Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Russell Knox is the defending champion at this week’s WGC-HSBC Champions, but that doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll make good on his fantasy potential.
Rife with idiosyncrasies, the WGC-HSBC Champions is always a fun week for fantasy managers. With a healthy mix of elite players, PGA Tour regulars, European Tour standouts and Asian Tour studs, this week’s reduced field is nice and diverse, giving us plenty of flexibility in constructing our lineups.
Definitely the most international of the four World Golf Championship events, you can have some fun this week. For example, four of my five picks in this fantasy feature are European — I didn’t plan it that way, but it gives some flavor to what would otherwise be your standard lineup of players. Enjoy this leeway while it’s here — while relatively inconsequential for our purposes, it’s one of the fun elements of these events.
Without further ado, let’s dive into my featured fantasy picks for this week. They should fare well in a number of different formats, but they’re specifically geared towards DFS leagues. Each player’s DraftKings salary is listed next to his name.
Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Rory McIlroy — $12,100
Despite the event’s WGC status, there actually aren’t that many premium fantasy options in the field this week. However, thanks to his pair of recent PGA Tour wins and his strong course history, McIlroy ranks as the best of the bunch. The Ulsterman has never missed out on the top 11 in five career appearances at Sheshan, finding the top five in three of those years. While he’ll be the most expensive player in most DFS formats, you’re paying for a proven commodity. Don’t hesitate to splurge on McIlroy this week — he’s the ideal lineup anchor.
Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
Martin Kaymer — $8,700
He turned in a lackluster performance at the Ryder Cup, but that’s the only bad thing you can say about Kaymer heading into this week. The German has found the top 20 in ten of his 12 stroke play starts dating back to late May, so you can’t beat his consistency. While he hasn’t contended for any wins over that stretch, he should be buoyed by his sterling record at Sheshan, which includes a win at the 2011 WGC-HSBC Champions. Going up against a small field, he looks like a safe bet to post another strong finish.
Mandatory Credit: Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports
Rafa Cabrera Bello — $7,600
Keeping with the all-European theme of this week’s feature, Cabrera-Bello looks like one of the smartest mid-priced plays available. The Spaniard has found the top 25 in 16 of his 23 starts in 2016, looking every bit like an elite talent along the way. Surprisingly, this week will mark his first career start at Sheshan, but his game has traveled so well this year that his inexperience should be a non-issue. He appears to be the best value in his range, bar none. If he can get hot on the greens, this could be a very productive week for him.
Richard Bland — $7,300
He might not be a household name, but this Englishman has been absolutely surging through the last few months on the European Tour, finding the top 25 in eight of his last nine starts. What’s more, he’s only gotten stronger over the course of that stretch, notching three top 10s in the last six weeks, including a tie for fourth at the British Masters. He’ll be a first-timer at Sheshan, but so will many of his fellow competitors. As long as he doesn’t get overwhelmed, Bland has a great chance to keep it going this week.
Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
Kevin Kisner — $6,900
This Georgia product is the lone American in this week’s feature. Always a bit of a fantasy enigma, there’s definitely reason to be optimistic about Kisner this week — he did notch a solo second at last year’s WGC-HSBC Champions, after all — but he’s only picked up one top 10 since the calendar turned to June, despite playing in four no-cut events during that time. If nothing else, Kisner’s overall consistency and flashy record at Sheshan make him an intriguing option for your lineup’s bottom spot. Who knows — we may have found our next horse for this course.
Who’s in your fantasy lineup for the WGC-HSBC Champions? Let us know in the comments, and keep it here at Pro Golf Now for more updates from this week’s event.
More from Pro Golf Now
This article originally appeared on 
