If you are playing Golfchamps, South Africa’s premier online fantasy golf game, then you might want to join our pool and take our team’s selection advice.
Saffas at the US Open: Form guide for our super 9
How it works: Select four golfers with the proviso that their official World Golf Rankings add up to 100 (or more). Beware golfers who miss the cut, as you will receive the worst score from the field for rounds 3 and 4.
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US Open picks
Wade Pretorius
Dustin Johnson: A ‘better than most’ record at Pebble Beach (two wins and two seconds). I’m well aware of DJ’s ‘struggles’ at Majors. Only one in the bag. But don’t forget he nearly gave Brooks Koepka a fright at Bethpage, and missed a putt on the 72nd hole at Augusta that would’ve put him into a playoff with Tiger Woods. If it’s horses for courses, then DJ is the pedigree pick.
Rickie Fowler: Ah, Rickie. Broke my heart on more than a few occasions. I think he’ll go well this week. A very good putter, he comes with a long game that could see him challenge for his first Major title. Or, you know, play well and make a few mistakes and still bank a top-2 or so finish. Good enough to contend in this game.
Jordan Spieth: Turned the corner, I say. Three consecutive top-10 finishes to go with is ability to play well in the biggest events makes him one to watch, not only in this fantasy game, but to win the thing outright.
Erik van Rooyen: On current form and Major experience, there’s little to suggest he will struggle to make the cut. SA’s best at both last year’s Open Championship and last month’s PGA Championship, you could say he’s flying a little under the local radar when it comes to a patriotic pick. Plus he helps boost my team past the 100 mark.
Gary Lemke
Rory McIlroy: Could not have been more impressive in winning the Canadian Open with 67, 66, 64, 61. Will be a popular choice.
Jordan Spieth: The putter is glowing red again and with that comes confidence. Can continue where he left off at Bethpage Black.
Hideki Matsuyama: Has proven ultra consistent this season, not missing a cut in 13 events. Get into the weekend and take it from there.
Henrik Stenson: Might come across as an unlikely winner but after an indifferent run of form had a top 10 at the Canadian Open last week.
John Goliath
Brooks Koepka: Only a fool will bet against this brute doing the ‘three-peat’ at Pebble Beach. The big-hitting American is ‘Bruce Banner’ in normal events on the PGA Tour, but turns into the Hulk when he tees it up in the Majors. Winning four of the last eight Majors makes him the hottest golfer on the planet. Pebble Beach may not particularly suit his game (he has only one professional appearance at this venue), but he has the ability to overcome this and bend it to his will. Just ask the patrons who watched him win the PGA Championship at Bethpage Black.
Phil Mickelson: ‘Lefty’ will probably sell a kidney for a US Open title to complete his personal career slam. He has had his fair share of heartache trying to win this event, with six second-place finishes. Unfortunately, because of his love-hate relationship with his driver, Mickelson has battled to seal the deal. You rarely win a US Open from the rough. However, Pebble Beach is one of his favourites, having won six AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am titles, the latest of which coming earlier this year. He has also finished T4 in 2010 and T16 in 2000 in this event at Pebble Beach. At 30-1, he is very good value for the outright win.
Adam Scott: The smooth-swinging Australian has found his groove with the putter after it derailed his game following the anchor ban in January 2016. He normally hits it straight and finds of a lot of greens, which is crucial to win a US Open. If you can avoid the devilish rough, you’re in with a shot. Making the putts, though, is key. The greens are going to be lightning fast, while some of the pin placements will test the players’ ability to match the speed with the line. If Scott can do that well, he will be right there in the mix on Sunday.
Martin Kaymer: At 80-1, Kaymer is a long shot, and a mere shadow of the player who won the US Open at Pinehurst in 2014. But he has found some form of late, finishing third at the Memorial after having the 54-hole lead. Crucial bogeys on the home stretch in the final round tripped him up, but he looked really good for the majority of the event. The German normally has a great temperament, having holed the winning putt at the Ryder Cup at Medinah in 2012, and if he can get his game to hold up, he has an outside chance to win his second title.
Juandre Joubert
