Another instructor. The old putter back in the bag. New swing thoughts running rampant through the brain. Having no idea where the ball is going off the clubface. It may sound like a disaster at first glance, but it all added up to Viktor Hovland returning to the winner’s circle at the 2025 Valspar Championship as the 27-year-old captured his seventh career title on the PGA Tour.
One of three to possess the 54-hole lead heading into Sunday’s final round at the Copperhead Course, Hovland had just enough in his arsenal to fend off a red-hot Justin Thomas for a one-stroke victory at 11 under.
Standing on the 14th hole three behind J.T., the Norwegian nipped the American at the finish line thanks to three birdies in his final five holes, including two across the three-hole finishing stretch dubbed the Snake Pit.
“I got no idea [what I drew on down the stretch],” Hovland said. “It’s still kind of sinking in. It was just really cool. … I still felt really calm and wasn’t really stressing even when I knew I had to make my putt on No. 14. When that went in, I just felt really, really calm there. I just hit good shots and made some putts. It was awesome.”
The 2023 FedEx Cup champion entered the week in a state of disarray. Fresh off three straight missed cuts — including an opening-round 80 at The Players Championship — Hovland had little confidence in his game. A second-round 67 did little to squash his concerns, but it did propel him into weekend contention where he looked more like his usual self.
The name atop among the trio of leaders heading into the final round, Hovland had the look early. He rattled in birdies from 16 feet and 19 feet in his first three holes to snag the lead by himself just as Thomas was making his move ahead.
The two-time major champion looked liked he could do no wrong as he turned in 3 under before penciling four circles onto his scorecard from Nos. 11-15 to secure a three-stroke lead with as many holes to play. Hovland converted a crucial 13 footer on No. 14 to cut the margin to two, which is where it stood entering the Snake Pit.
With Thomas finding trouble off the tee, Hovland employed a more conservative strategy on No. 16 and found the short grass with an iron. From there, he laced a beautiful mid iron up the hill to 7 feet and once again made the most of the opportunity.
From three behind to all tied with two to play, Hovland kept his foot on the gas pedal. Launching a tight fade into the air on the difficult par-3 17th, he saw his tee shot settle just outside 10 feet. While Thomas just missed his bid moments before, Hovland left little doubt and buried his to grab the trophy by the handle.
Hovland entered the week bemoaning the state of his game, but he had just enough of it in his bag by week’s end. The most interesting man in golf knows he has plenty more to squeeze out of his game moving forward and the potential to find plenty more trophies that he can squeeze tight in his future.
“It’s unbelievable to see that I could win,” Hovland said, “because I honestly did not believe that I could do it this week.” Grade: A+
Here are the rest of the notable names on the leaderboard at the 2025 Valspar Championship.
2. Justin Thomas (-10): After making the cut on the number, the former world No. 1 fired the round of the week on Saturday to jump back into the mix. He looked well on his way to outdoing his third-round 65 as he was 7 under through his first 15 holes Sunday and saw his lead balloon to three with as many holes to play.
Thomas made bogey on No. 16 after missing left off the tee, and he scored another on No. 18 again due to a left miss. He played his final three holes in 2 over and saw the championship slip out of his grasp as Hovland made his move. It’s been over 1,000 days since Thomas’ last win — a run that has been filled with plenty of close calls like this. Grade: A
T4. Bud Cauley (-8): One week after fulfilling his major medical extension at The Players and securing his full-time status for the rest of the year, Cauley jumped right back on the wagon. The Alabama product posted the early low number in the clubhouse thanks to his final-round 66 that included a crucial chip-in par on No. 16. Cauley fell just short, but he has now finished inside the top six in back-to-back tournaments for the first time in his career.
“I feel like I’ve been kind of building towards that [contention],” Cauley said. “The things you’ve been working on, I feel like I’ve been making little progress kind of every week. These last couple weeks everything’s started to come together a little bit where my ball striking’s been there, short game, had some good days putting and I feel like it’s all coming together.” Grade: A-
T12. Xander Schauffele (-5): In what may potentially be Schauffele’s final start until the Masters, the two-time major champion took a notable step forward. After making the cut on the number at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and Players, Schauffele shot himself into contention at the Valspar thanks to a final-round 66. There are some areas of his game which still need to improve — namely his driving and short game — but the scoring clubs sizzled in Tampa, which cannot be understated leading into Augusta National.
“I think I feel a little bit better,” Schauffele said. “Felt like I was kind of going to the drawing board often this week, just on sort of a feel or something. […] Today, the focus was kind of back to when you fiddle with your swing so much while you’re trying to compete; yesterday, I tried to free myself of that and started to hit some snap hooks, so that was obviously a bit concerning.
“Talking lot with my team and everyone that’s trying to help me on how to approach it, so the thought process was to try and get the ball in the hole and focus on that the most. Doesn’t matter if I have to play with what feels like a compensation, just get it done.” Grade: B+
T28. Jordan Spieth (-2): Despite giving himself a chance heading into Sunday, Spieth was unable to score effectively to make a run up the leaderboard. The former tournament champion’s Florida Swing has to nevertheless be seen as a success as he contended at PGA National, made the cut at The Players and finally flashed some form with his iron play at Innisbrook. Spieth ranked top five in strokes gained approach on the week and gained strokes in that category for the first time since the WM Phoenix Open. Grade: C+
T36. Sahith Theegala (-1): Nine starts into his 2025 campaign, and Theegala continues to struggle with his iron play. Posting the worst approach numbers of his PGA Tour career so far this season — albeit in a limited sample size — the shortcoming upended an impressive driving performance and a more than admirable week on the greens. Theegala ranked outside the top 70 in greens in regulation and has only one finish inside the top 30 through the first three months of the year. Grade: C-
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