Fantasy Golf Sleeper Report – 2024 Valspar Championship

2024 Valspar Championship Fantasy Sleeper Report

TPC Sawgrass proved to be a pain in the neck for Scottie Scheffler and an army of stars hoping to wrestle THE PLAYERS Championship trophy from his grasp.

Scheffler suffered a neck injury early on, receiving massages and treatment out on the course and even in-between shots. That looked to have derailed his title defense, but roll on Sunday and his round of 64 – neck complained suitably soothed – put him in contention. 

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But if the others at the top of the leaderboard had played their part, he might not have gotten to take the trophy back home. Xander Schauffele misfired under pressure again, Wyndham Clark – despite a rousing finish which included a lip-out putt on the 72nd hole – left himself too much to do, while Brian Harman’s opening round of 72 ultimately cost him the title.

Scheffler wins. In a year of chaos and unpredictability so far, there’s a nice ring to the world number one winning in back-to-back weeks.

He won’t score a hat-trick this week at the Valspar Championship – he’s not in the field. But Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth and Tony Finau are as they up their Masters prep, while Schauffele and Harman will be looking to go to the well once more.

They’ll be looking to strip Taylor Moore of his title, which he won so impressively 12 months ago. While those around him lost their heads – and/or suffered bad luck – in the Copperhead Course’s famed ‘Snake Pit’ stretch of holes 16-18, Moore made serene progress to go bogey-free and pick up his maiden PGA TOUR win.

This could be, whisper it, the first of the Florida Swing courses to play like its true self. After rain and good-natured officials made Bay Hill and TPC Sawgrass a whole bunch easier than normal, the early signs are that Innisbrook’s Copperhead Course will play as devilishly as ever.

Doglegging fairways, thick rough, small greens, and some welcoming water hazards are just some of the water hazards awaiting the players, while five Par 3s – many of them well in excess of 200 yards – test the very fabric of their long iron play.

The rough at the Copperhead Course has been left up in past years, and with some strong winds in Palm Harbour, this hasn’t always been the easiest nut to crack – Moore went round in -10 a year ago, while Paul Casey won with -8 in 2019.

A Florida Swing course playing in a challenging fashion? Now we’re talking!

The unique conditions at the Copperhead Course, as well as the ills of many of those at the head of the betting market, perhaps opens the door for an unlikely winner this week – in that spirit, here’s our sleeper shortlist for the 2024 Valspar Championship.

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Adam Hadwin – 50/1 – It was an off-week for Adam Hadwin at THE PLAYERS, no mistake, but that missed cut was something of an anomaly for the Canadian.

His approach play has otherwise been good, he’s added length off the tee in 2024, and his short game is – typically – reliable.

Hadwin certainly ticks all of the boxes at Innisbrook, where he won in 2017, finished T7 in 2022, and added a T12 to his collection in 2018.

Christiaan Bezuidenhout – 55/1 – After a rare off-week with his iron and wedge play at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, Christiaan Bezuidenhout was back at it at The Players.

He particularly thrives in this 175+ yard bucket, although it was from slightly closer in that he gained a mammoth +2.11 on the field on approach at Sawgrass.

Bezuidenhout has gained strokes on the field putting in both of his last two Bermuda outings, is typically reliable around the greens, and has form at the correlating Charles Schwab Challenge to intrigue us further.

Aaron Rai – 66/1 – The signs are promising for Aaron Rai now that he’s back in the groove.

He’s fitting fairways for fun, gaining strokes on the field on approach, and finally looking like the player many thought could win on the PGA TOUR one day.

T19 at the Mexico Open, and T23 in Puerto Rico, have been followed by a decent T35 at The PLAYERS, where the Brit was above-average in a high-class field both off the tee and on approach. In rather more humble company this week, that should stand him in excellent stead.

Jimmy Stanger – 125/1 – Watched on by friends and family at his local course, Jimmy Stanger produced one of the best performances of his career at Sawgrass.

T35 might not scream out on paper, but it’s a decent effort in such a classy field – and coming just after a T3 at the Puerto Rico Open, shows that Stanger’s game is in a good place; especially in round four, where he gained more than +3.00 on the field with his ball-striking.

A winner on the Korn Ferry Tour last year, he knows how to take care of business, and if the Copperhead Course does play soft, Stanger’s extra length will be welcome.

David Lipsky – 300/1 – Very comfortable within the long iron range, David Lipsky fired a round of 64 at the Copperhead Course in 2022, before finishing T36 at the venue a year later – a strong effort from such a low-priced selection.

He’ll return there on the back of improvements in his game lately, headlined by +1.04 on approach over the field at Sawgrass.

Lipsky is below-average off the tee, but as we know that hasn’t always been definitive at Innisbrook – instead, quality on approach and reliability around the greens, which he showed last week and at the Cognizant Classic, are two of the key attributes required. 

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Want more of this week’s fantasy predictions? Check out our full fantasy preview for the Valsper Championship here.

Fantasy Golf Predictions This Season (2023-2024)

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