Valspar: D.J., J.T. And One Mean, Nasty Copperhead Golf Course

Pay close attention to this week’s stop on the PGA Tour, the Valspar, and the first thing you should know and notice is that the Copperhead course at the Innisbrook Resort looks nothing like your typical Florida golf course.

And it’s not.

West of Tampa, just short of the Gulf of Mexico sits a property discovered by an Ohio group in the late 1960s.  It has really nice elevations, hills, tall, stately pine trees — perfect spot for championship golf.  Architect Larry Packard brought the Island Course to life in 1970 and four years later produced the Copperhead — site of this week’s daunting challenge that has the world’s No. 1 and No. 2 — Dustin Johnson and Justin Thomas — on the grounds to help them ready their games for the PGA Championship on May 20th at Kiawah, a short 22 days from now.

This event got axed last year in the COVID mess but the Copperhead is ready and waiting — note to the field:  if you don’t have your game in order coming here, you’ll be checking out and heading home on Friday.

When we arrived in the summer of ’72, Copperhead was under construction and then pro Mike Souchak told us all about it.  Couldn’t wait for it to open and it did two years later.  Mike was the first head professional and owning the cart business made him a pretty wealthy guy.  His successor was Jay Overton, who established himself as one of the better players in the ranks of the PGA of America members.

Current owner Sheila Johnson, who became fabulously wealthy in her divorce from BET founder Bob Johnson, is the owner of the resort these days and responsible for pushing for a men’s Tour event. She got it and this year it has drawn a nice field, thanks to a more high-profile player-friendly date on the Tour schedule and the fact that this is one really, really challenging golf course.

If you don’t drive the ball well, it’s going to be a tough ride.  Better have your short game in order as well on this par 71 killer.

No one has been better in the past two events than Paul Casey.  The Englishman with the big forearms won in 2018, beating Tiger Woods and Patrick Reed by a shot.  His margin of victory two years ago was one shot — he beat Jason Kokrak and Louie Oosthuizen.  Casey shot 10-under in 2018 and nine-under the next year.  And that gives you an idea on the toughness of this golf course.  It’s not often that you see 10-under or single digits under par winning a PGA Tour event.

Distance is always an advantage but here it better be accurate distance.  Otherwise you’ll have problems.  We see that Phil Mickelson is in the field.  Note to Lefty:  Long and crooked won’t work here.

The closing stretch is a nice test.

Sixteeen is a nasty hole, especially if you get a left-to-right wind.  Trees on the left, water on the right and a wide, narrow green that is tough to hold.  Seventeen is a long, slightly uphill par three and 18 isn’t as tough as it used to be thanks to the driving distance.  Still, you better make your mistake right.  Left is no good.

Which brings us to the 2020 version.  Good field — Johnson and Thomas, of course but you have to think Casey has a high degree of comfort on a course where it’s tough to find any sort of comfort.  Reed’s there and should be a factor.  Jason Kokrak is a very much improved player than the guy who finished runner-up in 2019. Maybe this is his week.  Oosthuizen looked solid last week in New Orleans until he drowned his golf ball on the first playoff hole.

Jordan Spieth isn’t here.  Koepka is.  Curb your enthusiasm — it’s not Brooks, it’s little brother Chase, in on a sponsor’s exemption.

The weather will be fine on Thursday and Friday, a bit iffy on Saturday, Sunday’s okay.

If you’re tired of those run-of-the-mill TPC courses, you’ll enjoy a visual trip to Innisbrook and the Copperhead starting Thursday.

There will be water, pine straw, hills, sand and trees.

Bring your “A” game if you want to be on television come Sunday afternoon.

Valspar Thursday-Friday Tee Times and Groups:

Valspar Update:  Will Gordon and Brice Garnett tested positive for COVID on Monday and are out;  On Tuesday, it was world No. 8 Tyrrell Hatton and Sepp Straka testing positive.  First time four players were forced to WD.  It was basically an alternate’s dream.