Fantasy: Stick with players who have a lot on the line

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If all you play is the Yahoo! game, then you might be wondering why the Fantasy Insider lives on. It's a fair question since Yahoo!'s weekly format is your only option at PGATOUR.com, and it ended with THE TOUR Championship. However, fantasy golf as an industry (and I use that term lightly) is still very much a grass-roots venture.

The Yahoo! game exists completely because of the Internet, but there are any number of homegrown formats that are "spreadsheeted" across the globe, including my own full-season rotisserie league in which no one golfer is in the possession of more than one owner at any one time. Regular readers here have probably noticed my one-and-done and duffer picks for those formats. And many salary games extend to the conclusion of the Fall Series. Therefore, as long as there is an audience, there is no reason to shut down.

In fact, as the PGA TOUR schedule winds down, some of my busiest days are ahead. Here's a peek at some of the dark-week and offseason features you'll find over the final two months on the calendar:

• Nationwide Tour graduates -- 2011 projections ... early November
• 2010 full-membership fantasy rankings revisited ... mid-November
• Qualifying school graduates -- 2011 projections ... early December
• One-and-done feature for 2011 (will serve to assist Yahoo! gamers as well) ... mid-December
• 2011 full-membership fantasy rankings (includes salary values) ... late December

Until then, I'll continue to hit the most relevant issues in our world.

• Robert Allenby, who committed late to The McGladrey Classic has withdrawn his verbal commitment to next week's Frys.com Open. Meanwhile, Tim Clark is now expected to play in the four-year event held for the first time at CordeValle Golf Club in San Martin, Calif., as he is one of the more recent to commit verbally. For the moment, of the 30 that competed at East Lake, Clark joins Charley Hoffman, Kevin Streelman and Bo Van Pelt as early commitments.

• While those guys continue to chase personal goals in the rarefied air on the money list, there are many fully exempt golfers (top 125 or better in 2009) in danger of losing their cards, and much more likely to play out the string in the Fall Series. Those players and their current rankings are listed below.

Of that lot, only Thompson is not in Sea Island this week. According to his caddie, Todd Montoya, on Twitter, Thompson forgot to commit to The McGladrey Classic.

• Qualified others are also in danger of finishing outside the top 125, but they will begin 2011 on medical extensions or are or will be 50 years of age or older and will be feeling the tug of the Champions Tour. Still others like Mike Weir (139th, and likely done for the year due to a partially torn ligament in his right elbow) and Tim Herron (176th) could burn a career earnings exemption next year. So the moral of this story is that the clock is ticking on status and fantasy value for quite a few notables. Take note and adjust accordingly if you're in a keeper league.

• Finally, the inaugural Kodak Challenge might be best remembered for the fact that its winner, Kevin Streelman, vowed weeks in advance that he was going to play in every event for which he was eligible after the PGA Championship. To wit, after the Wyndham Championship and a run two tournaments deep into the FedExCup Playoffs (only The Barclays was included in the Kodak Challenge), he committed to every event in the Fall Series (including the canceled Viking Classic). Streelman ended up winning the game by three strokes over Van Pelt, Nathan Green and J.J. Henry.

With four holes remaining in this year's edition, rookie Rickie Fowler is atop the leaderboard at 14-under through 17 holes, one shy of the minimum requirement to qualify for the $1 million prize. Fowler is verbally committed to the Frys.com Open, and may or may not be incited to tee it up in the final two events specifically to win the Kodak Challenge. Therefore, while guys like Fowler, Bill Haas (-12), Brendon de Jonge (-12), John Senden (-12) and Tim Petrovic (-12) are not sweating out 2011 TOUR cards, the new wrinkle has proven to be a legitimate motivator. Along with Troy Merritt (-13) and Lee Janzen (-12), of the top seven in the standings, all but Fowler are in the field this week. It has all the makings of the intended photo finish. And as a by-product, anyone still competing in a fantasy game is benefited since golfers that might hang up the softspikes for the season are more inclined to chase the carrot if they have a reasonable chance of taking the only bite.