2021 Valspar Championship Betting Preview and Tips

April 29th – May 2nd, 2021

Innisbrook Resort (Copperhead Course), Palm Harbor, Florida (Official event site)

Par: 71 / Yardage: 7,340

Purse: $6.9 million with $1,242,000 to the winner

Defending Champion: Paul Casey 

Justin Thomas at 9/1 and DJ at 10’s head the betting at Copperhead which will play the usual attritional par 71 at 7,340 yards. Five par-3’s and just 5,830 square feet of tiny greens only the strongest tee to green may apply.  Odds provided by FanDuel

T16 on his only visit here in 2018 doesn’t tell the full story, because the younger Corey led Thursday Friday and Saturday here before slipping to a 77 in the final round.  Three years on Conners is on fire with a string of top-10’s from Pebble to Sawgrass, Augusta and Hilton Head.  His driving and GIR stats in his last five starts are head and shoulders above anyone on Tour and a second Tour win is surely coming.

Winner of this event in its last two stagings (2018 and 2019) but not so much a threat say the bookies after a T26 at Augusta and missed cut at Hilton Head.  I say look beyond that to a flush of top-10’s at Sawgrass, Pebble, Bay Hill and all the way back to winning in Dubai and I think he’ll be right up there again this week.

How much damage will that playoff slice into the water at the Zurich Classic have done to Louis’ confidence heading to Palm Harbor this week?  My take away from the week was great golf by the South Africans (Charl Schwartzel is a former winner of the Valspar and 110/1) and see Louis as a big threat this week.  T2 behind Casey in 2019, T16 in 2018 and T7 in 2016 says he can manage his way around the Snake Pit.

Kokrak made some serious cash with three straight top-10’s heading into the Masters.  24th in GIR percentage on Tour this year and especially good from far out and inside 100 yards.  A super fit this week having been T2 in 2019 and T8 in 2018 and T7 in 2015.

The aforementioned Charl Schwartzel is 110/1 this week, is a previous winner, and known as a tough track specialist.  Last week must surely have given him confidence.

Former European Tour star Peter Uihlein was back in the winners enclosure last week at the MGM Resorts Championship and is another to watch from 110/1