Another week in Florida! This week, we head over to the Cooperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort for the 2026 Valspar Championship. As the final leg of the Florida Swing, this course is as demanding as any of the other courses on swing, and is a fitting end to this section of events on tour. At this event, players will compete for their share of $9,100,000 and 500 FedExCup Points. Don't forget, when looking to build your lineups, make sure to take advantage of our PGA DFS Projections, PGA DFS Ownership, and PGA DFS Lineup Optimizer to get every advantage you can. Let's dive in!

 

 

Valspar Championship 2026: Daily Fantasy Golf Picks & Projections

Since this events debut in 2000 as the Tampa Bay Classic, this event was originally an alternate event in late summer or autumn but has moved around the schedule quite a bit. From 2003 to 2006, this event had it's own spot as the last full field event before the Tour Championship. It then jumped up to a March event in 2007, when the Players moved into May. In it's history, there have been 4 two time winners of this event in K. J. Choi, Retief Goosen, Paul Casey, and Sam Burns, with the latter of the two winning in back to back years. This event has many memorable moments, including Keegan Bradley starting off with a 67 to share the first round lead, only to shoot 79 on Friday to miss the cut. 

 

 

The Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort: Course Breakdown This Week

The Copperhead Course does not have the same recognition that other courses on the Florida Swing have, such as Bay Hill or TPC Sawgrass, but it is just as difficult of a course to play and just as fun to watch. Playing at 7,350 yards as a Par 71, Innisbrook is known as one of the tightest course on tour. It’s so tight in-fact, that even taking less than driver off the tee makes it hard to hold the fairways with this course having one of the lowest off the tee accuracy percentages on tour. With trees lining most of the course, nearly 75 bunkers, and water in play on 9 holes this course requires precision both in the shots and in decision making. With the necessity to play this course as a positional course, players must be able to work the ball in both directions, making this a shot makers dream.


The holes on this course are different than the rest. The Par 3s are some of the hardest on tour, and Par 5 scoring is paramount. The 5 Par 3s at Innisbrook play 195 to 235 yards and include bogey rates much higher than tour average, and the Par 5s all play over 560 yards. These yardage buckets will be clear as scoring on these holes is necessary for success here as Viktor Hovland proved last year. Hovland was one of the only players to record a birdie on a par 3 in all four rounds, and recorded multiple par 5 birdies in each of the final three days, while having no birdies on par 4s on 2 of the 4 days of the tournament. Coupling this with what we previously discussed with the positional factors of this course, it plays very similarly to many Pete Dye courses, such as TPC Sawgrass that we just saw this past weekend. Additionally, there is a lot of overlap between Innisbrook and Colonial Country Club, as players like Sam Burns and Jordan Spieth have won at both courses.


Innisbrook also shows an above average level of predictiveness, but less than we’ve seen at other courses as of late. Sam Burns is a great example of this. As a winner in 2021 and 2022, he followed this up with a 6th place finish in 2023, then missed the cut here last season. While it certainly can show some consistency, it’s not a perfect outlook. The top 5 in course history minimum 8 rounds played include Viktor Hovland, Xander Schauffele, Davis Riley, Jordan Spieth, and Ryo Hisatsune.


When looking over our key statistics for this week, they paint a very clear picture. As mentioned, Par 5 scoring will be paramount this week. Players who score on the Par 5s at this event tend to place well or win. Par 3 scoring as well paints a clear picture, as the scoring doesn’t necessarily impact winning as much as avoiding blow ups on these holes. The approach game will be key here as well given the length of this course, specifically from the 175 yard range and beyond, as over 50 percent of approach shots will come from these distances. Scrambling, Around The Green, Short Game, and Bermuda Putting strokes gained will be key this week as well. 

When breaking down the key stats, here are some of the top names in the field in each stat over the last 24 rounds:

  • Par 5 scoring: Matt Fitzpatrick, Max Homa, Akshay Bhatia, Pierceson Coody, Adrien Dumont de Chassart, Michael Brennan, Max McGreevy, Matti Schmid, and Pontus Nyholm
     
  • Par 3 scoring: Aaron Ray, Keegan Bradley, Karl Vilips, Erik van Rooyen, Matt Wallace, Nick Taylor, Davis Chatfield, Doug Ghim, Michael Brennan, and Marco Penge
     
  • Approach from 175+: Chandler Blanchet, Michael Brennan, Neal Shipley, Zac Blair, Rasmus Neergaard Petersen, Webb Simpson, Brooks Koepka, Max Greyserman, and Nicolai Hojgaard

 

 

 

Valspar Championship 2026 Field: Golf DFS

While certainly not the strength of field we saw at TPC Sawgrass, we still see a solid field this week. Xander Schauffele leads the way this week as the 7th ranked player in the world, and is joined by J.J. Spaun, Justin Thomas, Matt Fitzpatrick, Ben Griffin, Viktor Hovland, and Jacob Bridgeman from the top 20. Viktor is attempting to defend his win here in 2025, and is joined by previous winners Peter Malnati, Taylor Moore, Adam Hadwin, Jordan Spieth, Kevin Streelman, and Gary Woodland. 

 

 

This Week’s PGA DFS Optimizer & Lineup Generator

To enhance your daily fantasy golf selections and secure optimal PGA DFS values, it's advisable to utilize our PGA DFS optimizer and lineup generator. This optimizer serves as a valuable resource for daily fantasy golf enthusiasts aiming to develop effective lineups!

It provides projections, updates on player injuries, and a range of analytical insights to facilitate the lineup-building process. Essentially, it functions as a strategic advantage for participants in daily fantasy golf and makes their own PGA DFS picks!

PGA Best Bets & Predictions: 2026 Valspar Championship (6-12 Overall, +3.86 Units)

  • Ryo Hisatsune Top 20: +220
  • David Skinns Made Cut: +120
  • Valspar One-and-Done Picks: 
    • High End
      • Viktor Hovland
    • Low End
      • Austin Smotherman
      • Zac Blair

 

 

 

GOLF DFS PICKS THIS WEEK: Top Tier

Xander Schauffele ($12,200 FanDuel/$10,900 DraftKings)

Xander is the best player in the field by OWGR, and ends up in the top 10 in my model as well. He's off to a great start ball-striking wise, and is 21st in the field in Good Drive Percentage. He's scoring on Par 5's at a great rate, and is in the top 35 in Birdies or Better Gained and Bogey Avoidance. He's a solid option at the top of the board in a week where no player in the field has a perfect profile.

Viktor Hovland ($11,900 FanDuel/$10,400 DraftKings)

It's surprisingly uncommon for me to have a previous winner in the field, but Hovland's current form makes this a no-brainer. The approach play is strong this year, he's got great scoring numbers on par 3's and solid on par 5's. He's been a strong scrambler and putter on this surface as well. He's got a great shot to defend his title and become the 3rd back to back winner at this event.

Akshay Bhatia ($11,400 FanDuel/$10,000 DraftKings)

Bhatia is the only other player in the field above $10,000 on DraftKings, but he's my favorite player in the tier. His ball-striking has been elite this year, as he's 4th in SG: Ball-striking and 2nd in SG: Approach. He's tied for the field lead in Birdie or Better Percentage, and is top 10 in Par 5 scoring. This is his best putting surface, and he creates so many scoring opportunities for himself. He's going to be in a good chunk of lineups, especially mine, but he just makes so much sense here.

 

 

 

GOLF DFS PICKS THIS WEEK: MID-TIER


Matt Fitzpatrick ($11,800 FanDuel/$9,800 DraftKings)

If you've been reading this article all year, it should be no surprise to see Fitzy here. We have yet another course where ball-striking is paramount, and he's been elite in that metric this year, with flipped rankings from Akshay's above. He's also been one of the best drivers of the golf ball this year, and sets himself up for success off the tee. He also leads the field in par 5 scoring, and has one of the highest GIR percentages in the field. He's another guy who just makes too much sense here to ignore.

Jacob Bridgeman ($10,900 FanDuel/$9,600 DraftKings)

This part of the article is a lot of rinse and repeat this year. Bridgeman has strong numbers ball-striking and off the tee, is tied with Akshay for Birdie or Better Percentage, is bested only by two other players in Bogey Avoidance, and is the best putter on this surface in the field. If he can find his way into scoring on a few par 3's, he should be in contention this weekend and could find himself in the winners circle.

Sahith Theegala ($10,400 FanDuel/$8,800 DraftKings)

Sahith was in this article last year, and he finds himself in it yet again. He's playing much stronger golf than at this point last year as he's finally healthy, and should be looking to build on his performance from last season. He's been strong on approach, elite on Par 5's, and has great bogey avoidance and scoring numbers overall. His driver will find the rough, but he's been an elite scrambler this season, and has great long iron play which should help on these long par 3s.

 

 

GOLF DFS PICKS THIS WEEK: VALUE TIER

Ryo Hisatsune ($10,000 FanDuel/$8,600 DraftKings)

We've been all over Hisatsune this year, why stop now? He leads my model this week, with elite ball-striking numbers, great scoring on the aforementioned par 3's and 5's, and great short game. He'll need to create more scoring chances for himself with the long irons, but given how well he's played this season, it makes plenty of sense for him to be this high.

David Ford ($8,300 FanDuel/$6,900 DraftKings)

Ford lacks comparatively off the tee, but has top 5 numbers on approach, and has surprisingly good numbers in terms of Birdie or Better Percentage and Bogey Avoidance. His accuracy is the key here, as he's top 20 in both Distance from Edge of Fairway and Greens in Regulation. If those numbers hold, he's a great budget option.

Austin Smotherman ($9,200 FanDuel/$7,400 DraftKings)

Smotherman has been the single best ball-striker in this field. That's more than enough for me, but the rest of his profile suggests success here as well. He's been strong off the tee, elite on par 3's, and much like Ford has strong numbers in both scoring and avoiding bogeys. He also is top 12 in both DFEF and GIR's, with stronger scrambling if he needs it. He's probably going to be very chalky at this price, but I simply can't ignore the profile.

 

 

PGA DFS Picks This Week (Cheat Sheet)

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