The Valspar Championship

Innisbrook Resort, Tampa, Cooperhead Course, 7,340 yards, par 71

Designer: Larry Packard, 1972

Fairways: Champion Bermuda

Greens: Tift Eagle Bermuda

Defending champion: Jordan Spieth: part of five wins on tour in 2015, including the Masters and the U.S. Open, and the Tour Championship to win the FedEx Cup; Player of the year.

Spieth’s winning score: 274, -10; defeated Patrick Reed and Sean O’Hair on the third hole of the playoff with a 27 foot birdie putt on number 17.

Featured groups today:

6:56 AM CT/7:56 ET: Graeme McDowell, Patrick Reed and Hunter Mahan. McDowell has already won at the OHL Classic in Mayakoba, Mexico this year, Reed had a solo second to Spieth at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Hawaii and had four top 10’s this year, and Mahan is making his first start in Florida.

7:07 AM CT/8:07 AM ET: Spieth, Henrik, Bill Haas. Spieth has all the credentials from last year and a victory at the Hyundai already on this year’s resume, Stenson finished one stroke out of a playoff here last year, and Haas, a six time tour champ, has two top 10 finishes this season.

11:46 AM CT/12:46 PM ET: Justin Thomas, Russell Knox, Jason Dufner. All three have already won this season. Thomas picked up his first victory at the CIMB Classic in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in late October-early November of 2015, Knox won the World Golf Championships-HBSC Champions in China the next week in early November, and Duf won the Career Builder Challenge in La Quinta, California in January.

11:57 AM CT/12:57 PM ET: Matt Kuchar, Louis Oosthuizen, Ernie Els. Kuchar, a seven time winner on tour, posted his best finish three weeks ago at the Northern Trust finishing tied for eighth, Louis finished tied 14th at the WGC-Cadillac last week, and Ernie is in his fourth event of the season. He lost a heartbreaker in 2012 at the Valspar missing some crucial putts at the end, but came back to win the Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St. Annes for his fourth major championship. Ernie has won 19 times on the PGA Tour.

Weather: Today: 85 Sunny, Wind SSE 10 MPH with gusts up to 23 MPH; Friday: Sunny 85, winds SSE 8 -13 MPH; Saturday: Sunny, 83, winds SSE 8-13 MPH; Sunday: Sunny, 80, winds 15-20 MPH. Wind could be a major factor today and Sunday.

TV: Today-Friday: Golf Channel, 2 PM-5 PM CT/3-6 PM ET; Saturday-Sunday: Golf Channel; 12-2 PM CT/1-3 PM ET; NBC 2-5 PM CT/3-6 PM ET

Key holes:

No.8 235 yards, par 3

Tough par three that requires a long tee shot to a long narrow green with trouble on each side. Par is a very good score here. The Par 3’s are long on this course.

No. 14, 590 yards, par 5

A three shot hole for a lot of players though the bombers, with a scorched tee shot, might reach in two. Long narrow green again. Sand on the front left and trouble behind the green with thick rough. Possible birdie hole, though an error could lead to a bogey.

“The snakepit”

The final three holes of the course, one of the most famous or infamous stretches, depends on who you ask, on tour.

No.16, 460 yards, Par 4

This hole stresses a premium on accuracy off the tee. It’s tough. There is water running along the entire right side and trees and tough rough and solid ground on the left. In the second playoff hole last year, Reed almost holed out from behind the green with a beautiful chip shot, and O’Hair missed an 11 foot birdie putt that would have won the tournament. The putt looked good from  two feet away, but just lipped out on the right side. It was a heartbreaker for the 2008 champion who was trying to reignite his career. He has now.

No.17, 215 yards par 3

Tough tee shot to a wide green with a trap on the front right side and thick rough on the right. Spieth put on a clinic of getting up and down in regulation when he looked like he had an impossible chip from the thick rough on the right. He flopped the ball to about four feet and sank the putt. It was an incredible effort and kept him tied for the lead Reed and O”Hair @ -10.

No.18, 445 yards, par 4

A blind tee shot with rough and trees on the right, a lot of trouble, and rough, sand and trees on the left. Driving the ball is at a premium on this hole. Spieth hit his tee shot in the sand, hit it fat and was  short of the green by about 50 yards. He flopped his third shot to 12 feet above the hole and sank a hugely clutch putt in regulation to earn a spot in the playoff with Reed and O’Hair, which he won on the third playoff hole.

Prediction

I was struggling with three guys. It’s hard to go wrong picking the defending champion, the gunslinger from Dallas, the 22 year old Spieth, who can win any week. Scrambling is such a huge part of this course and he does it better than anybody on tour, and sure did it last year here. Twenty two year old Justin Thomas has already won here, and the young gun from Kentucky via the University of Alabama has a massive future ahead of him. He drives it terrifically and can putt with the best of them when he’s on.

But I’m going with the 25 year old from San Antonio, Texas, who is already having a solid year, and gave Jordan everything he wanted last year. He’s quite a scrambler and I can’t wait to see him and Spieth play together in the Ryder Cup. They’ll give the Euros everything they want and more at Hazeltine National Golf Course in Chaska, Minnesota. I see him just barely getting the best of Spieth and Thomas this week.

Patrick Reed