Fantasy Lookahead: David Hearn seek second straight podium finish in good form
Still in search of his first victory on the PGA Tour, Hearn finished third at the 2015 RBC Canadian Open. Like this year's tournament, last year's event was held at Glen Abbey Golf Club, a short drive from Hearn's hometown of Brampton, Ontario.
While Hearn's 2016 season has been largely unimpressive with just 16 made cuts in 24 events and a lone top-10 finish, he enters this week with six consecutively made cuts, including 12th-place finish at the Quicken Loans National. His season-best ninth-place showing came at The RSM Classic in November.
Course History
As stated above, Hearn finished third at last year's event. After entering Sunday with a three-stroke lead over runner-up Bubba Watson and a four-stroke lead over eventual winner Jason Day, Hearn closed a round of even par, 72. He finished 44th at Glen Abbey in 2013 and 58th in 2008.
While Hearn has the advantage of familiarity with the course, he also faces more pressure than at any other tour event as the hometown hero.
Statistical Breakdown
Per FantasyInsiders, the following stats have been strengths of previous winners at Glen Abbey Golf Club:
Scrambling Percentage (SCR)
Par 5 Scoring Average (P5S)
Birdie or Better Percentage (BoB)
Here's how Hearn has fared in the selected statistics so far this season:
| SCR | P5S | BoB |
|---|---|---|
| 42 | 119 | 74 |
Hearn has struggled off the tee this season, losing an average of .112 strokes per round to the field. He has been an accurate driver, hitting 67.27 percent of fairways, but he ranks just 171st in driving distance. This has played into his poor results on Par 5s and his overall scoring, where he ranks just 61st at 70.779 strokes per round.
Daily Fantasy
Hearn's high finish at last year's event has Hearn's salary at the upper end of the middle tier this week, and his ownership will likely be inflated as the top Canadian in the field. With his run of recent success, but no history of winning on the PGA, Hearn should be kept to cash-game consideration.
Season-Long Fantasy
Season-long owners should have a nearly full slate of starts from Hearn remaining, and there's little sense in trying to preserve them. With this being his marquee tournament, he can be deployed for Thursday morning, with his spot for the rest of the week dependent on performance.
Rounds one and four have been his best scoring rounds this season, while he struggles most in the third.