To conclude the Florida swing, we head to the Copperhead Course (par 71, 7,352 yards, POA Trivialis greens) of the Innisbrook Resort in Palm Harbor for the Valspar Championship. Since this tournament was added to the PGA TOUR schedule in 2000, the Copperhead Course has been the host of the Valspar Championship. Viktor Hovland (-11) is the defending champion, and for this week, there will be 133 players competing, and a top-65 and ties cut after the first two rounds.
The PGA DFS Breakdown offers data-driven analysis for each week’s slate, using the FantasyLabs Tools and metrics to highlight notable golfers.
I’ll be highlighting the best cash game/single-entry plays on the DraftKings main slate, but these players are often great options in any contest.
My analysis will frequently reference Strokes Gained, a set of proprietary metrics generated by the PGA TOUR using millions of data points to calculate how many shots, on average, it takes a player to get the ball in the hole from every distance and situation.
Strokes Gained is now available in the FantasyLabs PGA Models.
There are a variety of Strokes Gained-related metrics, but the six main categories you need to know include:
- Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee (SG: Off-the-Tee)
- Strokes Gained: Approach (SG: Approach)
- Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green (SG: Around-the-Green)
- Strokes Gained: Putting (SG: Putting)
- Strokes Gained: Ball-Striking (SG: Ball-Striking), which is SG: Off-the-Tee + SG: Approach
- Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green (SG: Tee-to-Green), which is SG: Ball-Striking + SG: Around-the-Green
Don’t forget to check out two key metrics in our models — Perfect% and SimLeverage. You can find an explainer on those metrics here.
The Cliffs Notes version is that you can use SimLeverage to quickly find leverage plays in tournaments, while Perfect% is great for finding the best price-considered plays for cash games.
And don’t forget to utilize our various PGA DFS tools like our Lineup Optimizer, Lineup Builder, PGA Correlation Dashboard, and our Trends tool.
The following players listed are based on DraftKings scoring and pricing.
PGA DFS Cash Game Thoughts
DraftKings $10,000 Range
Xander Schauffele ($10,900)
Schauffele being priced under $11,000 this week is surprising; beginning your cash game lineup with the two-time major champion is the right move. Schauffele has been excellent at the Copperhead Course, finishing T12, T5, and T12 in his three starts at the par 71, and he has finished inside the top seven in two of his last three starts. Schauffele was right in the mix for a win at THE PLAYERS Championship this past week, finishing T3. The 32-year-old carded a 7-under 65 in the second round, and he gained strokes across the board at the difficult TPC Sawgrass. If Schauffele can keep his foot on the gas at the Copperhead Course, his second win in the last six months will be well within reach.
DraftKings $9,000 Range
Jacob Bridgeman ($9,600)
Bridgeman finished third at last year’s Valspar Championship, and he travels back to the venue this week a far better player. Since then, Bridgeman has moved up 72 spots in the world golf rankings. The 26-year-old is in the midst of a career season, finishing no worse than T18 in his seven starts in 2026. Bridgeman captured his breakthrough win at The Genesis Invitational last month, and he just finished T5 at THE PLAYERS Championship last week. Impressively, Bridgeman has only shot over par once in his 28 rounds this season, and he leads the PGA TOUR in Total Strokes Gained. Bridgeman easily could have been priced over $10,000; he is a must-play at $9,600.
Justin Thomas ($9,500)
After missing the cut at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in his season debut, Thomas looked like himself again at THE PLAYERS Championship, finishing T8. At TPC Sawgrass, Thomas gained Strokes Gained: Approach and Strokes Gained: Putting, shooting a pair of 4-under 68s. Thomas will now look to carry this momentum over to the Copperhead Course, where he has been excellent. Thomas has made 7 of 8 cuts and produced six top-18 finishes at the Florida track, including a T3 in 2022 and a runner-up last season. Among this field, Thomas ranks fourth in Total Strokes Gained per round at courses in the Sunshine State.
Now available: our PGA DFS SimLabs Lineup Generator that creates advanced DFS lineups using the power of simulation.
DraftKings $8,000 Range
Ryo Hisatune ($8,600)
Hisatsune opened his season with a missed cut at the Sony Open, but he hasn’t looked back since, making seven straight cuts with four finishes of T13 or better. Just last week, Hisatsune finished T13 at THE PLAYERS Championship. He gained strokes on approach and with his putter at TPC Sawgrass, despite missing the cut in his first two attempts at the challenging venue. Hisatsune ranks eighth in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green this season and will look to stay hot at the Copperhead Course, where he has finished T35 and T4 over the last two years.
Nick Taylor ($8,400)
Taylor has made 6 of 9 cuts at the Copperhead Course—including a T10 in 2023—and the Canadian has been very reliable recently, missing only one cut in his last 12 starts. Taylor has finished inside the top 30 five times this season and has gained strokes on approach at five straight events. When comparing this field’s last 24 rounds, Taylor ranks 19th in Total Strokes Gained.
Updated on 3/17/26
DraftKings $7,000 Range
Austin Smotherman ($7,400)
Smotherman is a cash game staple this week. The 31-year-old leads the PGA TOUR in Strokes Gained: Approach this season and loves competing in Florida. Smotherman finished runner-up at the Cognizant Classic and T13 at THE PLAYERS Championship during this Florida swing. Additionally, he has finished T25 and T36 in his two starts at the Copperhead Course. Smotherman has only missed one cut in seven career starts in Florida and ranks seventh among this field in Total Strokes Gained per round at tracks in the Sunshine State.
Taylor Moore ($7,500)
Moore is 2-for-4 in made cuts at the Copperhead Course, but those two finishes are a win in 2023 and a T12 in 2024. The 32-year-old has shot under par in half of his rounds at the Copperhead Course, and Moore is a perfect 5-for-5 in made cuts this season, most notably with a runner-up finish at the Cognizant Classic earlier this month.
Kristoffer Reitan ($7,400)
Reitan should have a successful Valspar Championship debut this week. The 28-year-old out of Norway is the No. 46 ranked player in the world, and over the last year, Reitan has made 25 of 28 cuts between the PGA TOUR and the DP World TOUR. 14 of these finishes have come inside the top 20, including two wins overseas. In his first two career starts in Florida, Reitan has finished T17 at the Cognizant Classic and T66 at THE PLAYERS Championship over the last two weeks.
Tom Kim ($7,100)
Including a 5-under 66 in the second round, Kim finished T36 in his first attempt at the Valspar Championship last season, and the veteran has been a reliable cut-maker over the last year. Excluding his withdrawal from the Wyndham Championship in August, Kim has made 10 cuts in a row. The three-time PGA TOUR winner has gained strokes on approach at three consecutive tournaments, and this $7,100 salary is a huge discount from the $9,200 price tag Kim saw for last year’s Valspar Championship.
DraftKings $6,000 and Below Range
Doug Ghim ($6,900)
Highlighted by a T27 in 2023, Ghim has made three straight cuts at the Valspar Championship and is coming off a T26 at the Puerto Rico Open, where he closed the event with a 5-under 67. Ghim has advanced to the weekend in nine of his last 11 starts, and five of these finishes have been results of T31 or better. Ghim ranks 23rd in Total Strokes Gained when comparing this field’s last 24 rounds, and he has a strong chance to make the cut this week.
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Pictured: Xander Schauffele
Photo credit: Imagn
