This article is part of our DraftKings PGA DFS Picks series.
Tshwane Open
Location: Waterkloof, South Africa
Course: Pretoria CC
Yardage: 7,081
Par: 71
Tournament Preview
The European Tour is in South Africa again this week, and for the fourth year in a row the Tshawne Open will be contested at Pretoria CC. It is a parkland course, with tight tree-lined fairways and small greens, and is also a shorter course with water on many holes. Thus, accuracy and ball striking will be at a premium this week. The leaderboards at this event over the years have been covered with locals, and more of the same should be expected this week.
Key Stats to Winning at Pretoria CC
Greens in Regulation
Driving Accuracy
Past Champions
2017 - Dean Burmester
2016 - Charl Schwartzel
2015 - George Coetzee
2014 - Ross Fisher
2013 - Dawie Van der Walt
DraftKings Picks (with odds)
George Coetzee, $11,700 - (9/1)
This is a home game for Coetzee, who is a member at Pretoria CC and knows the course well. He did miss the cut here last year, but won this tournament in 2015 and finished T14 in 2016. Coetzee was T8 last week at the Qatar Masters, with three rounds in the sixties. He is definitely more of a bomber than an accurate hitter off the tee, but his experience here should help greatly. Coetzee is also fantastic with his irons, hitting over 72 percent of greens in regulation this season.
Erik Van Rooyen, $9,900 - (25/1)
Van Rooyen was a pick last week and I like him even more this time around. He is another golfer who knows this course well, having played Pretoria CC while growing up. His course knowledge and skill set, along with his recent form, point to a high finish this week. He was T10 here in 2015 and his missed cut last year was during a patch when he was not playing well. Van Rooyen now leads the European Tour in greens in regulation and stroke average, both which are signs of good things to come for the South African.
Maximilian Kieffer, $7,700 - (50/1)
Kieffer was moving along nicely this season, making three straight cuts and finishing no lower than 32nd in any of those events, before missing the cut in Qatar last week. He did miss playing the weekend by just one stroke, however, so there is reason to believe he will bounce back this week. Kieffer finished T18 at Pretoria CC last year and was T30 in 2015. He is hitting over 65 percent of fairways and is almost 67 percent in greens in regulation.
Christiaan Bezuidenhout, $7,200 - (70/1)
The young South African enters this week making four of six cuts this season. Bezuidenhout finished T28 last week at Qatar Masters and T44 the week prior in Oman. He is ranked 29th on tour in driving accuracy and is hitting over 69 percent greens in regulation. Bezuidenhout finished T56 at Pretoria last year, but he figures This week should be much improved considering where his game is at now.
