This article is part of our Yahoo PGA DFS Picks series.
THE CJ CUP in South Carolina
Ridgeland, South Carolina
Congaree Golf Club - Par 71 - 7,655 yards
Field - 78 entrants
Purse - $10.5M
The Preview
The CJ Cup remains stateside for the third consecutive year despite its Korean affiliation, as Congaree Golf Club now plays host to the limited-field event after also hosting the Palmetto Championship in 2021. This lengthy par-71 layout features extremely wide and firm fairways as the course plays a touch shorter than would appear on paper, making it more relatable to an Australian sandbelt track than a typical coastal Carolinian venue. Driver is encouraged off the tee with plenty of room for roll-out in the fairways, so the importance of approach play is emphasized here with plenty of mid-long irons into lightning-fast, elevated bermuda greens that are surrounded by tricky run-offs with essentially no guarding rough. Congaree played pretty tough when the Palmetto Championship was played here during the summer, but a transition to late October should help increase scoring opportunities, which are especially key from a DFS perspective with 72 guaranteed holes for all 78 entrants.
Recent Champions
2021 - Rory McIlroy (Summit Club)
2020 - Jason Kokrak (Shadow Creek)
2019 - Justin Thomas (Nine Bridges)
2018 - Brooks Koepka (Nine Bridges)
2017 - Justin Thomas (Nine Bridges)
Key Stats to Victory
SG: Approach
SG: Putting (bermuda)
Proximity
Birdie average
Yahoo Value Picks
Based on $200 salary cap
Cream of the Crop
Rory McIlroy - $44
He might be making his 2022-23 season debut, but McIlroy didn't just disappear after his win at the TOUR Championship, instead electing to travel overseas for a three-event stretch on the DP World Tour where he finished T2-4-T4 from the BMW PGA Championship to the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship while gaining ground on Scottie Scheffler in the Official World Golf Ranking. McIlroy's been one of the hottest players all year, and over his past 24 measured rounds, he's No. 1 in Birdie or Better percentage, second in SG: Approach, second in SG: Tee-to-Green and second in proximity from 175-200 yards.
Jon Rahm - $42
Much like McIlroy, Rahm also avoided any sort of extended offseason by teeing it up on the DP World Tour, winning on native soil in Spain just a few weeks after earning runner-up honors at the BMW PGA Championship. Over his last 12 rounds on the PGA Tour, which came during the FedExCup Playoffs, Rahm is second to none in SG: Off-the-Tee, but he also gained 11.5 strokes with the flat stick in this recent sample.
Glue Guys
Aaron Wise - $33
Wise enjoyed arguably the best season of his career in 2021-22, but here we have a chance to buy a little lower after he disappointed with a 64th-place finish at the Shriners Children's Open where he lost 4.8 strokes with his irons, so he might not pop as much in the short-term models. We know his approach play is typically a strong suit, and he's top-20 in both SG: Putting and three-putt avoidance over his past 36 rounds. He's typically a popular DFS option, but Wise's Yahoo rostership could be held somewhat in check with Tyrrell Hatton also listed at $33, given the latter placed T2 here at Congaree in 2021 and everyone loves a one-year course history illustration.
Tom Hoge - $28
Hoge has been hot to begin his 2022-23 campaign, securing three straight top-15s with finishes of T12-T4-T9 from the Fortinet to the ZOZO Championship where he carded just five total bogeys while ranking T5 in GIR percentage and eighth in scrambling. Over his past 24 measured rounds, Hoge sits fourth in sand-save percentage, fifth in Prox: 175-200, sixth in Opportunities Gained and 11th in SG: Approach.
Bargain Bin
Emiliano Grillo - $24
Grillo finally found something with the flat stick in early July, and he's now gained strokes putting in seven consecutive measured events since his runner-up effort at the John Deere Classic. He's coming off a fourth-place finish in Japan, having played his final 36 holes of the tournament in 11-under-par on the way to averaging five birdies per round. Grillo also was second in GIR percentage, T8 in driving accuracy and T9 in putts per GIR at Narashino Country Club last week.
Taylor Moore - $20
Moore has quietly ascended to a career-best 115th in the OWGR with just one missed cut throughout his last 12 starts. He just tied for 12th at the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP, where he hit 75 percent of the greens in regulation en route to 18 total birdies. Prior to the Shriners Children's Open, he had gained strokes around the green in six consecutive events, and he's second in Prox: 175-200 over his past 12 measured rounds.
