Valspar Championship
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Palm Harbor, Florida |
| Established | 2000 |
| Course(s) |
Innisbrook Resort Copperhead Course |
| Par | 71 |
| Length | 7,340 yards (6,710 m) |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Format | Stroke play |
| Prize fund | $5.5 million |
| Month played | March |
| Tournament record score | |
| Aggregate | 266 Vijay Singh (2004) |
| To par | −18 Vijay Singh (2004) |
| Current champion | |
 Kevin Streelman | |
The Valspar Championship is a men's professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour, and is played annually on the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort and Golf Club in Palm Harbor, Florida.
History
The tournament was founded in 2000 as the Tampa Bay Classic. It was originally an alternate event played the same week as the Presidents Cup in 2000, and the same week as the WGC-American Express Championship in 2002. It was supposed to be played the same week as the WGC-American Express Championship on September 13–16, 2001. However, the September 11 attacks forced the cancellations of both tournaments.[1]
From 2003 to 2006, the Tampa Bay event had a slot in the schedule to itself as the last full-field event before the Tour Championship. The Chrysler Corporation was the title sponsor.
Since 2007, the Tampa Bay event has been played in March. For a time the tournament was without a title sponsor, leading to speculation on its fate beyond 2007. Then, on January 24, 2007, tournament officials and the PGA Tour announced a six-year sponsorship agreement with the PODS of Clearwater, Florida.[2] However, the company chose to exercise an option to withdraw as title sponsor after the 2008 event, and tournament officials searched to find a replacement.[3] On June 4, 2008, Transitions Optical, Inc., the photochromic lens manufacturer headquartered locally in Largo, Florida, was announced as the new title sponsor.[4] Transitions left the event after the 2012 season. Just two weeks before the 2013 tournament, EverBank agreed to be presenting sponsor for the tournament.[5] In September 2013, Valspar Corporation signed a four-year deal to become title sponsor of the event, now named the Valspar Championship.[6]
The players with the most wins in the event are Retief Goosen (2003 and 2009), and K. J. Choi (2002 and 2006). Goosen is also the tournament's leading money winner, with over $2 million in earnings at the event.
The tournament record was set by Vijay Singh in 2004 with a winning total of 266 (−18).
Winners
| Date | Winner | Country | Score | 1st prize ($) | Purse ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valspar Championship | |||||
| 2014 | |||||
| Tampa Bay Championship presented by EverBank | |||||
| Mar 17, 2013 | Kevin Streelman | United States | 274 (−10) | 990,000 | 5,500,000 |
| Transitions Championship | |||||
| Mar 18, 2012 | Luke Donald |  England | 271 (−13) | 990,000 | 5,500,000 |
| Mar 20, 2011 | Gary Woodland | United States | 269 (−15) | 990,000 | 5,500,000 |
| Mar 21, 2010 | Jim Furyk | United States | 271 (−13) | 972,000 | 5,400,000 |
| Mar 22, 2009 | Retief Goosen (2) |  South Africa | 276 (−8) | 972,000 | 5,400,000 |
| PODS Championship | |||||
| Mar 9, 2008 | Sean O'Hair | United States | 280 (−4) | 954,000 | 5,300,000 |
| Mar 11, 2007 | Mark Calcavecchia | United States | 274 (−10) | 954,000 | 5,300,000 |
| Chrysler Championship | |||||
| Oct 29, 2006 | K. J. Choi (2) |  South Korea | 271 (−13) | 954,000 | 5,300,000 |
| Oct 30, 2005 | Carl Pettersson |  Sweden | 275 (−9) | 954,000 | 5,300,000 |
| Oct 31, 2004 | Vijay Singh |  Fiji | 266 (−18) | 900,000 | 5,000,000 |
| Nov 2, 2003 | Retief Goosen | South Africa | 272 (−12) | 864,000 | 4,800,000 |
| Tampa Bay Classic presented by Buick | |||||
| Sep 22, 2002 | K. J. Choi | South Korea | 267 (−17) | 468,000 | 2,600,000 |
| Tampa Bay Classic | |||||
| Sep 16, 2001 | Canceled due to the September 11 attacks | ||||
| Oct 22, 2000 | John Huston | United States | 271 (−13) | 432,000 | 2,400,000 |
Note: Green highlight indicates scoring records.
Multiple winners
Two players have won this tournament more than once through 2012. These were K. J. Choi, who won the tournament twice, in 2002 and 2006 and Retief Goosen who won the tournament in 2003 and 2009.
References
- ↑ "2001 PGA Tour Schedule". USA Today. December 17, 2001. Retrieved March 16, 2011.
- ↑ "Tampa Event Named PODS Championship". Golf Channel. January 24, 2007. Retrieved January 25, 2007.
- ↑ Page, Rodney (March 8, 2008). "Finding sponsor top priority". St. Petersburg Times. Retrieved April 6, 2008.
- ↑ "Transitions Optical preserves Tampa leg of Florida swing". PGA Tour. June 4, 2008. Retrieved September 24, 2008.
- ↑ Harwell, Drew (March 1, 2013). "EverBank to sponsor PGA event at Innisbrook Resort in Palm Harbor". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved March 12, 2013.
- ↑ "Valspar commits to four-year sponsorship of PGA Tour event in Tampa Bay". PGA Tour. September 6, 2013. Retrieved September 6, 2013.