Golf Rankings for RBC Heritage

Hoffman has been in great form recently, which was highlighted last week when he contended for four days at The Masters. Previously, Hoffman finished 4th at Riviera and 2nd at the Arnold Palmer, so his game is in the right place. Although his game doesn't fit Harbour Town on paper, he did post back-to-back top-10 finishes here in 2012-13. His iron play worries me a bit, but I'll give him a bump due to recent form. He's on the OHL Classic at Mayakoba, which is one of the comp courses I'm using this week.

Furyk is one of the course horses at Harbour Town, as you would suspect. He crushes Pete Dye layouts, and is one of the best scramblers and ball-strikers on Tour. He's won this event twice, and has posted five other top-8 finishes. His recent form hasn't been stellar, but something about this event and this course brings out the best in Furyk.

When looking at my true ball-striking model this week, Molinari ranks 5th. That's not a surprise, as the Italian has always been known as a great iron player. He should suit this course very well, although he's gone MC and 45th in two appearances. He made the cut last week at Augusta, and has strung together a bunch of top-20 finishes recently.

When looking at comparable courses to Harbour Town, the OHL Classic at Mayakoba comes to mind. It's a weaker field event, and is played on a windy, seaside track. Two of the past eight winners of the RBC Heritage also won at Mayakoba (Graeme McDowell and Brian Gay), so there's definitely an angle thre. Perez has been in awesome form since returning from injury this season, and finished 18th at last week's Masters.

I'm still waiting for Hadwin to have a let down after his win at Valspar and his wedding, but he keeps plugging along. He grinded out a 36th place finish in his Masters debut, and really flashed his short game savvy. Hadwin has played Harbour Town twice, posting a MC in 2015 and a 30th place finish last year, but his game is in a much better place now. If he is motivated, I expect Hadwin to contend again this week.

I'm not the biggest Luke Donald fan, but he's always on our radar at Harbour Town. Something about this track brings out the best in Donald, as his short-hitting game suits Pete Dye layouts. Donald hasn't won this event, but he's finished inside the top-3 six times in eleven appearances. Pretty amazing course history, and impossible to ignore.

Leishman has a spotty record here, with four decent finishes and three MCs. He did post a top-10 here in 2013, however. Leishman made the cut at Augusta but really struggled on Sunday, which included a triple bogey on the 15th hole. Leishman seems to be in a good place now, so there's no reason to doubt him this week at Harbour Town. He's strong in terms of bogey avoidance and scrambling, which both are keys this week.

Lowry is one of my favorite sleepers this week, especially after he burned many people last week at the Masters. Lowry shot E par the opening round, but missed the cut after shooting a 79 in the second round. There was plenty of positives to draw from that performance, and Lowry should come out angry and aggressive this week at Harbour Town. The wind-swept seaside course should suit his game well, as the Irishman ranks 3^rd on Tour in true ball-striking.

We're getting towards the end of the CH3 season, but I can't overlook his consistency. Howell hasn't missed a cut yet this season, and has consistenty posted top-15 and top-20 finishes, with some additional upside. He ranks pretty highly in my statistical model, but is particularly strong with his irons. Howell's main issue is with his short game, so he'll have to be very creative around these tricky green complexes at Harbour Town. He has a pretty mediocre record here, but has made six of nine cuts at The RBC Heritage.

Dirt McGirt was another surprise contender last week at Augusta in his debut. Although it was great to see him contend, McGirt seemed to struggle with his ball-striking. He made miles of putts and holed out several shots from off-the-green, so I'm going to be a little hesitant to roster him. He does have a couple top-10 finishes at Harbour Town, and should be considered this week.

List has been knocking on the door for a win all year, and it could come here, even at a course that doesn't fit his game on paper. List is a bomber off the tee, but has really tuned up his iron play and putting this season. In his last start, List finished 3^rd at the Shell Houston Open. He comes to Harbour Town where he posted a 39^th place finish last season, and should build on his recent momentum. This season, List ranks 9^th in true ball-striking, which is a major pointer towards success this week.

Speaking of ball-striking, Stanley ranks 1^st on Tour in the true ball-striking statistic this season. He's been knocking on the door of a win all year, and the Clemson graduate should be happy to be back on familiar South Carolina soil. His course history here is nothing spectacular, but he did have his highest finish (33^rd) last season. Stanley comes into the event in elite form, having finished 27^th, 17^th, and 8^th in his past three events. This could be the week Stanley breaks through.