DFS Dish: The time is right to get Rory McIlroy back into lineups at the Memorial

Tournament Preview (David Barnett)

Above all things to remember when analyzing the Memorial Tournament from Muirfield Village is what to do when you get a brain freeze after sucking down one of Jack’s famous milkshakes. Don’t panic. Stick your tongue on the roof of your mouth and hold it. Ride it out. You’re welcome.

Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s get to this stacked PGA TOUR field in the ninth elevated event of the season. The best in the world show up to Jack’s place, likely ready for a fight as Muirfield Village has shown some teeth over the last couple of years following a 2020 renovation. In the last two years at the Memorial Tournament, we’ve seen around 30 players finish under par after 72 holes each year. In terms of overall difficulty, Muirfield Village resembles TPC Sawgrass, Quail Hollow and Innisbrook when you look at the stroke average.

Players have cited the new Bentgrass green complexes and thick rough as the main factors for major championship-esque scoring. And with major championship (or slightly easier) scoring conditions, comes…variance. With one poor swing, or one wind gust, or one bad number – a great player can take a big score. In DFS, this means we need to be prepared to fade chalk (popular players) at the top end of the pricing spectrum while grabbing some of the best players in the world around them at much lower ownership.

Look at the PGA Championship a couple of weeks ago, with a winning score of 9 under. We saw some big names miss the cut at high DFS ownership. Names like Matt Fitzpatrick, Rickie Fowler, Jason Day, Cameron Young, Sam Burns and Sungjae Im all had their weekends free, despite setting up nicely for Oak Hill. But that layout was tough, and it featured brutal green complexes and rough. Given that variance and difficult scoring, it allowed DFS players to gain leverage with a handful of less popular players who possessed significant upside.

We typically see the cream rise to the top in tough scoring, and the best in the world tend to show up at Muirfield Village. So, have some exposure to some of the best in the field, but don’t be afraid to take some stands on really talented players being squeezed into lower ownership due to more popular players around them.

Picks (Pat Perry and Ben Little)

Ever since the Masters debacle, it feels like DFS players everywhere have been trying very hard to divorce themselves from Rory McIlroy, and that would include us. We’ve even seen that trend in Mcllroy’s ownership, to less than 10% owned in DFS lineups at the PGA Championship. It’s time to rekindle that relationship, folks. With Jon Rahm, Scottie Scheffler, and course horse Patrick Cantlay pulling plenty of ownership up top, Mcllroy’s getting squeezed into a nice ownership leverage position. The cherry on top of your DFS milkshake, you might say, and his game showed signs of life at Oak Hill to top it all off. McIlroy gained strokes in every major statistical category at the PGA Championship. There’s hardly a better feeling in DFS golf than seeing a low-owned Rory Mcllroy in your lineups on Thursday morning after lock.

The $8K range on DraftKings is stacked with talent this week. Yet many DFS players will find it difficult to have too much $8K range exposure after rostering two players up top from Scheffler to Viktor Hovland. One strategy worth trying could be to start your lineup building with two players in this loaded $8K range, and then fit your favorite player at the top of the pricing from there.

While it’s hard to choose our favorite, Rickie Fowler just continues to buck his head almost every time he tees it up and we’re not ready to hop off just yet. He has seven top-15 finishes since January and every part of his game is clicking in the process. Couple the consistently strong form with Fowler’s six top-25 finishes in 13 attempts at Muirfield Village, and you’ve got a recipe for a win we’ve all been eagerly awaiting.

Russell Henley ($7,900) is one of the most accurate drivers on TOUR. Since THE PLAYERS, he has gained strokes on approach in six straight events, and gained around the green in seven of his last nine events. The issue with Henley has always been his putting. However, it seems he’s found something lately as he’s gained strokes putting in three of his last four events. Given the premium on attacking Muirfield Village from the fairway, Henley at this price point is worth rostering despite the worries about the putter.

While Sahith Theegala’s driving accuracy doesn’t compare to Henley’s, we love the way Theegala’s game sets up for Muirfield Village. He’s capable of having spike iron weeks, which coupled with his exceptional short game, lead to high finishes. There’s room to hit it a little wayward to the generous fairways of Muirfield Village, and Theegala will welcome the space. Given the room to operate off the tee, Theegala could notch his first PGA TOUR victory at Jack’s place if he spikes with his irons and leans on the short game when he’s in trouble. He’s got great vibes at Muirfield Village after a T32 in his first appearance and a T5 in 2022. It’s hard to beat his upside at just $8,400 on DraftKings.