Why Taylor Moore is now a player to watch at Valspar Championship

PALM HARBOR — This time, Taylor Moore won’t sneak up on anyone. As he returns to Innisbrook Golf Resort this week to defend his Valspar Championship title, the 30-year old Dallas resident is in a much different situation than he was a year ago.

Moore, who was just starting his second year on the PGA Tour, made the clutch shots down the stretch that eluded Jordan Spieth and Adam Schenk last year to earn his first Tour victory. Spieth said afterward he wasn’t even aware Moore had played his way to the top of the leaderboard.

“Very special,” Moore said late last month at Valspar’s media day. “Not only do you have the ability to get your first Tour win, but have an opportunity to defend, it can be a special place for us. Looking forward to getting back here ... and trying to recreate that as much as I can.”

Moore will attempt to become the third player to defend his title, following Paul Casey and Sam Burns, when the tournament tees off Thursday on the Copperhead Course.

“It’d be awesome. I mean, I’ll take the win out here on this tour anytime I can get it,” Moore said. “It’s cool, and you really only, like, have a handful or a small amount of times you can defend, so I’m really looking forward to getting back here and getting the opportunity to do that.”

Moore will compete in a field that includes 16 of the top 50 golfers in the world, headlined by Xander Schauffele (No. 5) and Brian Harman (No. 8), who are in the Official World Golf Ranking’s top 10. Spieth (No. 16), the 2015 Valspar winner, is returning, as is Burns (No. 19), who won at Innisbrook in 2021 and 2022. Cameron Young (No. 23), playing in his first Valspar Championship, Nick Taylor (No. 24) and Justin Thomas (No. 28) also bear watching.

On Sunday of last season’s tournament, Moore was not on anybody’s watch list.

Spieth, Schenk and Tommy Fleetwood each held the lead at one point on the back nine, but Moore quietly turned in the best round of the day. He sank a 26-foot putt on No. 16, one of four birdies over his final 10 holes, and ended the day at 4-under-67, moving to 10-under for the tournament.

Moore’s putting gave him an edge throughout the event, as he did not miss any of the 64 putts he had within 7 feet.

“I’m going to have to shout out my short game and putting coach Josh Gregory for that one,” Moore said. “I think that was just a lot of work that we put in. That was pretty, pretty cool. Pretty special.”

Moore made par on No. 18 about half an hour before the final pairing of Spieth and Schenk made their way to the final hole.

Schenk, who had been tied for the lead, hit his worst tee shot of the tournament, his ball rolling up against the trunk of a pine tree. A par putt to force a playoff then lipped in and out of the cup. Spieth, a shot behind the leaders, narrowly missed on his approach shot and par putt and wound up tying Fleetwood for third.

Moore was waiting on the practice range with his father and girlfriend when a security guard informed him he had won the tournament. He said his favorite memory from the tournament was seeing family members after his final putt who he hadn’t even known were in attendance.

“After that 7-footer on the 18th I made to get in the clubhouse and just looking over and seeing, like, my fiancee and some of my family that showed up and I had no idea were there,” Moore said. “They were able to hide in the crowd all day, I guess. But that was a pretty fun memory just to post in under and then see them. It’s something I don’t ever forget.”

Moore said the difficulty of the Copperhead Course helps to level the playing field.

“Cooperhead is a challenging golf course just from the aspect that it doesn’t take 20- or 25-under to win out here,” he said. “It gets firm and fast the years I’ve been here. The rough is challenging. You have to think your way around this place.”

Being a PGA Tour champion opened the door for Moore to start playing in bigger tournaments, including automatic qualification into the Masters.

“I feel personally it didn’t change much,” he said, “but obviously professionally it got me access and into a lot of tournaments that I’ve dreamed of playing since I was a kid.”

Moore’s best finish since last year’s Valspar tournament was a tie for fourth at the Zurich Classic at New Orleans in April and the Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club in July. His top finish so far this year is a tie for 25th at The Sentry at the Plantation Course at Kapalua on Maui.

He said he is pleased where most of his game is entering this week’s tournament.

“I haven’t had a top finish yet or really connected on all four rounds, but overall I feel like I’m in a good place,” Moore said. “Good starts this season. I’m ready to get to Florida for some better weather.”

Valspar Championship

Thursday-Sunday, Innisbrook Copperhead Course, Palm Harbor

Gates open, 7 a.m.

TV: 2-6 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 1-3 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, Golf Channel; 3-6 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, NBC

More: Tickets and other info, visit valsparchampionship.com.