With just three more stops on the PGA Tour’s Fall Series, the Tour turns its attention to Mexico for this week’s WWT Championship.
Last year was the first year this event was held at the El Cardonal at Diamante, the first Tiger Woods’ designed golf course to be played on the PGA Tour.
This event was previously staged at El Camaleon in Mayakoba but due to the venue being added to the LIV roster for 2023, the PGA Tour has made the move to the Woods’ designed El Cardonal at Diamante Cabo San Lucas.
This event is the fifth-of-seven events in the FedEx Cup Fall Series and time is running out for some Tour hopefuls to secure exemption for the 2024 season and additionally, plant themselves within the rankings for invitations to signature events and majors.
There are 500 FedEx Cup points up for grabs for the winner.
The Field
In previous years, this would be the first event of the season where we would see some of the bigger names of the Tour.
We’ve seen players such as Scottie Scheffler, Viktor Hovland, Justin Thomas, Rickie Fowler and others make an appearance at this event but without any form of incentive for those already secured for the upcoming season, they’ll remain idle.
With that being said, we’ll continue on with fields lacking the premier names of the PGA Tour. Throughout the Fall Series, we’ve seen sprinklings of premier names but outside of Cameron Young, this field lacks that.
Notable names teeing it up this week alongside Young are Max Greyserman, Beau Hossler, Harry Hall, Maverick McNealy, J.J. Spaun, Lucas Glover, Matti Schmid, Ben Griffin and Doug Ghim.
Erik van Rooyen won last year’s edition at the El Cardonal and will return this week to defend his title.
The Course
El Cardonal at Diamante Cabo San Lucas in Mexico plays as a Par 72 at 7,452 yards on the scorecard.
As previously mentioned, this was the first golf course designed by Woods and in turn, will be the first course designed by Woods to make an appearance on the PGA Tour schedule.
This course was opened in 2014 and was designed by Woods in hopes to mirror some of the courses he played in Southern California as a child.
It sits on a stunning piece of property as it is positioned atop a hill overlooking the deep-blue Pacific Ocean.
The course plays linear to the Pacific Ocean as almost every hole plays downhill towards the ocean or uphill away from it.
The land the course sits on is naturally uneven and undulating. Due to this, there won’t be many flat lies to be found on this course. The ball too can go either direction once it hits the ground.
The course is wall-to-wall Paspalum and is described to play firm and fast. However, with the course being Paspalum, which is arguably the most grippy grass golfers will see, there won’t be many opportunities for rollouts and additional distance from shots, even on downhill lies.
El Cardonal does come in at 7,452 yards on the scorecard as previously mentioned but due to the up-and-down hilly nature of the course, the distance on the scorecard is far from what it’ll actually play at.
There is a 228 foot difference in elevation from the highest point of the golf course to the lowest.
The fairways are very wide on this course as Tiger kept the typical resort guest in mind. These fairways average about 60 feet in width.
Although wide, the fairways do feature many in-play bunkers, including centerline ones, that are in the landing zones for long-bombers off the tee.
It is also important for golfers to find the correct area of the fairways to allow them to go pin hunting. If golfers find themselves on the wrong side of the fairway, they'll be forced to aim towards the fat parts of the green, well away from the pin.
Additionally, trouble can be found if a golfer is to miss the fairways. There is no rough featured here this week but instead, the fairways are flanked by the desert arroyo. Some areas, mostly on the front nine, are mostly sandy waste areas without much desert vegetation. Other areas, mainly on the back nine, are full of thick cactus bushes and other desert vegetation that could very well cause unplayable lies.
Along with the wide fairways, the greens are also very large as they average 8,300 square feet in area.
The greens are also Pasplaum and are both very undulating and contoured which makes them very difficult to putt on.
The greenside surroundings may be the strongest line of defense this course has to offer. They are very difficult to get up-and-down from.
The greenside bunkers are boldly edged and sit well below the putting surface as well. Additionally, these greens are surrounded by short grass with mounds, hallows and collection areas.
In terms of approach shots, it is expected that 22.2-percent will come from 125-150 yards, 27.8-percent from 175-200 and 16.7% from 225-plus yards.
The Weather
As of the time of writing this, the weather could not be more ideal for golf this week. There is currently a zero-chance of precipitation across all four days as temperatures will range from 79-to-81 degrees. Winds will be at the highest on Thursday at 15 miles-per-hour before settling to 11 miles-per-hour on Friday and ten miles-per-hour across the weekend. In all, ideal golfing conditions on all four days.
Key Stats
Strokes Gained: Approach (SG: APP)
Strokes Gained: Off the Tee / Average Driving Distance
Sand Saves Percentage
Strokes Gained: Putting
Strokes Gained: Around the Green
Scrambling
Proximity to the Hole from 125-150 Yards
Proximity to the Hole from 175+ Yards
Birdie or Better Percentage
DFS Suggestions
$10,000+
I’m going to the top of the board to kick this off with Max Greyserman ($10,400.) He is currently second on Tour in SG: PUTT, 14th in birdie or better percentage, 17th in proximity to the hole from 125-150 yards, 19th in average driving distance, 51st in scrambling, 55th in proximity to the hole from 175-plus yards, 63rd in SG: OTT, 86th in sand saves percentage, 104th in SG: APP and 125th in SG: ATG. He’s fresh off a T2nd at the ZOZO Championship. Prior to that he placed T28th at the BMW Championship, T33rd at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, second at the Wyndham Championship, second at the 3M Open and T13th at the Barracuda Championship. Dating back to the U.S. Open in June his worst finish was the T33rd at the FedEx St. Jude Championship. That’s ten consecutive events of placing T33rd or better including three runner up performances.
$9,000-$9,900
Kicking off this price range is Harry Hall ($9,200.) We last saw Hall at the ZOZO Championship two weeks back where he finished T13th. Prior to that he placed T9th at the Shriners Children's Open and T35th at the Black Desert Championship. It wasn’t that long again when he claimed his maiden PGA Tour victory at the ISCO Championship. He also recently placed T12th at the Betfred British Masters and T18th at the BMW PGA Championship on the DP World Tour. He is currently fourth on Tour in birdie or better percentage, fifth in SG: ATG, 31st in sand saves percentage, 33rd in proximity to the hole from 125-150 yards, 40th in SG: PUTT, 44th in scrambling, 75th in SG: APP, 85th in average driving distance, 134th in SG: OTT and 143rd in proximity to the hole from 175-plus yards. He’s also on my betting card to win at +2500. Also consider Matti Schmid ($9,600.) The young German has been on a tear as of late during the PGA Tour Fall Series. He placed T3rd in his last appearance at the Shriners Children's Open. He also placed fifth at the Black Desert Championship and T16th at the Sanderson Farms Championship. He played this event a year ago where he placed T38th. Schmid is currently seventh on Tour in proximity to the hole from 175-plus yards, 20th in birdie or better percentage, 29th in average driving distance, 43rd in sand saves percentage, 44th in SG: OTT, 45th in SG: PUTT, 92nd in scrambling, 100th in SG: APP, 148th in proximity to the hole from 125-150 yards and 150th in SG: ATG. He is also on my betting card to win at +2500.
$8,000-$8,900
Leading the way in this price range is Jhonattan Vegas ($8,800.) Vegas is fresh off a T11th in his last outing at the ZOZO Championship. He’s now made the cut in ten consecutive events dating back to the RBC Canadian Open. He also recently placed T23rd at the Sanderson Farms Championship and won the 3M Open back in late July. Vegas is currently eighth on Tour in both SG: OTT and average driving distance, 19th in birdie or better percentage, 22nd in proximity to the hole from 175-plus yards, 23rd in SG: APP, 37th in proximity to the hole from 125-150 yards, 127th in scrambling, 139th in SG: ATG, 150th in SG: PUTT and 161st in sand saves percentage. Also consider Tom Hoge ($8,300.) Hoge hasn’t been in the best form as of late but did kick off his Fall Series with a T7th at the Procore Championship. He also recently placed T13th at the BMW Championship and T29th at the TOUR Championship. Hoge is currently first on Tour in proximity to the hole from 125-150 yards, fourth in SG: APP, eighth in proximity to the hole from 175-plus yards, 26th in birdie or better percentage, 89th in SG: PUTT, 118th in both SG: OTT and scrambling, 122nd in sand saves percentage, 132nd in average driving distance and 151st in SG: ATG.
$7,000-$7,900
The winner of the first Fall Series event, the Procore Championship, in Patton Kizzire ($7,600) is my first play in this price range. He is currently fifth on Tour in birdie or better percentage, 15th in both SG: APP and proximity to the hole from 175-plus yards, 17th in sand saves percentage, 39th in proximity to the hole from 125-150 yards, 59th in scrambling, 78th in average driving distance, 95th in SG: ATG, 116th in SG: PUTT and 120th in SG: OTT. He played in this event a season ago where he placed T15th. Following his victory at the Procore Championship he placed T11th at the Sanderson Farms Championship before falling out of form over his last two events. However, he’s a recent winner for a reason. Also consider Jacob Bridgeman ($7,800.) Bridgeman is currently sixth on Tour in SG: PUTT, eighth in birdie or better percentage, 19th in proximity to the hole from 175-plus yards, 41st in scrambling, 53rd in SG: ATG, 58th in sand saves percentage, 83rd in proximity to the hole from 125-150 yards, 88th in SG: APP, 90th in average driving distance and 147th in SG: OTT. He placed T29th in his last outing at the Shriners Children’s Open and placed T11th at the Sanderson Farms Championship on the Fall Series. He also placed T12th at the Wyndham Championship and T19th at the 3M Open.
$6,900-
In a field like this, finding plays in this price range is tough but I do like what Chez Reavie ($6,700) brings to the table this week. He made the cut at this event a season ago. The three-time PGA Tour winner has made two cuts in four events on the Fall Series as well. He is currently 18th on Tour in sand saves percentage, 23rd in proximity to the hole from 175-plus yards, 24th in SG: APP, 44th in proximity to the hole from 125-150 yards, 61st in SG: ATG, 88th in scrambling, 133rd in birdie or better percentage, 149th in SG: PUTT, 163rd in SG: OTT and 169th in average driving distance. Also consider Roger Sloan ($6,700.) Outside of a missed cut in his last outing at the Shriners Children’s Open, Sloan made the cut in four consecutive events, including three stops on the Fall Series. He placed T12th at the Wyndham Championship and T37th at the Procore Championship. Sloan is currently 17th on Tour in proximity to the hole from 125-150 yards, 24th in scrambling, 56th in SG: ATG, 58th in SG: PUTT, 94th in SG: APP, 115th in birdie or better percentage, 135th in sand saves percentage, 137th in proximity to the hole from 175-plus yards, 147th in average driving distance and 152nd in SG: OTT.
Betting Card
Harry Hall (+2500)
Matti Schmid (+2500)
Michael Kim (+5000)
Carson Young (+8000)
Michael Kim (+5000)
Kim has been out of form for a while but bounced back in his last outing with a T5th at the Shriners Children’s Open. When Kim is on, he’s one of those guys that goes from multiple consecutive missed cuts to top 20 performances. In the cuts he’s made this season, he placed top 25 or better eight times. He made the cut in 14 events but placed top 25 in eight of them and top ten in two of them. He also placed T23rd here a season ago. On the Tour, Kim is currently fifth in proximity to the hole from 175-plus yards, sixth in birdie or better percentage, 38th in SG: APP, 39th in sand saves percentage, 66th in proximity to the hole from 125-150 yards, 67th in average driving distance, 91st in SG: PUTT, 93rd in SG: ATG, 140th in scrambling and 149th in SG: OTT.
Carson Young (+8000)
Young placed ninth at this event last year. He’s also made the cut in three-of-his-last-four events, including a T11th at the Black Desert Championship. He also placed T5th at the John Deere Classic back in July and T14th at the RBC Canadian Open back in June. Young is currently 32nd on Tour in proximity to the hole from 175-plus yards, 33rd in proximity to the hole from 125-150 yards, 36th in both SG: OTT and birdie or better percentage, 68th in SG: APP, 70th in sand saves percentage, 80th in SG: PUTT, 111th in scrambling, 126th in average driving distance and 164th in SG: ATG.
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