Fantasy Lookahead: Seung-yul Noh returns to familiar course to end ugly slide
The 2016 PGA Tour season has not gone according to plan for Seung-yul Noh. The 24-year-old finished the 2015 season ranked 204th in the Official World Golf Rankings, and he has already dropped down to 239th this season. He has played in 16 events but made only 10 cuts.
Two of those missed cuts have come in his past four events, including an extremely weak field at the Puerto Rico Open in late March. His best finish of the season was a 17th at the CareerBuilder Challenge in January, and he has made just one other top-20 finish since then. The return to Avondale, Louisiana for the Zurich Classic of New Orleans comes at a perfect time.
Course History
Noh won the Zurich Classic of New Orleans in 2014, posting three consecutive rounds in the 60s to open the tournament before hanging on for the victory with a final-round 71. His final score of 19 under was good for a two-stroke victory over Andrew Svoboda and Robert Streb. It was his first and only PGA Tour win since debuting in 2012.
He has played in this event every year since his debut, though 2014 was his lone notable finish. He came 66th in 2012, missed the cut in 2013, and withdrew last season as part of a stretch of four consecutive tournaments without seeing the weekend.
His 2014 victory came as a surprise, as he withdrew from the Shell Houston Open as his previous event. He had made 11 consecutive cuts prior to the WD, but he had just one top-10 finish and two other top 20s. A shocking result this week cannot be ruled out solely due to to the locale.
Statistical Breakdown
Per FantasyInsiders, the following statistics have been common strengths of previous winners at TPC Louisiana:
Strokes Gained: Tee to Green (SGT2G)
Par 5 Scoring Average (P5S)
Proximity to Hole from 200-plus Yards (P200)
Here's how Noh has fared in these key stats thus far in 2016:
| SGT2G | P5S | P200 |
|---|---|---|
| 131 | 67 | 35 |
During his 2014 triumph, Noh was minus-1 on Par 3s, minus-13 on Par 4s and just minus-5 on Par 5s. He ranked 62nd on the week in total driving and 31st in ball striking. In the 2014 season as a whole he ranked 58th in SGT2G, 71st in P5S and 47th in P200. The stats aren't always essential for success, and Noh will be hoping that's the case for him once again.
Daily Fantasy
Noh's price has risen considerably heading into this week's DFS contests, as he'll be a popular selection as a prior winner. The price is still lower than it was in the weak field of the Puerto Rico Open, and he come in at the lower end of the middle tier.
The field is considerably stronger than it has been in previous weeks, with Jason Day, Justin Rose and Rickie Fowler all making an appearance. Defending Valero Texas Open champion, Charley Hoffman, will also be present and in search of a repeat victory.
Noh's recent form restricts him entirely to use in GPPs and his recent victory at this event may raise his ownership higher than it should be as a contrarian selection. A top-20 or top-10 finish would mitigate the ownership at his price.
Season-Long Fantasy
Noh is part of an extremely crowded C-List this week, where he ranks near the middle of the pack in terms of average fantasy points. His best rounds have been the fourth and the second, though he's struggled in the third. Fantasy players may want to leave him on the bench to begin the tournament but they should be ready to sub him in if he starts well and makes the weekend.