Golf Tips: Best bets for Valspar Championship and Hainan Classic

Valspar Championship tips and predictions

The Punter's Preview: Bank on Bridgeman at 23/1

Steve Rawlings: Having been matched at 29.0, when the Betfair Exchange market first opened, the bang in-form 26-year-old Jacob Bridgeman has been well supported and I'm not in the least bit surprised.

After winning his first PGA Tour event at Riviera last month, a week after finishing eighth at Pebble Beach, Bridgeman has finished 18^th in the Arnold Palmer and tied fifth last week at the Players so he arrives in tip-top form.

Bridgeman ranked first for both Putting Average and Strokes Gained: Putting at both Riviera and Sawgrass and, having finished fifth in the John Deere Classic last year and fourth in the Sony Open in January, he has form at a couple of correlating courses. We shouldn't be surprised by that given he was third here 12 months ago. He's a rock solid candidate and a fair price.

Each-Way Picks: Back Spieth to kick on 28/1

Dave Tindall: Jordan Spieth's 32nd place at Sawgrass doesn't look the greatest advertisement but he's only bettered that finish once in his last 10 starts at The Players Championship... Closing with a 69 would have put him in good heart and he doesn't have those same mental demons here at the Copperhead Course. Far from it.

It's been a happy hunting ground for Spieth. He won this event in 2015 and that was one of four top 20s in each of his first four appearances. More recently, Spieth took third in 2023 and last year he was 28th after middle rounds of 69-67 moved him up to 17th with a lap to go.

As for recent stats which he said weren't showing the true story, well they are pretty decent. Spieth has ranked 16th (Bay Hill) and eighth (Sawgrass) for Approach in the last two weeks and he was top 20 for Tee To Green in both. In February he ranked second and third for Putting at Pebble and Riviera and that good putting continued with 16th for SGP at Bay Hill.

Overall, the case for Spieth is fairly simple. In his last three starts he's finished 12th at the Genesis, 11th at the Arnold Palmer and had one of his best finishes at Sawgrass where he twice shot in the 60s. With his previously injured wrist no longer a problem, Spieth can kick on. He's been close to something big and perhaps everything clicks here on a course he loves.

Find Me a 100 Winner: Look close to home for 279/1 pick

Steve Rawlings: The 30-year-old Floridian, Chandler Blanchet, is a player rapidly on the rise and he's one to keep an eye on. He gained promotion to the Korn Ferry Tour in 2023, after his second and third victories on the Latinoamérica Tour saw him top the points list. Following victories in the Korn Ferry Tour Championship and the Price Cutter Charity Championship last year, he now plies his trade on the PGA Tour.

Blanchet started the year slowly with five missed cuts in-a-row but he hit the ground running at the Puerto Rico Open last time out, leading by four at halfway, after opening rounds of 64 and 67.

He hit the buffers in round three with a sorry 74 before bouncing back nicely on Sunday to fire another 67 but it wasn't quite enough to reel in the 54 hole leader, Ricky Castillo. A week off to reflect on his near miss won't have done any harm and a return to his home state may be a big plus too.

First-Round Leader Tips: Dave Tindall says back Stephan Jaeger @ 80/181.00

Dave Tindall: Stephan Jaeger was the joint first-round leader here last year after firing a 67. It wasn't exactly unexpected as he'd also had a share of the 18-hole lead on his previous visit to the course in 2023.

So could he raise eyebrows further and take the Thursday honours once more? At 80/181.00 I'm happy to try and find out.

His form is patchy this year but there are a few signs of promise. The German was fifth after round one and fifth at the finish at the Farmers Insurance Open and he sat 10th at halfway in Phoenix. Middle rounds of 71-69 at TPC Sawgrass last week were decent knocks (he faded on Sunday) but ranking 10th for SG: Putting at The Players is also good to see given that past Valspar winners have been strong on the greens.

Jaeger's Valspar FRL hat-trick bid begins from the 10th at 12:58.

Valspar Championship 2026: Course and current form stats

Course Form Pick: Viktor Hovland @ 18/1

The Dane has a 68.50 round averge at this week's venue - the lowest of any player over the last five years - and arrives here to defend the title he won in 2025 on the back of consecutive 13th-placed finishes.

Hainan Classic tips and predictions

The Punter's Preview: Count on Crocker at 64/1

Steve Rawlings: Last year's runner-up, Sean Crocker, will begin this year's renewal early on Thursday at the new course - the Vintage Course - but he'll be back on familiar territory after that. Crocker led the event by a stroke at halfway last year, when the entire tournament was staged at the Blackstone Course, before a sorry 73 on Saturday saw him slip to ninth place.

That left him with too much to do but he bounced back nicely, shooting his lowest round of the week on Sunday (66) to finish tied second. The 29-year-old American has only ordinary form figures reading 30-33-MC-57-36, but he sat second at the halfway stage of the Joburg Open last time out, so he's certainly hinted at a return to form.

A lot will depend on how the big hitting American's putter behaves but in a weak looking event, he looks very fairly priced given how nicely the venue suits him.

Hainan Classic 2026: Form stats

Current form pick: Dan Bradbury @ 35/1

The Englishman is flying high after winning the Joburg Open two week ago. His triumph followed two missed cuts, although prior to that he came fifth in Qatar in February, and while it is notoriously difficult to record consecutive wins his world ranking points - 36.55 since October - show his success in South African was no fluke.

Now start your Augusta preparations with a US Masters 2026 betting preview