2025 Valspar Championship predictions, betting picks: Will Zalatoris among longshots to target at Copperhead

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After what turned into a five-day Players Championship with Rory McIlroy defeating JJ Spaun in a playoff on Monday, the PGA Tour season continues with the 2025 Valspar Championship teeing off from the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort in Palm Harbor, Florida, on Thursday, March 20. Spaun would have been a significant longshot victor at golf’s “fifth major” at 110-1 odds before the tournament, compared to McIlroy who had one of the shortest odds of the weekend. Is there another sizeable longshot who can make a run and possibly capture the 2025 Valspar Championship?

Justin Thomas, Xander Schauffele and Tommy Fleetwood are the 14-1 co-favorites (risk $100 to win $1,400) in the latest 2025 Valspar Championship odds, but longshots have dominated this event in recent years. Peter Malnati won last year at 350-1 odds for his first PGA Tour victory since 2015 and his odds have nearly tripled at 1000-1 (risk $100 to win $100,000) this week. Taylor Moore, who won in 2023, has 50-1 odds, so which longshots should you consider for 2025 Valspar Championship bets? Malnati has missed the cut in five of his past seven starts on the PGA Tour and is +1600 (risk $100 to win $1,600) to crack the top 20. 

SportsLine’s proprietary model, built by DFS pro Mike McClure, is up nearly $9,000 on its best bets since June 2020. This same model has also nailed a whopping 13 majors entering the weekend, including the 2024 Masters.

Now that the 2025 Valspar Championship field is locked in, SportsLine simulated the tournament 10,000 times, and revealed its longshot betting picks:

Will Zalatoris (25-1 at FanDuel)

The 28-year-old has made the cut in each of his first six PGA Tour events this year and although he’s still seeking his first top-10 result this season, Zalatoris is gaining momentum. He closed last year strong with a top-15 finish in the FedEx St. Jude Championship and BMW Championship after a tough summer that included four missed cuts, a withdrawal, and a T-42 finish over six tournaments spanning from the U.S. Open until finishing T-12 at the FedEx St. Jude Championship. His six straight made cuts are signs of the young golfer returning to the form that once made him one of the best in the world.

Zalatoris isn’t far removed from being ranked inside the top 10 in the world when he withdrew from the 2022 BMW Championship due to a herniated disk in his back. The injury was a significant setback, but recent results show it may be behind him. With a weaker field this week, Zalatoris is one to watch for. FanDuel Sportsbook has Zalatoris priced at 25-1 odds: 

Michael Kim (40-1)

Kim missed the cut at last week’s Players Championship, but that one result isn’t indicative of his season thus far. The 31-year-old finished no worse than T-13 in his previous five tournaments entering the Players Championship, including a T-2 at the WM Phoenix Open in February and a top-five finish at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March. Kim has only three rounds of 70 or higher over his last four tournaments, including the Players Championship when he rallied with a 69 on the second day but finished one stroke off the cut line.

He is ninth on the PGA Tour in total strokes gained this year and his scrambling ability has been integral to his success. Kim is fourth on the PGA Tour in scrambling, including 15th from the sand, and has the fifth-best sand save percentage on tour this season. He’s 18th in scoring average and 12th on Par 4s. Hopefully, Kim doesn’t need to work himself out of trouble, but he’s proven capable of doing so if needed. 

Luke Clanton (50-1)

The No. 1 ranked amateur in the world secured his PGA Tour card after finishing T-18 at the Cognizant Classic on March 2. It was his second top-20 result in four PGA Tour events this year as Clanton finished T-15 at the Farmers Insurance Open. He’s still dominating at Florida State, coming off a tournament victory last weekend, to continue to cement himself as the world’s top amateur. 

The 2025 Valspar Championship competition will certainly be a step up from his latest college tournament, but with many of the top golfers on the PGA Tour skipping this weekend, the model projects strong value in Clanton at 50-1. The 21-year-old projects to be a PGA Tour staple in the near future and he already has three top-five finishes in 12 career PGA Tour events. Clanton finished second at the John Deere Classic and RSM Classic last year and has the potential to be the latest longshot winner at the Copperhead Course. 

More Valspar Championship 2025 picks

You’ve seen the latest longshots from the model. Now, see the Valspar Championship leaderboard, including forecasted finishes for Justin Thomas, Tommy Fleetwood, Shane Lowry, Xander Schauffele, and more. Visit SportsLine to see the projected leaderboard, all from the model that’s nailed 13 golf majors, including the last three Masters and three majors in 2024.

You can also view expert advice before locking in your PGA Tour picks. Visit SportsLine now to see expert Eric Cohen’s best bets for a $1 million parlay, all from an expert who correctly predicted the pre-tournament outright winner in seven events over the last two seasons, for the 2025 Valspar Championship.

2025 Valspar Championship odds, favorites 

Get full 2025 Valspar Championship picks, best bets and predictions here

Tommy Fleetwood +1400

Justin Thomas +1400

Xander Schauffele +1400

Sam Burns +2200

Corey Conners +2500

Sepp Straka +2500

Shane Lowry +2500

Will Zalatoris +2500

Akshay Bhatia +3000

Tom Kim +3300

Jordan Spieth +3500

Michael Kim +4000

Adam Scott +4500

Alex Smalley +4500

Viktor Hovland +5000

J.T. Poston +5000

Taylor Moore +5000

Luke Clanton +5000

Lucas Glover +5000

Jake Knapp +5500

Keith Mitchell +5500

Cameron Young +5500

Byeong Hun An +5500

Sahith Theegala +6000

Ben Griffin +6000

Thomas Detry +6000

Stephan Jaeger +7000

Rasmus Hojgaard +7000

Jacob Bridgeman +7500

Bud Cauley +7500

Harry Hall +8000

Kurt Kitayama +8000

Niklas Norgaard +8000

Beau Hossler +9000

Ryan Gerard +9000

Samuel Stevens +9000

Christiaan Bezuidenhout +9000

Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen +9000

Nicolai Hojgaard +10000

Billy Horschel +10000

Andrew Novak +10000

Joe Highsmith +10000

Doug Ghim +10000

Kevin Yu +10000

Seamus Power +10000

Kevin Roy +11000

Max Mcgreevy +11000

Adam Hadwin +12000

Jhonattan Vegas +12000

Matt Kuchar +12000

Mackenzie Hughes +12000

Thorbjorn Olesen +12000

Rico Hoey +12000

Jesper Svensson +12000

Matt Wallace +12000

Joel Dahmen +15000

Gary Woodland +15000

Joseph Bramlett +15000

Cameron Davis +15000

Chan Kim +15000

Ryan Fox +15000

Danny Walker +15000

Charley Hoffman +15000

Where to bet on PGA Tour tournaments

Here are some of the sportsbooks to bet on the PGA, along with the various PGA Tour sportsbook promos they currently offer.

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