The final leg of the Florida Swing teed off this week in Palm Harbor with the opening round of the 2026 Valspar Championship, and it didn’t disappoint. A combination of established competitors and unexpected names found themselves near the top of the leaderboard, while several notable withdrawals added an extra layer of interest to the tournament’s early round.
Leader at Valspar Championship
Leading the way after Thursday’s opening round is Sungjae Im. He carded an impressive 7-under 64 to take a one-shot lead. Im’s round was highlighted by two eagles, which helped offset a few mistakes during the round.
His performance marks a solid return after a difficult start to the season. Im unfortunately missed back-to-back cuts following his return from a wrist injury. On Thursday, however, Im looked confident and in control. If he can maintain this level of play, he’ll be a serious contender heading into the weekend.
Veteran Surge
One of the biggest surprises came from veteran Brandt Snedeker. The 45-year-old U.S. captain for the Presidents Cup entered the field on a sponsor exemption. Snedeker posted a bogey-free 6-under 65, something he hasn’t done at Innisbrook in 14 years. His round included three consecutive birdies to open the back nine, setting the tone for a strong finish.
Snedeker’s recent resurgence may be linked to a change in equipment. After switching to a mallet putter just a few weeks ago, he’s begun to see significant improvement on the greens. That was evident in his opening round, where he drained a 20-foot birdie putt on the first hole and followed it up with a remarkable 45-foot birdie on the 12th. His putting clearly made the difference, allowing him to keep momentum and avoid serious mistakes.
“Playing perfect the way we want to see it play, firms and fast,” Snedeker said to the PGA Tour and ESPN after the round. “Had a really good game plan – just relied on my putter. I putted great today, made a bunch of footage of putts, and put myself in position off the tee hit a lot of fairways and greens and made it stress-free which was nice. So really excited about how it started, but a long way to go from here.”
Withdrawals From Valspar
While the leaderboard featured some exciting performances, the tournament also saw several high-profile withdrawals. Among them were Akshay Bhatia, Robert MacIntyre, Sudarshan Yellamaraju, Keith Mitchell, and Max Greyserman.
These exits are particularly notable given the recent form of several players on that list. Bhatia, for example, recently captured a victory at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, while MacIntyre finished fourth at The Players Championship. Yellamaraju was also coming off a career-best T5 finish at the same event, making his withdrawal especially surprising.
With strong performances at the top and unexpected absences reshaping the field, the Valspar Championship 2026 is already turning out to be an unpredictable finish to the Florida Swing. As the tournament progresses, all eyes will be on whether Im can maintain his lead and whether veterans like Snedeker can continue their impressive play.
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