the start of the 2022 season (must have 5 or more events)

87.3 points per event – Scottie Scheffler in 26 events – Cost $11,400 (Has made 22 of 26 cuts)

85.6 points per event – Thomas Detry in 9 events – Cost $8,800 (Has made 9 of 9 cuts)

84.7 points per event – Taylor Montgomery in 6 events – Cost $9,600 (Has made 5 of 6 cuts)

78.2 points per event – Byeong Hun An in 7 events – Cost $7,000 (Has made 6 of 7 cuts)

77.3 points per event – Viktor Hovland in 23 events – Cost $11,200 (Has made 20 of 23 cuts)

74.7 points per event – Ben Griffin in 6 events – Cost $6,800 (Has made 4 of 6 cuts)

74.3 points per event – Tony Finau in 25 events – Cost $10,400 (Has made 20 of 25 cuts)

72.2 points per event – Billy Horschel in 23 events – Cost $10,000 (Has made 18 of 23 cuts)

71.3 points per event – Kevin Yu in 6 events – Cost $6,900 (Has made 4 of 6 cuts)

71.2 points per event – Aaron Wise in 26 events – Cost $10,200 (Has made 21 of 26 cuts)

70.7 points per event – Collin Morikawa in 21 events – Cost $10,600 (Has made 17 of 21 cuts)

70.1 points per event – Matti Schmid in 5 events – Cost $6,500 (Has made 4 of 5 cuts)

69.5 points per event – S.H. Kim in 6 events – Cost $7,200 (Has made 5 of 6 cuts)

69.2 points per event – Russell Henley in 24 events – Cost $8,400 (Has made 20 of 24 cuts)

69.1 points per event – Maverick McNealy in 32 events – Cost $9,400 (Has made 25 of 32 cuts)

67.1 points per event – Seamus Power in 30 events – Cost $9,300 (Has made 19 of 30 cuts)

66.6 points per event – Keith Mitchell in 28 events – Cost $8,300 (Has made 22 of 28 cuts)

66.2 points per event – Matt Kuchar in 22 events – Cost $8,000 (Has made 17 of 22 cuts)

65.8 points per event – Adam Hadwin in 29 events – Cost $8,200 (Has made 23 of 29 cuts)

65.6 points per event – Mark Hubbard in 27 events – Cost $7,400 (Has made 20 of 27 cuts)

64.7 points per event – Davis Riley in 33 events – Cost $7,800 (Has made 23 of 33 cuts)

64.6 points per event – Justin Lower in 28 events – Cost $7,600 (Has made 19 of 28 cuts)

64.6 points per event – K.H. Lee in 31 events – Cost $8,700 (Has made 24 of 31 cuts)

63.8 points per event – Brendon Todd in 29 events – Cost $9,000 (Has made 21 of 29 cuts)

63.6 points per event – Brian Harman in 29 events – Cost $8,900 (Has made 23 of 29 cuts)

63.6 points per event – Chris Kirk in 29 events – Cost $7,200 (Has made 21 of 29 cuts)

63.6 points per event – Justin Rose in 18 events – Cost $7,300 (Has made 13 of 18 cuts)

63.3 points per event – Tom Hoge in 36 events – Cost $9,500 (Has made 23 of 36 cuts)

61.4 points per event – Sebastian Munoz in 27 events – Cost $7,900 (Has made 20 of 27 cuts)

61.2 points per event – Jason Day in 22 events – Cost $9,200 (Has made 14 of 22 cuts)

61.1 points per event – Alex Noren in 25 events – Cost $8,500 (Has made 18 of 25 cuts)

61.1 points per event – Patrick Rodgers in 32 events – Cost $7,900 (Has made 21 of 32 cuts)

60.9 points per event – Dean Burmester in 7 events – Cost $7,700 (Has made 4 of 7 cuts)

60.8 points per event – Nick Hardy in 25 events – Cost $7,800 (Has made 16 of 25 cuts)

60.5 points per event – Aaron Rai in 32 events – Cost $7,600 (Has made 23 of 32 cuts)

60.5 points per event – Troy Merritt in 30 events – Cost $6,900 (Has made 23 of 30 cuts)

60.4 points per event – Adam Svensson in 35 events – Cost $7,100 (Has made 24 of 35 cuts)

60.1 points per event – J.J. Spaun in 33 events – Cost $7,300 (Has made 23 of 33 cuts)

59.9 points per event – Austin Smotherman in 29 events – Cost $7,000 (Has made 20 of 29 cuts)

59.9 points per event – Joel Dahmen in 30 events – Cost $7,200 (Has made 22 of 30 cuts)

 

Lots go a bit deeper, lets’s look at those that played in Mayakoba last year and just there totals for the six previous events in the 2023 season

105.2 points per event – Viktor Hovland in 3 events – Cost $11,200 (Has made 3 of 3 cuts)

98.4 points per event – Taylor Montgomery in 4 events – Cost $9,600 (Has made 4 of 4 cuts)

94.3 points per event – Dean Burmester in 2 events – Cost $7,700 (Has made 2 of 2 cuts)

92.2 points per event – Thomas Detry in 5 events – Cost $8,800 (Has made 5 of 5 cuts)

91.5 points per event – Justin Lower in 4 events – Cost $7,600 (Has made 4 of 4 cuts)

89.8 points per event – Aaron Baddeley in 2 events – Cost $6,500 (Has made 2 of 2 cuts)

89.3 points per event – Danny Willett in 3 events – Cost $7,000 (Has made 3 of 3 cuts)

88.7 points per event – Tom Hoge in 5 events – Cost $9,500 (Has made 5 of 5 cuts)

87.7 points per event – Aaron Wise in 3 events – Cost $10,200 (Has made 3 of 3 cuts)

87.0 points per event – Scottie Scheffler in 2 events – Cost $11,400 (Has made 2 of 2 cuts)

86.3 points per event – Billy Horschel in 2 events – Cost $10,000 (Has made 2 of 2 cuts)

83.1 points per event – Robby Shelton in 4 events – Cost $7,600 (Has made 4 of 4 cuts)

82.4 points per event – Greyson Sigg in 5 events – Cost $7,300 (Has made 5 of 5 cuts)

82.2 points per event – K.H. Lee in 3 events – Cost $8,700 (Has made 3 of 3 cuts)

81.8 points per event – Brendon Todd in 5 events – Cost $9,000 (Has made 4 of 5 cuts)

81.5 points per event – Hayden Buckley in 4 events – Cost $7,500 (Has made 3 of 4 cuts)

80.4 points per event – Nick Hardy in 4 events – Cost $7,800 (Has made 4 of 4 cuts)

80.4 points per event – Andrew Putnam in 6 events – Cost $8,100 (Has made 6 of 6 cuts)

80.3 points per event – Seamus Power in 5 events – Cost $9,300 (Has made 4 of 5 cuts)

80.0 points per event – Erik Van Rooyen in 1 event – Cost $7,200 (Has made 1 of 1 cuts)

 

So let’s make some picks for Mayakoba going off of the above lists and pick six players, which would be winners?

Remember, with a $50,000 cap, that means we have to average $8,333 per player:

This week we will enter the $300K pitch and putt game with a cost of $20

• Tom Hoge – $9,500
• Maverick McNealy – $9,400
• Thomas Detry – $8,800
• Justin Lower – $7,600
• Greyson Sigg – $7,300
• Ben Griffin – $6,800

DraftKings picks from last week.

Based on a version of the above chart, I made my six DraftKings picks last week, and it’s time to see how I did.

The six players I picked were mixed by the good news is I won.  In the $300K flop shot, I was one of 15,901 entries, with my guys ranking at 1,265.  The game cost $15, and I won $35, so a profit of $20.

The winner scored 641.5 points, while my six guys earned 515.  The winner did not have winner Seamus Power, but five of his six picks were in the top 11.  He had runner-up Thomas Detry, along with Kevin Yu and Ben Griffin, who finished T-3rd. His worst pick was Cameron Percy, who finished T-35th.

On my picks, it helped a lot that I picked the runner-up, Detry, and third-place finisher Kevin Yu.  I also had Justin Lower, who finished T-8th but holding me back was taking Austin Eckroat who missed the cut. Because of that, I only earned 32.5 points.

So here are the results of my six guys:

• Thomas Detry – $10,500 finished 2nd with 122.5 points
• Kevin Yu – $7,300 finished T-3rd with 113 points
• Justin Lower – $9,900 finished T-8th with 99.5 points
• C.T. Pan – $7,300 finished T-44th with 78.5 points
• Scott Brown – $6,600 finished 62nd with 69 points
• Austin Eckroat – $8,300 missed the cut with 32.5 points

So despite Eckroat missing the cut, I had a good week and was 64 points out of getting into the top 100 which won $70

DraftKings tips

*Here are the guys that cost the most on DraftKings this week:

• Scottie Scheffler – $11,400
• Viktor Hovland – $11,200
• Collin Morikawa – $10,600
• Tony Finau – $10,400
• Aaron Wise – $10,200
• Billy Horschel – $10,000
• Taylor Montgomery – $9,600
• Tom Hoge – $9,500
• Maverick McNealy – $9,400
• Seamus Power – $9,300
• Jason Day – $9,200
• Emiliano Grille – $9,100
• Brendon Todd – $9,000

Just remember, in picking that marquee name, or in this game, players with high price tags that don’t seem to win.  So fantasy golf wisdom states you don’t take any of the top players.  Frankly, Scottie Scheffler – $11,400 is a high price for what he has done lately, which is not much.  Still, we must respect that his game is ok and that he likes the course finishing 4th last year.  On top of that, Scheffler brings up the goods in Draftkings, averaging 87.3 points per event.  In looking at Scheffler’s record going back to the start of the 2022 season, in 28 events, his lowest point total in events he has made the cut in was 61 at the Players last year.  So if Scheffler makes the cut, he will earn you a lot of points.  The same with Viktor Hovland at $11,200, he averages 77.3 points per event, and if he makes the cut, the worst you will get is around 60 points.  Hovland has also been playing well of late, so he is worth the high price tag.  Now Collin Morikawa at $10,600 is a not, his game has struggled since finishing T-5th in Memphis back in August.  He is playing for the first time at Mayakoba, and he won the British Open, so with those conditions being similar at the Mayakoba, I still think his putting is a problem that he has not solved.  Tony Finau at $10,400 is a no, not for his good play to end 2022, but he hasn’t played since the Presidents Cup, so I don’t think his game will be sharp.  Aaron Wise at $10,200 is a yes, feel that he is close to being in the running for a win, he was 6th at the CJ Cup, and I like that he was 2nd at Mayakoba in 2021.  Billy Horschel at $10,000 is a hard choice, he has finished in the top ten twice in his last three Mayakoba starts.  He was also T-7th at the CJ Cup.  He averages 72.2 DraftKings points per event, just don’t think he is ready to play well this week.  Taylor Montgomery at $9,600 is a no for me.  Yes, I know how well he has played in the last few months going back to the Korn Ferry Tour, but he has struggled a bit at the Shriners and CJ Cup, and I just don’t think he can sustain the level of golf he has shown the last two months.  Tom Hoge at $9,500 is a big yes, he has made a lot of DraftKings points in all of his starts since the BMW Championship, averaging 88.7 points per event.  Also, he was T-3rd at Mayakoba in 2021.  The same with Maverick McNealy at $9,400, he has averaged 69.1 DraftKings points in his last 32 starts, but he was T-11th at Mayakoba last year and T-12th the year before.  Seamus Power at $9,300 is a no for me.  Yes, he was T-11th in this event last year and won last week in Bermuda.  Just feel he needs some time off, and he may be burned out after winning.  Jason Day at $9,200 is someone we have to take a 2nd and 3rd look at.  Off the bat, he is a no just because he missed the cut in his last start at Mayakoba, and frankly, he had another bad year in 2022.  But in his last two starts was T-8th at the Shriners, making 106 Draftkings points, and he was T-11th at the CJ Cup and earned 8.5 points, so yes, keep an open mind.  Emiliano Grille at $9,100 is another that you will say no off the bat, he missed the cut at Mayakoba last year, and 2022 wasn’t that great.  But since finishing T-2nd at the John Deere, he has done well, and he isn’t a slouch earning 59.8 Draftkings points per round.  The same with Brendon Todd at $9,000.  He has played great in this event, finishing T-11th last year, T-8th in 2021, and the winner in 2020.  He also has done well in his last two starts making 97.5 Draftkings points at the Shriners and 101.5 at the CJ Cup.

*Players in that $7,500 to $8,900 price range, which ones are worth the money?:

Thomas Detry – $8,800 is a good choice, he was 2nd last week in Bermuda, was T-22nd in this event last year, and has averaged 85.6 points per event in his last nine starts.  K.H. Lee at $8,700 has played well of late, he was 3rd in his last start at the CJ Cup and has earned an average of 64.6 DraftKings points per his last 31 starts.  Adam Hadwin at $8,200 is always a safe choice due to him making a lot of cuts  He has a pair of T-10th finishes at Mayakoba and averages 65.8 DraftKings points per his last 29 starts.  The same with Matt Kuchar at $8,000, he won this event in 2018 and averages 66.2 DraftKing points per start.  Patrick Rodgers at $7,900 is a tough call, I like how he is playing in his last four starts and after a T-3rd in Bermuda, think he will continue the good play this week.  Justin Lower at $7,600 is a great choice, his game has been hot since July, and yes, he has not played at Mayakoba before but like how he has been racking up DraftKings points of late, 99.5 at Bermuda, 92.5 at Shriners, and 102 at Fortinet.  Robby Shelton at $7,600 is also playing well, in 2023 in four starts averaged 83.1 points.  Aaron Rai at $7,600 is also a good choice because he made many points in 2023, like that he was T-15th at Mayakoba last year.

*Some of the “bargains” this week at the Mayakoba Golf Classic

Like Greyson Sigg at $7,300, he has averaged 58.2 points per event but has racked up a lot of points in 2023, averaging 83 points.  He was T-9th at the Sanderson Farms, T-44th at the Shriners and T-11th in Bermuda.  Will Gordon at $7,000 is a good choice due to him making the cut in all four events in 2023.  Kevin Yu at $6,900 is good, he was T-3rd last week in Bermuda and plays well in windy conditions.  Ben Griffin at $6,800 is another of those rookies that are showing signs of playing well, he was T-3rd at Bermuda.

Here are some of the secrets of what it takes to play well at the Mayakoba Golf Classic:

Key stat for the winner:

This event has been played since 2007, and even though it gets a lot of younger players participating, older, more experienced players have done well.  One historical oddity is that eleven of the 15 past winners were over 30, with all the winners averaging just a notch below 35.  But things changed in 2021 when 23-year-old Viktor Hovland won, only the third player in his 20s to win this championship.  He also won last year at age 24, but this event still favors older players. Four of the 15 champions are older than 40 years.  Age also means experience; despite Hovland’s young age, he has a lot of experience.  So old may be something to look for this week.

Here are some more key stats to look to for this week:

The tournament has had limited stats, still, we can see that if you hit it straight, can deal with the wind, hit a lot lots of greens, and putt reasonably well you can win here.  Again long hitters will spend a lot of time at the beach instead of being in contention.  Also, in looking at the past winners of this event, none of them were favorites, so look for the player you least expect to win.