Valspar Championship 2023 Predictions, Expert Picks, Odds, Field Rankings, Best Golf Bets for Innisbrook

There is no rest for the weary after a PGA Tour main event. Competitors travel from Florida’s east coast to the Tampa area for the 2023 Valspar Championship at the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort. Recognized as one of the most treacherous golf courses on the PGA Tour schedule, the Copperhead Course will once again challenge some of the world’s best players.

Sam Burns, the two-time defending Valspar champion, is looking to make it a three-peat in his fifth career tournament appearance. Burns has struggled to start 2023 with missed cuts in the last two scheduled events, but he may have found something in his game at the Players Championship.

Burns is joined by his Presidents Cup teammates from last fall, Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth. Like Burns, there have been quality moments for these two players – namely Spieth with his final defeat at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and his consistent play at the WM Phoenix Open.

Thomas arrives with five top-25 finishes in his last six tournaments but without a trip that saw him in contention late into Sunday. The two-time major champion was part of the mix a season ago and hopes a return to the Copperhead Course will yield similar results. Matt Fitzpatrick, Justin Rose, Keegan Bradley and Tommy Fleetwood round out the notables looking to find some form as the 2023 Masters fast approaches.

Event Information

Event: Valspar Championship 2023 | Dates: March 16-19
Location: Innisbrook Resort (Copperhead Course) – Palm Harbor, Florida
About: 71| Yard: 7,340 | Wallet: $8,100,000

Valspar Championship 2023 field, odds

Chance through Caesars sports book

• Justin Thomas (11-1): Does Thomas have too many tools at hand? That was the question I asked on the First Cut Podcast after the Players’ Championship with the 29-year-old becoming an afterthought in the early stages of 2023. Often hitting the t -shooting he can and not necessarily the vision required has made Thomas struggle to keep up with the likes of Scottie Scheffler and Jon Rahm. This discipline will be tested at the Copperhead Course, where he has four top-20 finishes in five times, including a T3 last year.
• Jordan Spieth (12-1): Every once in a while, the PGA Tour visits a course and you wonder how Spieth won there. It was Harbor Town in 2022 and the Copperhead Course in 2015. With four top-20 finishes under his belt, including that victory, Spieth returns to the Tampa area for his ‘ first time since 2018. It’s a notable addition to his record with a pair of Texas events on the horizon before the big one at Augusta National. Thomas is slated to skip the WGC Match Play, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Spieth does as well.
• Sam Burns (16-1)
• Matt Fitzpatrick (16-1): There are reports that Fitzpatrick’s neck is gradually healing. First citing his injury at Pebble Beach, the Englishman has gone on to miss three of five cuts to start his year. The Copperhead Course should be a good fit for his game as evidenced by his top five finishes a season ago. But with the injury and lack of consistency in the irons​​​​ (he ranks 124th in this field in strokes gained technique in his last 24 rounds), it wouldn’t be surprising if it’s another short week for the US Open champion.
• Justin Rose (22-1)
• Keegan Bradley (25-1)
• Tommy Fleetwood (25-1): Fleetwood continued his golf at TPC Sawgrass, but with it, came another disappointing finish. In the final round of 76 the Englishman went from the first page of the leaderboard to a tie for 27th. There are flashes of déjà vu from 2022 when he experienced something similar at the Players Championship only to finish T16 the following week in his Valspar Championship debut.
• Adam Hadwin (28-1)
• Denny McCarthy (30-1): The bonus is coming soon. A pair of top-15 finishes in the last two events sandwiched a missed cut at the Honda Classic (where he played despite feeling sick). McCarthy’s presence on the greens is always a talking point, but it is improvements in the ball striking departments that will propel him into the winner’s circle. He was four shots over at TPC Sawgrass – the third-best mark of his career.
• Brian Harman (35-1)
• Davis Riley (35-1)
• Justin Suh (35-1)
• Wyndham Clark (35-1)

2023 Valspar Championship Expert Selection

Who will win the Valspar Championship, and what long shots will rock the golf world? Visit SportsLine now to see the projected leaderboard and best bets, all from the model that has attracted eight top golfers and is up more than $8,300 as of June 2020.