D+D REAL Czech Masters: Fantastic players to watch on the DP World Tour – Article

As the closing ceremony heads into the penultimate event – ​​the 10th D+D REAL Czech Masters, you can get up close and personal with the excitement of the DP World Tour by competing against golf fans from around the world in our official fantasy game.

To play Fantasy DP World Tour, click here.

This week in the Czech Republic, the final and global stages of the Race to Dubai draw to a close on the outskirts of Prague, and there’s more than just a trophy at stake.

Only this week's tournament and next week's Denmark Golf Championship remain before the 9-hole tournament begins, leading to the season finale of the DP World Tour Play-offs and DP World Tour Championship.

The Closing Ceremony champion will win $200,000 and qualify for the next nine events, while the top ten players in the Dubai competition at the end of the Global Swing (who have played in at least eight “regular” Global Swing events, excluding the Grand Slams and the co-sanctioned Genesis Scottish Open) will share a $1 million prize pool.

Romain Langasque was the highest ranked player in the week’s closing swing rankings, while Jesper Svensson took that honor from the Race to Dubai ranking in partnership with Rolex.

Todd Clements returns to defend his title, Matthew Jordan and Dan Brown shine from the Open, and major champions Francesco Molinari, Danny Willett and Jason Dufner will tee off at the new venue, PGA National OAKS Prague.

If you haven't registered yet, you can sign up to play the 2024 DP World Tour official fantasy game here and submit your six-player team before the first round of matches begins on Thursday.

The 2024 season champion will win a spot in next year’s DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, receive instruction from a DP World Tour professional and play a round of golf on the Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates. To learn more about this amazing prize and other prizes, read here.

Fantasy Insights: Jordan is currently the most popular player drafted this week, appearing on more than half of the teams, with in-form French player Langasque (44%) the second most popular player.

Ryo Hisatsune would have made the FedEx Cup playoffs if he had birdied the final hole of the Wyndham Championship on Sunday, but he bogeyed the 18th hole in North Carolina and returned across the Atlantic to become your third-most selected player (39%).

Here we pick out three players who performed well this week and are worth considering when selecting your fantasy team.

Favourite – Tom McGibbin

McKibbin is a regular on this column and with his outstanding consistency he is rightfully the bookmakers' favourite to lift the trophy this week.

The Northern Irish player has missed the cut just twice all season, neither of which came in a major, as he tied for 41st in his major debut at the U.S. Open and tied for 66th last time out at the British Open.

He has six top-10 finishes in his last nine regular DP World Tour events, including a play-off loss to opponent Marcel Simm at the Italian Open hosted by Emilia-Romagna.

Still, he’s only been featured on just over 21% of teams so far this week, so picking him might give you a head start over your opponent.

Horse – Romain Langasque

There is no doubt that the outstanding Frenchman should also achieve another great result after his victory at the 2020 ISPS HANDA Welsh Open.

The 2021 season may have been disappointing, but he had a strong spring and summer of 2022, posting five top-10s in ten tournaments and five more top-10s in 2023, as well as a runner-up finish at the Italian Open.

It took him 11 starts this season to finish in the top 10, but he’s done so in four of his last seven, including a second-place finish at the Sodeo Open and a best third-place finish at the Rolex Series Genesis Scottish Open.

Langasque’s curve may not be steep, but it’s going in only one direction, and with 17th place in the Race to Dubai and fourth in the closing race, it looks like it will soon be in the winner’s circle.

Wild Card – Sami Välimäki

The popular Finn makes his DP World Tour regular season debut this season, having so far played mainly on the PGA Tour as a dual member.

His record of failing to qualify 11 times in 19 tournaments in 2024 may not be attractive, but one of his cuts resulted in a runner-up finish, and he arrived in the Czech Republic with that highlight after representing his country at the Olympics.

He’s often a hit-or-miss competitor, finishing 159th and 100th in the 2020 Race to Dubai, where he finished 11th, before jumping to 12th last season with a win and two second-place finishes.

While his form may not be at its best, his ability to find it and his overall level of play has been proven time and time again, and considering he’s in just over 6% of teams, would you be willing to bet on him finding it this week?

Review – 152nd British Open

Xander Schauffele won his second major of the season at Royal Troon Golf Club, bringing 185 points to the team, with only 15.99% of players selecting him to join their fantasy team and less than 3% choosing him as captain.

Our favourite Rory McIlroy failed to make the cut for the first time this season, disappointing 33% of the players (26.08% of whom used him as captain), while in-form Ludwig Oberg also failed to make the cut, being the most picked player by 45.96% of the teams. Disappointingly, wildcard Matthew Southgate also failed to make the weekend.