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U.S. Open Power Rankings

U.S. Open Power Rankings

It appears to be the year of Rory McIlroy’s unquestionable return to elite status, as he ran away with the RBC Canadian Open last Sunday with a final-round 61 that eclipsed the field by seven shots. The win was his second of the season and also his PGA Tour-leading 10th top-10 finish. He moved up to third in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) and second in the FedExCup. He will look to pile on this weekend at Pebble Beach, where this year’s third major takes place.

There are many storylines this week as we head out to California for some West Coast golf. Pebble Beach will host its sixth U.S. Open. Graeme McDowell won here in 2010, and Tiger Woods dominated with a 15-shot advantage in 2000. Woods will seek his PGA Tour-record 82nd win this week and major number 16. Phil Mickelson will return to Pebble still in search of his first ever U.S. Open and the Grand Slam. He has won on this course five times and has finished second in the U.S. Open six times. Will it all come together this week for the 48-year-old? Oh, and this guy Brooks Koepka will look for his fifth major in the last 24 months and a record-tying three straight U.S. Open titles. Also, Dustin Johnson has opened Pebble Beach in the last few years and will seek his second U.S. Open. Let’s get to it as the world’s best head to one of the tour’s most iconic tracks.

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15. Brandt Snedeker
Snedeker makes this list purely based on course experience, and boy does he love Pebble. He has won here twice in 2013 and 2015. He’s a very sneaky player who has historically thrived on Poa Annua greens and had a nice T4 on them last week in Canada. Look for Snedeker to sneak up on this headboard and make some noise. Sleeper alert.

14. Matt Kuchar
Mr. Consistency knocked a few players off with better course fits in order to be squeezed onto this list. The FedExCup leader has missed only one cut this season and is nearing $6 million in earnings. Second to McIlroy with eight top-10 finishes, Kuchar is also sixth in total scoring and third in greens in regulation percentage.

13. Tommy Fleetwood
Fleetwood will look to build on his reputation as a big tournament player by finally breaking through on U.S soil. The Brit has done just about everything to win in the States and will look to better his second-place finish last year by one spot. He tied for 45th in his inaugural run around Pebble this winter and is fourth on tour in SG (Shots Gained): Off the Tee and eighth in both SG: Total and SG: Tee-to-Green.

12. Hideki Matsuyama
Matsuyama is having another consistent year and will look to continue his fine form in majors. Coming off of a sixth-place finish at the Memorial and a T16 at the PGA Championship, he will look to continue his fine form. He finished second at the 2017 U.S. Open and is one of the best iron players on tour, checking in at sixth in SG: Approach the Green. Although he struggles with the putter, Matsuyama will likely be in the mix if he can putt above average.

11. Justin Rose
Rose has scuffled a bit as of late, but last year’s FedExCup champion always poses a threat in majors, and I expect this week to be no different. The 2013 U.S Open champ is coming off a T13 at the Memorial and checks all the boxes at Pebble. Tenth on tour in SG: Total, he’s a great contrarian play.

10. Jon Rahm
Rahm cooled a bit as of late, but that can be easily attributed to over-scheduling and travel. While critics may say he is not ready to win a major championship, his performance in recent marque events proves otherwise. Following his win at the Zurich and another top-10 showing at Augusta, Rahm will once again be a name to watch. His driver will be his biggest asset this week, as he ranks fifth on tour in SG: Off the Tee and 18th in Driving Distance. He makes a ton of birdies, too, ranking 15th in Birdie Average.

9. Adam Scott
Smoking hot as of late, Scott is still scratching his head wondering what more he had to do to win the Memorial. Four top 10s dating back to the Farmers Insurance Open show the former major champion’s game is rounding into form. He placed ninth and fourth at the 2014 and 2015 U.S Open, respectively, as well. Look for Scott, who is fourth on tour in SG: Total and seventh in SG: Tee to Green, to keep up his consistent play at Pebble this weekend.

8. Xander Schauffele
This guy is a gamer. Starting the week at 10th in the OWGR and fourth in the FedExCup, Schauffele seeks his fifth top-10 finish of the season. He has performed well in major tournaments, too, with a 16th at the PGA and second place at the Masters this year already. The 25-year-old is 12th on tour in SG: Total, 17th in SG: Tee to Green, and 17th in SG: Off the tee while making the 15th-most birdies on average.

7. Rickie Fowler
The polarizing, orange-clad Fowler has won over many fans but has yet to legitimize his hype in the form of a major championship win. He has been close before with a T2 in 2014 and a fifth in 2017. Fowler is having another rock-solid year with a win at the Waste Management and five top-10 showings. He’s 13th in SG: Total and 15th in SG: Putting.

6. Jordan Spieth
It seems like a long time ago, but Spieth was the 2015 U.S. Open champion. While he has scuffled some this season, he has strung some good starts together recently with three consecutive top 10s. He should be a popular pick this week, and for good reason, given his somewhat suppressed price tag. Spieth won at Pebble Beach in 2016 and has a knack for getting up for majors. He’s up to third on tour in SG: Putting, so play him with confidence for the first time in a long time.

5. Patrick Cantlay
One of the hottest players in the field this week, Cantlay is fresh off his win at the Memorial Tournament and a T3 at the PGA. He placed in the top 10 in four of his last five events and checks in at sixth in the FedExCup. He ranked 35th at Pebble last year and is third on Tour in SG: Total, second in SG: Tee-to-Green, and fifth in Birdie Average. He might be the most balanced player in the field, so invest with confidence.

4. Tiger Woods
The big cat lands outside of the top three despite winning his 15th major this year and returning to the site of his memorable 15-shot romp in 2000. This is risky to not put Tiger higher, but I simply can’t look away from what these other players bring to the table. Woods is seventh on tour in SG: Total, ninth in SG: Tee to Green, eighth in SG: Around the Green, and first in Greens in Regulation Percentage. On the hunt to catch Jack Nicklaus’ record for 18 majors, Woods will likely be in the mix come Sunday.

3. Dustin Johnson
Johnson is a horse for this course, not to mention the number two ranked player in the world and a former U.S. Open champ. DJ has won here twice and has four top-five finishes in his last five trips around Pebble at the AT&T. In his last four cuts made at the U.S. Open, he was inside the top five. He’s second on tour in SG: Total, fourth in SG: Tee to Green, third in SG: Off the Tee, and first on tour in Scoring Average at 69.13. 

2. Rory McIlroy
If it weren’t for Koepka, the smoking hot McIlroy would be an easy candidate to headline this list. As a long, consistent driver of the golf ball, the only real knock would be his head. Which player will show up this week? One who joked that he would be “hungover” after his RBC Canadian win last weekend? Kidding aside, he checks all the boxes and is among an elite group with high expectations this week. He’s still first on tour in SG: Tee-to-Green, SG: Total, and SG: Off the Tee.

1. Brooks Koepka
Looking for his second major in a row and fifth in two years, Koepka stays in the top spot until he proves otherwise.  He’s the number one ranked player in the world after his recent win at the PGA. This course fits him nicely, too. McIlroy places 11th on Tour in SG: Approach the Green, 12th in SG: Tee to Green, and 14th in SG: Total. Do not sleep on him; this is a “you go down with the ship” scenario if there ever was one.

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Corwin Parker is a correspondent at FantasyPros. For more from Corwin, check out his archive and follow him @Corwin_Parker.

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