Unsurprisingly, sites for betting more or less favor the seven guys who are ranked in the Official World Golf Ranking Top 30 to win the 2017 edition of the Valspar Championship in in Palm Harbor, Tampa. This PGA Tour tournament has never been called a star-studded event, and that may have quite a bit to do with its level of difficulty – especially the final three holes, collectively known as the Snake Pit. Golfers averaged .598 strokes above par at the Pit in 2016 to make it fourth among the most difficult closing three-hole stretches on the Tour. Since its inception as the Tampa Bay Classic in 2000, only Retief Goosen and KJ Choi have won it more than two (non-consecutive) times.
Patrick Reed +2550. The Texan was a runner-up in the 2015 Valspar, which was won by Jordan Spieth. Reed is ranked 12th, the same as the previous week but four spots up from the end of last year.
Matt Kuchar +2550. Kuchar has not won on the PGA Tour since the 2014 RBC Heritage, but has finished in the top 25 in three out of four starts this year. Kuchar ranks 20th now, ranked 20th a week ago, and ranked 20th at the end of 2016. He’s nothing if not consistent.
Charl Schwartzel +3550. The South African will be looking to make history as the first ever back-to-back Valspar champion, having won last year’s edition – his first win in the United States of America since the 2011 Masters Tournament. Schwartzel is ranked 28th this week, down one spot from last week and five since the end of 2016.
Henrik Stenson +1015. Sites for betting give the Swedish golfer the best odds of winning the Valspar Championship. Stenson returned to the PGA Tour at the WGC Mexican Championship but had to pull out after 11 holes due to a stomach virus. He really shouldn’t have drunk the tap water. The Swede had been on a streak of six straight worldwide top 10s. Stenson is currently ranked 6th in the World, down one spot from last week and two since the end of 2016.
Russell Knox +3550. Knox has two PGA Tour wins; the 2015 WGC-HSBC Champions and the 2016 Travelers Championship. The Scotsman is ranked 21st, down from 19 last week and from 18 since the end of last year.
Bubba Watson +3550. Watson is a multiple major champion, after winning the Masters Tournament in 2012 and 2014. Watson is ranked 16th in the world, down one spot from 15th last week and six spots from 10th at the end of 2016.
Justin Thomas +1050. Thomas has the second-best odds to win the Valspar Championship at sites for betting. Thomas tied with Thomas Pieters for 5th place in the WGC Mexico, but has won three PGA tourneys this season; the CIMB Classic, the SBS Tournament of Champions, and the Sony Open in Hawaii. Thomas is ranked 7th, up one spot from last week and an impressive 15 since then end of 2016.
