Fantasy Advice
British Open 2023: 7 sleepers who could make you money this week
The Open Championship returns this week to Royal Liverpool, a formidable test of ball-striking and shotmaking that boasts a list of winners who are among the game's greatest champions.
Proven major champions and contenders are probably safer plays this week, with household names likely to rise to the top of the leaderboard—but like most majors, there are likely to be a few lesser-known players who make some noise.
Among those names are likely sleepers who have a track record on the DP World Tour or Asian Tour, but are not as familiar to more casual American golf fans.
Let’s take a look at some players we don’t see very often on the PGA Tour who are playing solid golf as of late and possess great DFS value.
Romain Langasque ($6,900 DraftKings)
Octavio Passos
Langasque has had an impressive summer, posting top-25 finishes in six of his last eight events, including two top-10s at the Italian Open and the British Masters. The Frenchman is gaining over 1.5 total strokes on the field over his last 36 rounds, per the RickRunGood.com golf database. He’ll be making his fourth appearance at The Open and is among the top 30 on the DP World Tour in driving distance, so he could prove to be a valuable play this week.
Jordan Smith ($6,800 DraftKings)
Octavio Passos
Smith is striking the ball with the best in the world right now, leading the European Tour in hitting greens in regulation at a 75 percent clip, according to europeantour.com. He’s gaining almost two strokes tee-to-green over his past 36 rounds, per RickRunGood.com, and his above average driving distance should be a weapon at Hoylake.
Alexander Bjork ($6,700 DraftKings)
ANDERS WIKLUND
Bjork is another DP World Tour stalwart to look out for at Royal Liverpool. The Swede has made every cut since September 2022 and has finished inside the top 30 in 10 of his past 11 starts. Bjork is gaining 1.26 strokes on approach shots during this hot stretch, which will be key to avoiding the treacherous bunkers and rough surrounding the greens at Hoylake.
Yannik Paul ($6,500 DraftKings)
Warren Little
With two top-10 finishes in his last four events, Paul has played his way into the conversation for the European Ryder Cup team. He narrowly trails Robert Macintyre sitting at fourth on the European points qualification list. The German will want to play well this week to be tapped by Luke Donald to join the squad in Rome.
Matthew Jordan ($6,500 DraftKings)
Richard Heathcote/R&A
Everybody loves a hometown hero. Jordan, a member of Royal Liverpool, will hit the opening tee shot to kick off The Open at his home course. It will be interesting to see how Jordan fares this week and showcases his knowledge, considering he’s played this course more than anyone in the field and once shot 62 on the links at Hoylake.
Daniel Hiller ($6,100 DraftKings)
Ross Kinnaird
Hiller is coming into The Open as one of the hottest golfers in the world. The New Zealander has three top-5 finishes in his past five events, including a maiden victory at the British Masters at The Belfry a few weeks ago. The 24-year-old is hitting 70 percent of greens in regulation over his last 36 rounds, per RickRunGood.com. Gaining over two strokes on the field tee-to-green over his last 12 rounds, his stellar ball-striking should continue to propel him to good results.
Richie Ramsay ($5,900 DraftKings)
Andrew Redington
Ramsay is another interesting name to target if you’re brave enough to dip into the newly formed $5,000 range on DraftKings this week. Ramsay is gaining strokes tee-to-green and on approach over his past 36 rounds, per RickRunGood.com, as well as boasting above average driving accuracy and green in regulation percentages. Three top-10s in his past six starts—including a made cut at last week’s Scottish Open—isn’t too bad either. He also has a top-25 finish in his most recent Open Championship appearance (2017).