The PGA Tour’s Florida Swing concludes with the Valspar Championship, which has attracted a few star names as the elite build up to the first Major of the year – next month’s Masters at Augusta.
Xander Schauffele headlines the Valspar field and can be backed at 13/2 to win this week’s low-key gathering at the Copperhead Course in Innisbrook Resort, Palm Harbor.
Schauffele nearly won a much more prestigious event last week, so will have his supporters.
Punters must assess how he will react to Sunday’s Players Championship near-miss. He had a golden chance of victory at Sawgrass, but played his final five holes in one over par to be edged out by Scottie Scheffler.
Schauffele insists he has accepted the defeat and is looking forward to the Valspar, but the mental scars of his meek finish may linger. He has also been working on swing changes this year.
Two-time Valspar Championship winner Sam Burns is available at 14/1 to complete hat-trick this week.
Burns has been playing plenty of good golf this year, so is a more tempting option than the man above him in the betting.
We have analysed the tournament and picked out two players who could upstage the market leaders and go a long way at healthy odds.
Valspar Championship Tips
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Sepp Straka to win & each-way @ 40/1
A share of 16th place in the Players Championship on Sunday was encouraging for Sepp Straka, especially as he finished 58th in the putting statistics. The Georgia-based Austrian appears to have got his swing in mint condition for the Valspar Championship.
Straka has played in this tournament only once before, finishing 46th as a PGA Tour rookie in 2019, and he has returned this week 339 places better in the world rankings.
In the five years that have passed since, Straka has won twice PGA Tour titles and been on a triumphant Ryder Cup team.
Straka won the Honda Classic in Florida in 2022 and his record in the Sunshine State is excellent. He was bogey-free at Sawgrass on Sunday.
Sungjae Im to win & each-way @ 28/1
Sungjae Im, like Straka, has a superb record in Florida, having won the Honda Classic in 2020, twice finishing third in the Arnold Palmer Invitational, as well as claiming sixth spot in the Players Championship last year.
Im has played in the Valspar Championship twice before, finishing fourth on his debut in 2019, then 29th on his second visit. Given how well he drove his ball at Sawgrass last week, the Korean could easily be a factor at the Copperhead Course.
Im, like Straka, struggled on the Sawgrass greens last week, finishing 61st in the putting statistics, but his ball-striking was rock-solid.
The Copperhead Course is primarily a tee-to-green examination, so Straka and Im will fancy their chances of making an impact.
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