Going all the way back to my preseason primer for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by PGA TOUR Superstore, but especially early in Segment 1, I gushed about the introduction of the captain. It quickly proved to be an easy way to extend leads or narrow deficits without as much concern for roster pushes as previous iterations of the game. It was evident that it was the right dose of an infusion of scoring without forfeiting the integrity of the other components of the game that make it fun to play. It’s not easy to add a dynamic element like that, and while it never hurts to add points to most fantasy games, it was important to strike the right balance.

Reflecting on that, with the Wyndham Championship contested this week, it can be amusing, but it has nothing to do with the last tournament with a cut in the FedExCup Regular Season. Rather, it’s because the three events that follow and comprise the FedExCup Playoffs reward quadruple the FedExCup points to all qualifiers, so FedExCup bonus points for the fantasy game are also quadrupled. In other words, it could feel like it almost doesn’t matter how you fare at Sedgefield Country Club, given the insurance of hundreds upon hundreds of points for winners who are captains in the postseason, because their FedExCup bonus points are eight times what the winner of the Wyndham will yield.

But there’s no such thing as easing off the pedal, and certainly not with the finish line in view. Still, fantasy scoring at Sedgefield will be impactful for a par 70, so continue to rely on the strategies that got you here.

Aiding aggressive plans, timely rest among the haymakers has eliminated a very high percentage of the golfers on whom you will be relying in the Playoffs, this despite the fact that nine of the guys inside the top 30 of the FedExCup are scheduled to peg it at the Wyndham. It’s just that arguably none of them will be on a short list of those for whom you’ll want three starts remaining upon arrival. (You can sort the field using FedExCup ranking by clicking on RANK on the desktop here. So, long-range planning to end-load charges at the TOUR Championship is not disrupted this week.

If you’re in a position to ration starts for anyone in play this week, review the FedExCup Playoffs scenarios for what every golfer in the field at Sedgefield needs to do to qualify. At 173rd in the FedExCup, Webb Simpson, who happens to be the all-time earnings leader of the tournament, is the lowest-ranked player who can gain entry with a victory. Everyone below him is shut out.

Looking ahead to next week, in addition to the weekly Power Rankings, I’ll be writing my annual Power Rankings for the Playoffs. For the second straight year, this year’s edition will double as my entry for Perfect 30, the stand-alone fantasy game designed specifically for the Playoffs. With Starting Strokes having been eliminated, there likely will be a greater dispersion of selections among the entries. Stay tuned!

Captain

Nicolai Højgaard … The No. 1 in my Power Rankings has video-game numbers in the macro, but now he’s angling strongly into his third appearance with a T24, T4 and T14 as his most recent results. Also placed T14 at Sedgefield with four sub-70s in 2023.

Without a clear-cut captain in the field, chasers like me benefit, but the same random outcomes that can swing in our direction are just as likely to backfire. Yet, with dispersions among captains likely to be vast, it’s not such a bad place to be as we position ourselves for the FedExCup Playoffs.

Other considerations

• Ben Griffin ... No. 2 in the Power Rankings and no doubt the real deal. And on top of a torrid six-start run from mid-May through all of June, he’s 2-for-3 at Sedgefield with a solo fourth (2022) and a T7 (2024). He’s also a native of North Carolina, so what’s not to love? The cynic in me “sees” a version of J.T. Poston, who is also an original of the Tarheel State. Poston has been around longer and presents a different skill set, but neither is immune to unusually extended dry spells that defy all of the reasons why they often are attractive. In general fantasy terms, both are more valuable in long-term formats than weeklies.
• Matt Fitzpatrick ... Sets up similar to Højgaard in that their recent form is more impressive than their course record, but fellow international talent, Tom Kim, proved in 2022 that experience is not required to prevail at Sedgefield. (Kim hasn’t returned for a second start until this year.) Fitzpatrick is No. 3 in my Power Rankings.

Rounding out the roster

I have multiple starts remaining for all but Fitzpatrick, so I’ll probably slow-play the Brit. He’s 43rd in the FedExCup and has a pair of top 20s at TPC Southwind, site of the opening leg of the FedExCup Playoffs.

My starters

• Pierceson Coody
• Lucas Glover
• Ben Griffin
• Nicolai Højgaard (C)

My bench

• Keegan Bradley (1)
• Matt Fitzpatrick (2)

Careful

For almost every tournament, a usually impressive subset of the field warrants avoiding, and it might be represented in my Power Rankings, which is not written in the context of any fantasy golf format. In this section, I single out those who demand a pause and why.

Aaron Rai ... At last check, the Englishman was the 12th-most owned at about 14 percent. That’s higher than expected in a vacuum, but he’s the defending champion, thus the boost. His skill set obviously is rewarded at Sedgefield, but only if he finishes the job with the putter. That club has been holding him back throughout 2025, during which he’s managed only one top 10. Most recently, he’s connected for only one top-30 finish in six starts. There’s just not enough juice to warrant a roster spot.

Hideki Matsuyama ... He’s No. 11 in my Power Rankings and fourth-most owned at about 35 percent, but inconsistency throughout most of the season jumps higher off the page because his baseline is at an elite level. And while he rose to a top 20 in his last two starts, he’s also 0-for-3 at Sedgefield since 2019. If it were early in the season and you need to be more strategic, then there’s an argument to burn a start on him as a contrarian likely to cash, but in the absence of chalk this week, he’s nonessential.

Jordan Spieth ... At 50th in the FedExCup and having made only three starts thus far in Segment 3, there’s almost no reason to holster him for the postseason if you just can’t help yourself. One-third of the gamers who have saved rosters list him as the fifth-most owned. And while he turned the page on his neck and pain in his upper back from a month ago, he did little at The Open Championship (T40) to restore our faith. Yes, I’m on record for ignoring poor results in majors, but the same logic that applies to Matsuyama can be plugged in here. If you needed one more reason to convince you to abstain, Spieth’s only top-70 finish among three paydays in four trips to Sedgefield was way back in 2013 when he lost in a playoff.

Akshay Bhatia ... After co-leading the 3M Open entering the finale, he blew up for a 4-over 75 to finish T25, and it’s still his third-best result of the last four months. The plan for the lefty is simple. He’s 0-for-4 at Sedgefield, so course-history buffs already are shopping elsewhere (even though he’s owned by almost one-quarter of the gamers), but at 44th in the FedExCup, he’s guaranteed to qualify for the Playoffs. Should he deliver an impressive performance this week, then it’d be wise to consider piggybacking the momentum at TPC Southwind, where he placed T12 in his debut last year.

Returning to competition

Frankie Capan III ... To qualify for the FedExCup Playoffs, the rookie needs to win the Wyndham, but he’d likely settle for a steady performance across four rounds. He called it quits after an opening 78 at the 3M Open due to an injured wrist. (It wasn’t disclosed on which arm.) His only top 10 of the season was a solo third with Jake Knapp at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans.

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