RSM Classic 2020 | PGA Tour

Just a few hours south of Augusta National lies a haven for golf fanatics called Sea Island. It has become a breeding ground for tour players with the likes of Patton Kizzire, JT Poston, Zach Johnson, Jonathan Byrd, Harris English, Joey Garber, Josh Teater, Michael Thompson, Hudson Swafford, Trey Mullinax, Kieth Mitchell, Matt Kuchar, Brandt Snedeker, and Brian Harman all residing or training in the community.

The resort boasts multiple courses of which we will see two in competition this week. The Seaside course and the Plantation course. Seaside is a par 70 playing just over 7000 yards along the shore with wide fairways and bermudagrass tee to green. The Plantation course is more inland, tree-lined, and plays at similar yardage but adds two extra par 5s making it a par 72. Every player will play each course once during the first two rounds with the weekend being played on the Seaside course.

A big field has gathered as 156 players will shoot for the title that 2019 champ Tyler Duncan currently holds. Charles Howell III, Austin Cook, Mackenzie Hughes, and Kevin Kisner round out the most recent winners.The winning score tends to reach around the -20 mark with a cutline hovering around -5. That line could waver either way this year with the new T-65 cutline and a bit of wind in the forecast.

With two different courses in play it’s best to keep things simple when looking at the numbers. Accuracy off the tee is generally important but the fairways are wide here and the rough generally isn't too thick. It is bermuda however and everyone knows bermudagrass can be a bitch! With that in mind I like Fantasy National’s Good Drives stat. It doesn't just factor in strokes gained off the tee but it measures players who make a green in regulation with their effort off the tee box.

I’m always looking at Opps Gained, SG: T2G, and BoB %. Putting on bermudagrass has been a big factor in a player’s finishing position here so that should carry some weight in your model and with the gnarly grass, I’ll look at scrambling this week as well. Finally, with 29 of the 72 holes the field will play this week between 400-450 yards, par 4 scoring in that range is worth looking into.