Following the whopping Players Championship purse of $25 million last week, the largest in the history of the PGA Tour, is appears like this week’s Valspar Championship is getting lost in the shuffle.
However, that should not be the case.
Top 15 players like Justin Thomas, Matt Fitzpatrick and Jordan Spieth are at Innisbrook Resort, as is Sam Burns, the two-time defending champion, who defeated Davis Riley in a playoff to win last year. They’ll be playing for an $8,100,000 purse with $1,458,000 going to the eventual winner.
“I planned on playing here in 2021, I had COVID,” Spieth said. “Then last year my brother got married this weekend.
“So I’m excited to be back. I love this golf course. It’s as full as I’ve ever seen it. I know it’s been awhile since I’ve been here, but these greens and the rough around the greens are just full and pure.”
It marks the last event of the Florida Swing. Chris Kirk got things started at the Honda Classic, Kurt Kitayama won the crazy see-saw duel at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler ran away with the Players last week at TPC Sawgrass.
After Burns won the Valspar last year he later captured the Charles Schwab Challenge by beating Scheffler in a playoff. He enters his title defense at No. 15 in the Official World Golf Ranking, but he has only one top-10 finish six events in 2023. He tied for 35th place last week at the Players but missed the cut in his two previous appearances—the Arnold Palmer Invitational and Genesis Invitational. He tied for sixth place at the WM Phoenix Open.
Here’s the prize money payout for each golfer who makes the cut this week at the Valspar.