Drop Zone: Drop Score Week 3 Recap / Week 4 Preview

Week 3 Recap

The Pauma Valley and Linger Longer Invitational saw some strong performances by top teams. Pauma Valley in particular had six of the top 7 ranked teams in the field and, per my calculation, was the strongest WAGR Power ranked tournament so far this season.  LSU and Georgia were the team champions, respectively, with Christiaan Maas winning the individual title at Pauma Valley and Shubham Jaglan of South Florida scoring an impressive win at Reynolds Plantation.

With its deep field, Pauma Valley was bound to see a wide range of picks and it did not disappoint.  And similar to how the tournament can sort out the contenders versus pretenders as we get closer and closer to conference championships and regionals, Pauma Valley was a true separator in the Drop Score rankings.  A lot of the most popular picks had a dropped score and only 60% of competitors survived all three rounds. My guy Ethan Fang came through with a strong -6 performance as the most popular pick.

Most of the popular picks for the Linger Longer made it through unscathed and scored well.  Nick Gross from Alabama was the first pick with a drop score after his final round 77.  Overally, approximately 74% of users made it through all three rounds without a drop score.

All in all, only 40% of users picked players that counted for all six rounds of Week 3, our lowest performance to date. That leaves us with only 16% of the user community that are 18 out of 18 to start the Drop Score season.

Obviously a bit late to jump in now and compete for one of the prizes, but if you're looking for a good excuse to follow the college golf season closely, feel free to sign-up and join for Week 4 and beyond.  We're also planning a consolation contest for regionals and NCAA's down the road. New users can signed up for a Drvn.Golf account here. 

Leaderboard for Week 3 & Overall

The one user who picked Jaglan in the Linger Longer deserves recognition for his inspired pick and the top spot for Week 3.  My wife Sue is still a perfect 18 for 18 and holding on to 2nd place overall, despite Josele Ballester's +5 performance at Pauma Valley.  The "Super Producer/Super Looper" Joseph Kay moved into the top 10. Guest columns should be forthcoming.

Note: We'll look to build out the user pick-history and leaderboard functionality in the weeks to come.  Feel free to reach out if you have any questions or clarifications about your picks and current standings.

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Week 4 Preview (Entries Open) - TBD

Drop Score now turn its attention to the Valspar Intercollegiate and The Duck Invitational. Rumor is office pools are buzzing over this form of March Madness.

Valspar Intercollegiate Invitational

March 24-25, 2025
Floridian Yacht & GC - Palm City, FL

For the second week in a row, we have an absolute banger with a lot of the top teams and individuals in attendance. The top 3 ranked teams are here - Auburn, Texas, and Arizona State, plus you have Oklahoma, North Carolina and Florida State (presumably without Luke Clanton who is playing this week with the big boys again).

Year-to-Date Performance

Only three players in the field are still riding perfect Drop Score seasons -- two if you exclude Clanton.  I expect we'll see a wide array of picks this week as there are a number of very strong choices.

Last Year

Excluding Clanton, two players return to the Valspar with a top 10 last year.  The winner traditionally has received a sponsor's exemption into the big event the following year, so I hope we'll see some high-drama down the stretch.

I'm struggling with who to pick this week, as a) there are so many big names to choose from and b) some of the top guys (David Ford, Christiaan Maas) did not play very well here last year.  I don't know how much that really carries over from one year to the next, but I'm inclined to save them for a future week.

My Pick: Jackson Van Paris, Vanderbilt
Backup Pick: Lance Simpson, Tennessee

The Duck Invitational

March 24-25, 2025
Eugene CC - Eugene, OR

The Duck Invitational provides some Drop Score exposure to some West Coast teams and perhaps some players from mid-majors schools.

Year-to-Date Performance

As you might expect, there's a higher percentage of players in the field with perfect or near perfect Drop Score rates.

Last Year

One player (Oregon's Greyson Leach) comes back from last year's top 10.  Assuming there is a home course advantage at Eugene Country Club, Leach or one of his Oregon teammates seems like a safe play this week.

My Pick: Greyson Leach, Oregon
Backup Pick: Matthew Diehl, Grand Canyon

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Note the deadline for Week 4 is the start of the Duck Invitational on Monday March 24th.  See Entry Form here.

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