Quick look at Valspar Championship

THE OVERVIEW Five years ago at Innisbrook, Jordan Spieth earned his way onto the PGA TOUR. Three years ago, he won the Valspar Championship, the first of five wins in a season that elevated him to superstar status. Now he comes to Innisbrook without a win in his last 14 worldwide starts – his biggest drought since his rookie season in 2013. He’s yet to post a top-5 finish in his six TOUR starts. He ranks 163rd in strokes gained: putting, a baffling development for one of the game’s biggest clutch putters. And good friend Justin Thomas has passed him in the world rankings. The confidence is not wavering, though. Spieth likes the way his game is progressing, and he hopes that Innisbrook – which has treated him so well – will be the spark to the rest of his season. “This tournament bringing really good vibes being here can do a lot for me going forward for the rest of the season,â€� he said Wednesday. Suffering the flu in late December is one reason for Spieth’s slow start. In fact, speaking of slow starts, that’s another reason why Spieth has struggled to contend this season. He ranks 156th on TOUR in first-round scoring average (71.50), breaking 70 just once in his six starts. Compare that to his TOUR ranking in the other three rounds – 3rd in the second round, 13th in the third round and 7th in the final round. Too often, Spieth has been playing catch-up for most of the week, requiring him to take more chances. “The first rounds set me back this year,â€� Spieth said, “but talked with Michael (Greller, his caddie) yesterday. We’re in a very similar position to 2015 at this very moment.â€� Provided Spieth can solve his putting issues – he said the holiday flu reduced the amount of practice time on the greens, and thus led to some alignment problems – the rest of his game seems good to go. He ranks sixth on TOUR in strokes gained: tee to green. “Ball-striking is all there to win golf tournaments,â€� Spieth said. “Just a matter of seeing a couple putts go in and getting comfortable early in a tournament and gaining that confidence.â€� That confidence (or lack thereof) on the greens is the primary thing Spieth thinks is preventing him from flashing the kind of form he did in 2015. “You go through peaks and troughs through every part of your game,â€� Spieth said. “I believe I hit a trough and I’m back rising towards a peak when it comes to on the greens. I’ve got to maintain everything else and I believe I’ll be a better player, if that’s the case.â€� Innisbrook has provided Spieth with many fond memories. Perhaps he’ll add another chapter this week. THREE PLAYERS TO PONDER Tiger Woods It’s great to see Tiger add some new tournaments to his schedule. Would be even better if he’s in contention Sunday afternoon. Rory McIlroy Like Tiger, McIlroy is making his tournament debut this week. His last start in Florida did not go well (T-59 at Honda Classic). Henrik Stenson If a 40-something wins for the second consecutive week, it’s likely to be this 41-year-old Swede who’s fared well at Innisbrook. THE FLYOVER Moccasin. Rattler. Copperhead. Those are the nicknames of the closing three holes at Innisbrook’s Copperhead course. Collectively, they’re known as the Snake Pit, one of the toughest closing stretches on TOUR. Since 2003, it has played to a cumulative 0.559 strokes over par, the third-highest average among regular TOUR courses (non-majors) during that span. Here’s a look at the 16th, 17th and 18th holes at Copperhead. THE LANDING ZONE The Snake Pit draws most of the attention, but the hardest hole at Innisbrook last season was the 465-yard par-4 sixth, which played to a stroke average of 4.217. A total of 113 bogeys were made on the hole last year, 20 more than any other hole. Players often find trouble off the tee, as their drives roll into the trees on the downhill, dogleg-right hole. Here is where all tee shots ended up last year. WEATHER CHECK From PGA TOUR meteorologist Stewart Williams: “Cooler and drier air continues Thursday and Friday as high pressure builds over the region. Temperatures will be cool each day with lows in the upper 40s to low 50s and highs in the 60s. Warmer temperatures return Saturday before another cold front brings showers and isolated t-storms Sunday afternoon into Sunday night.â€� For the latest weather news from Mexico City, check out PGATOUR.COM’s Weather Hub. SOUND CHECK It’s because of the second shots, both on the par 3s and the par 4s, a lot of times it’s those kind of mid-irons. It’s the 5-, 6-, 7-, 8-irons into the greens, and when I’m hitting it well, then that’s the strong part of my game. So it’s going to set up a lot of birdie chances. BY THE NUMBERS 9 – Wins by Tiger Woods when making his tournament debut (out of 40 debuts in his career). That’s a 22.5 percent rate. Woods is making his 41st career tournament debut this week at Innisbrook. 422 feet, 11 inches – Cumulative length of putts made by Adam Hadwin last year in winning the Valspar Championship. That was the most of anybody in the field and included two putts of longer than 50 feet. 273 yards, 6 feet – Average length of all drives last season at Innisbrook. That was the fourth shortest average distance of any tournament on the PGA TOUR last season. 47.06 – Percentage of Valspar winners since 2000 that were in their 30s (8 of 17). That’s higher than winners in their 20s (5) and 40s (4). SCATTERSHOTS Winning the Valspar Championship pretty much assures you of reaching the TOUR Championship. Ten of the 11 Valspar winners have advanced to the FedExCup Playoffs finale at East Lake. Two have gone on to win the FedExCup title (Jim Furyk in 2010, Jordan Spieth in 2015). Don’t be surprised if Adam Hadwin successfully defends his title this week. Making his 10th start of the season, the Canadian comes in off back-to-back top 10 finishes (a T-6 at the Genesis Open, followed by a T-9 at last week’s World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship). Steve Stricker’s in the field this week after his first PGA TOUR Champions win on Sunday at the Cologuard Classic. He’s seeking to become the fourth player to win on the PGA TOUR and PGA TOUR Champions in the same year (Raymond Floyd in 1992, Craig Stadler in 2003 and Fred Funk in 2007).

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