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The 2019 Desert Classic is set to play out at its annual three-course rotation of La Quinta Country Club, PGA West’s Nicklaus Tournament Course and The Stadium Course at PGA West in La Quinta, Calif.
The cut will be made after 54 holes with the fourth and final round played at the Stadium Course.
Here are my top 20 fantasy picks for this week’s Desert Classic.
20. Sungjae Im: The 20-year-old has been great off the tee in his rookie season and is coming off a T-16 at the Sony Open, where he shot 64-65-68 in the final three rounds.
19. Si Woo Kim: Finished T-9 in his lone Desert Classic appearance and ranks 19th on Tour in birdie average this season.
18. Zach Johnson: T-7 at the RSM and two missed cuts this fall as Johnson looks to get back in the swing. Finished T-20 here in 2018.
17. Jason Dufner: The 2016 champion is coming off a MDF at the Sony, but should capitalize on the good vibes in Palm Springs.
16. Luke List: Couple of T-4 finishes this fall after the best season of his career, which included $2.7 million in earnings.
15. Aaron Wise: Disappointing T-27 at the Tournament of Champions, but finished T-17 here last year and ranks first on Tour at 5.83 birdies per round.
14. Kevin Kisner: A final-round 73 spoiled an otherwise solid week at the Sony.
13. Hudson Swafford: Picked up his lone Tour win here in 2017 and is coming off a T-3 at the Sony Open. Hasn’t missed a cut since last July at Greenbrier.
12. Abraham Ancer: The 27-year-old doesn’t have a good history here, but he’s played well of late with a pair of top-10 showings this season.
11. Patton Kizzire: Hasn’t done much here the past three years, but a T-8 in Maui and T-13 at Sony Open prove he’s worth a long look.
10. Andrew Putnam: Coming off a great Hawaii swing with T-14 at the Tournament of Champions and solo second at the Sony.
9. Lucas Glover: Finished inside the top 20 in all four starts this fall, including T-7 at the Shriners and T-11 at the RSM Classic.
8. Scott Piercy: Accuracy off the tee will bode well here, where he finished T-6 last year. Already has three top-10s this season.
7. Phil Mickelson: Missed the cut a year ago at what has traditionally been one of his best events. First time we’ve seen him in action since his win over Tiger Woods in Las Vegas.
6. Adam Hadwin: Nothing special with a T-57 at the Sony, but Hadwin owns this event with finishes of T-3, solo second and T-6 over the last three years.
5. Chez Reavie: Finished T-3 at the Sony Open and has made all six cuts this season, breaking out of a nasty mid-summer slump.
4. Patrick Cantlay: First start of the new year for Cantlay, who was top 10 in three of four fall starts and finished solo second at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.
3. Charles Howell III: T-8 at the Sony and has played well in his last three starts here with a T-20, T-12 and T-11.
2. Justin Rose: World No. 1 begins a new year with new clubs in the desert coming off five straight top-5 finishes on Tour.
1. Jon Rahm: Defending champ is also looking for second win in three starts coming off his Hero World Challenge victory.
