When the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort hosts the Play With Pete Invitational on March 13th it will be the first time PWPI is held on an annual PGA Tour stop track. And? It gets even more compelling.
PWPICopperhead will be played exactly one week before the Valspar Championship. So players and live-stream viewers alike will see Copperhead at its most dangerous with Tour conditions and a Tour setup. It will present an authentic PGA Tour challenge and PWPICopperhead players will be measured.
The Copperhead Course is constantly voted as a Top-10 course by players on Tour because of its pristine conditioning and rigorous challenge. And the respected and popular Valspar Championship is always one of the most difficult courses on the Tour schedule. But the Copperhead challenge is about a lot more than conquering a difficult track. It's about obstacles and adversities that completely test a player's game and mental fortitude in just about every possible way imaginable.
Elevation at Copperhead changes upwards of 75 feet. Rolling terrain through heavily wooded corridors are peppered with more than 70 bunkers, some tucked near trees making these hazards twice as punitive and requiring creativity merely to escape. Bunker shapes, sizes, and depths will consume errant shots, dare heroic ones, and even visually intimidate and confuse.
Fairways at Copperhead climb and plummet, dogleg left and right, and are protected by devouring rough. Some areas are inviting up to 40 yards wide. While other areas are downright unnerving and squeezed to barely 15 yards. Blind shots, forced carries, and water hazards can be unmerciful. Green complexes with varied shapes, contours, depths, widths, and audacious slopes are a trial by fire. And when the winds start gusting at Copperhead you can fall apart faster than a crunchy taco.
So let's get right into this Larry Packard designed 7,209 yard, par-71 Copperhead Course hole by hole review. I'll list yardages from the black tees (yes, one of the PWPICopperhead players is crazy enough to have at it from the tips) and also the white (middle resort) tees where most of the group will play from.
HOLE NO. 1: Innisbrook's View (Par-5, 560/521 Yards)
Copperhead's elevation drop from the first tee isn't quite as intense as the plunge from the famed first tee at Riviera CC but it's still fierce in its own right with about a 40 foot drop. This tee shot at Copperhead however might actually be more difficult.
The fairway narrows to about 20 yards as it begins to slither left past sprawling bunkers on the left and then right again with an enormous bunker on the right. Any plans of going for the green in two have to take on these bunkers and squeeze a shot into this narrow landing area. Miss too far left or right off the tee and trees, overhanging branches, and thick, heavy rough can cause problems and even handcuff a simple layup.
If you manage to get in position off the tee and want to go for the green in two you'll still likely have a blind shot over trees with water lurking right if you spin one out. Approaches from the right side of the green will need to carry a long greenside bunker that's deep enough in some spots that you can't see the putting surface if you find it. You're in better position left-center of the fairway as the green is open. However the left greenside bunker slopes down off a mound and can present stance issues.
The elevated green generally slopes down and left. Shots that barely reach the front can roll back towards the fairway but nothing so extreme that you'll completely lose it off the green. Downhill putts can race past the hole and leave you with an even longer uphill putt when pins are back-right or bottom-left where the slope is most severe.
HOLE NO. 2: Second Thoughts (Par-4, 413/359 Yards)
The good news about hole No. 2 at Copperhead is the green is enormous, almost 120 feet deep. The bad news about hole No. 2 at Copperhead is you might not be hitting into it until your third or even fourth shot. Finding the fairway on this dogleg-left hole is crucial.
A dense platoon of trees protects the entire left side of the hole and finding yourself with a second shot anywhere inside this hard-hearted thicket of timber might have you raising the white flag. Miss to the right and a menacing lake will mean one less ball in your bag. And the fairway narrowing to just 25 yards at the bend of the dogleg magnifies the challenge.
Only one bunker protects the green on the right side. It's built up into the side of the green however and deep rolling edges can make your escape anything but a routine splash out. Miss left on approach and clumpy rough can demand more force just to extract your ball.
The green slopes down and to the right with a lot of movement in the lower third of the putting surface. Get cute with a chip or putt on holes cut down here and you run the very real risk of your ball skating off the green.
HOLE NO. 3: Narrow Neck (Par-4, 442/386 Yards)
How much confidence do you have with your driver? That's the first question that must be asked when you step onto the tee of the dogleg-right hole No. 3 at Copperhead. And your answer could be the difference between a next shot of 180+ yards to the green or only 125 yards and change.
Play it safe left of the lake and you're rewarded with a generously wide fairway of about 40 yards. The trade-off however is you're looking at a long-iron approach into the green over that same body of water. You still need to be accurate even if go this conservative route with a densely wooded area further left off the tee. Miss over here and best case scenario you're completely blocked from any shot into the green. Worst case scenario we call the search party for both you and your ball.
Alternatively you can take on the lake further up the fairway for a distance advantage and more open look at the green. But another smaller lake on the left squeezes your landing area at the dogleg corner to barely 20 yards wide. This hole usually plays into the wind but it's still easy to wash one through the fairway.
The green is elevated and appropriately shaped like a skeleton head. It's the most demanding green complex to this point of your round. Three large bunkers protect the left, right, and back sides of the green. The front-left bunker is deepest. And the right-third of the entire green has a lot of pace with slopes moving both left and right.
Going back to the 2000 Valspar Championship hole No. 3 has allowed the fewest birdies of any hole at Copperhead and doled out more bogeys than 16 of the 18 holes.
HOLE NO. 4: Bunkered (Par-3, 188/140 Yards)
Hole No. 4 is the shortest par-3 on Copperhead. Don't let this lull you into believing it's also child's play easy.
A middle fairway bunker 15 yards from the green creates the illusion from the tee of a green that's shallower and more protected than it actually is. But that's not to say the green isn't shallow and well protected.
The green is about 35 yards wide but only 45 feet deep. Almost the entire green slopes down and left with a higher level on the right. It's not a guaranteed up-and-down from any of the bunkers left, middle, and back. And if you miss right heavy rough is your just desert.
Choose the right club, commit to your shot, and hope the prevailing winds back at you aren't huffing and puffing.
HOLE NO. 5: Longview (Par-5, 607/526 Yards)
The shortest par-3 on Copperhead is followed up with the longest par-5 (and number one handicap hole on the course). To state the obvious, long hitters have a big advantage here. Or do they? Hole 5 on Copperhead plays uphill over water from the tee box with two bunkers left and right squeezing the fairway like an hourglass (to just 18 yards) where most long hitters will target.
The right fairway bunker has a high lip and overhanging branches from nearby trees can wreak havoc. You need a Goldilocks shot to escape this bunker. Missing left is no picnic either where the rough is so heavy it can be an ordeal to simply advance your ball to the top of the hill. It's almost better to be short of the bunkers where the fairway is twice as wide and no complications exist for your second shot.
Wherever you are after your drive the second shot is blind and you want to aim for a clearance in the horizon. This will put you in ideal position just as the fairway begins to dogleg left and give a clean, open look into the green. If you miss just a little bit left it will leave you with a difficult approach possibly under or over trees and the green is narrower to hit from this side. If you miss just a little bit right your ball is playing hide-and-go-seek again in the thick, heavy rough.
I'm not going to keep talking about how thick and heavy the rough is at Copperhead. But it's really thick and heavy. Ands with no spotters out at PWPICopperhead the players are definitely going to lose a few of those PGAPappas logo balls unless they have a bead on their ball the entire flight.
The green is small and almost shaped like a Christmas stocking with a higher front level that moves right and down off the back. But don't expect it to give you any gifts. It's protected like a maximum security prison with clumpy wads of rough hemming in the entire green complex along with two deep bunkers back and right and two more bunkers front and left.
HOLE NO. 6: Sidewinder (Par-4, 452/406 Yards)
You have a blind tee shot on hole No 6 into a fairway that doglegs right. Cutting one in is ideal or aim as close as you can to the right tree-line for a straight drive. The fairway narrows just as the dogleg turns into the green. Miss in either direction and you'll have a better chance of encountering gnomes in the thick groves of trees than getting a clean look on approach.
Making the fairway even more challenging is a harsh right-to-left slope that can eject your tee shot into the rough like it was hit by a pinball machine flipper. Since 2020 there have been more bogeys at the Valspar Championship on this hole than any other hole on Copperhead. And missing this fairway sets the table for big numbers.
The green is elevated and generally moves down and to the left. An upside-down molar shaped bunker protecting the front-left is deep enough to obstruct your view of the putting surface. Miss right and your chip runs down and away. Miss short and you've got unpredictable bounces.
And if you miss long? Well, think of your worst case up-and-down scenario. It will probably be worse here with rough behind the green that's absolutely brutal. Morale of the story on No. 6 is don't miss the fairway, don't miss the green. It's an all or nothing hole.
HOLE NO. 7: Hidden Gem (Par-4, 410/345 Yards)
The shortest par-4 on the front-nine at Copperhead presents a blind uphill shot off the tee. Just keep it in play and aim down the middle. Once your drive clears the rise a downslope will funnel your ball even closer to the green for a short-iron or wedge approach.
Whatever you do on this hole just don't miss left off the tee. You'll have a problematic lie of mulch and twigs. Trees can lock you down like prison bars. And you'll need a Tour-esque knock down or punch out game simply to avoid making this a crime scene.
Once you're on the green however it's a putting surface with the least overall slope and movement to this point. Only one other par-4 on Copperhead in Valspar Championship history surrenders more birdies than this hole.
Bunkers protect the green front-left, front-right, and back-right. And the toughest pin position will be a bottom-right cut where the green slopes quickest.
HOLE NO. 8: Drop Off (Par-3, 232/176 Yards)
Do you like long par-3s? Sure it's not a brute like the par-3 8th at Oakmont Country Club, but it's still bombs away on the par-3 8th at Copperhead (which by the way hosts the first local U.S. Open qualifier this year in April).
This longest par-3 on Copperhead plays slightly downhill. Prevailing winds into your shot can knock balls down into either of the front-left or front-right bunkers. The left bunker is deeper and a more challenging up-and-down.
The green is shaped like a canine tooth. Extremely narrow in the front at barely 25 feet wide. And it gets progressively wider as you move to the back maxing out at 60 feet wide. That's not a lot of wiggle room to miss left or right.
With multiple tiers moving from highest in the back to lowest in the front you do not under any circumstances want either a long chip from the back rough or a long downhill putt. How long you ask? The green is a whopping 140 feet deep. Almost half the length of a football field.
HOLE NO. 9: Hide Away (Par-4, 420/378 Yards)
It's an uphill battle all the way to the green on this dogleg right 9th hole at Copperhead. The fairway slopes in from both sides and can either kick your drive into the fairway or get it stuck up in the mounding.
Slanted left fairway bunkers will likely give you a ball below your feet lie. The right fairway bunker is dangerously close to a roadblock of trees. All told it's about 50 yards of trouble from where the first left fairway bunker begins to where the right fairway bunker ends. And your landing are here is only 19 yards wide. You have a semi-blind shot approach into the green no matter where you hit your drive. It's just a matter of how forbidding that second shot will be.
The green is protected by a front-right bunker deep enough to obstruct your view of the putting surface. The back-left bunker protects the entire opposite side and is narrow enough to force an awkward uneven stance.
And nearly one-third of the entire bottom portion of the green has such a severe slope that any approaches that hit here will likely roll back down and off the green.
HOLE NO. 10: The Descent (Par-4, 441/374 Yards)
It looks like a pretty wide open tee shot on No. 10 and with the fairway running downhill you might be tempted to grip it and rip it. But the fairway also narrows the more you advance towards the green. And the further down the fairway you miss the more your odds increase of being stymied on approach.
The big trouble left is a fairway bunker where branches from nearby trees can interfere with an ideal second shot window into the green. And if you miss in the rough to the right you might as well just tap out. The trees have you in a chokehold and you won't have anything resembling a clean approach.
Your approach plays back up and into an elevated green with a deep bunker guarding the front left and a larger bunker defending the entire right side. The green is narrower in the front (about 45 feet) and wider in the back (about 75 feet) with a sharp falloff back-right into ornery rough. The lower area of the green and back left corner have a lot of pace and the green generally slopes down and left.
What you don't want to do is go long on this hole. The green is 100 feet deep and a downhill chip or putt will pick up speed the entire way and possibly put you back in the fairway without the deftest of touch.
HOLE NO. 11: O's Alley (Par-5, 567/514 Yards)
This is your best shot at birdie on Copperhead the rest of the way out. Only the first hole gives up more birdies in Valspar Championship history. Of course that doesn't mean you can't make a mess of this hole like a 3-year old eating spaghetti. But either way you'll be making memories.
No. 11 doglegs left at about 240 yards out from the green. The left corner is protected by a fairway bunker more than 40 yards long. Find yourself in this claustrophobic jumble of trees and sand and take comfort in the fact not a single soul is finding the green from here. Ever. Try to thread a shot between the trees that guard the right corner and run the risk of your ball ricocheting deeper right into water.
If you're going for the green in two know that the fairway ends about 40 yards short of green with a large bunker protecting the front. Unless you can bend, twist, and warp objects and environments like Doctor Strange you're not going to just run one up here.
The green is shallow and only 30 feet deep over the right half. In addition to the front-left bunker (that's cut in a reverse letter "C" shape and deepest on this hole), two bunkers in the back and right will examine your up-and-down ability. A higher level in the back of the green slides balls down and to the right.
HOLE NO. 12: Bridge Hole (Par-4, 373/343 Yards)
Do you prefer an easier drive or an easier approach? That might determine what club you pull from the tee on No. 12.
Most players will opt for less than driver and hit a hybrid or long iron over a lake into a very wide first fairway. Only an absolutely grotesque miss will get you in trouble if you play it this way. You'll then have an approach with a long-to-mid iron into the green over a second lake and deep greenside bunker protecting the front.
If you're the type who will take on anyone, at anything, anytime, then you take that driver of yours Cincinnati Kid and also carry a creek that feeds the second lake and land in the second fairway that's barely 16 yards wide. Assuming your drive doesn't exit stage left into the goulash of trees or drench right with an inflamed sense of rejection, you'll be licking your chops. A straightforward, short wedge into an open green awaits with the option of running one up to the putting surface as well.
The green is elevated, narrow, and slopes back-right to front-left. The front bunker is deepest and can inhibit your view of the putting surface. And the back-and-front left bunkers tidy up security on this potentially boisterous hole.
Let me officially state right here and now that I'm hoping at least one of the PWPICopperhead players is a maniacal Steve McQueen fan.
HOLE NO. 13: Forced Carry (Par-3, 199/148 Yards)
The beauty and simplicity of hole No. 13 belies the pain it can inflict.
Sure there's the forced carry over water. Yes the prevailing winds blowing at you and left can make playing it safe to that side not as simple as it sounds. And bunkers left, front-right, and back-right all present unique ordeals. But it's the eggplant-shaped putting surface itself that orchestrates all the potential carnage.
The green is angled and extremely narrow making it tough to hit. The green is higher in the back and slopes down and right making it tough to hold. Misses short can bowl down into the water. While misses long will reacquaint you with the pitiless thickset rough. And if you're in any of the above-mentioned three bunkers expect your ball to misbehave.
There have been more double-bogeys on this hole in Valspar Championship history than any hole on Copperhead other than No. 16. And if this makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up? Well, you can always just smash one into the Valspar grandstand behind the green. So at least you got that going for you.
HOLE NO. 14: Packard's Double Dogleg (Par-5, 590/532 Yards)
Got that dog in you? You better if you're thinking of going for the green in two on this double-dogleg long par-5. For most players it will be a three-shot hole.
The fairway winds left off the tee and narrows just past the dogleg corner. It's pretty wide on the corner if you're playing this as a three-shotter. For anyone wanting to reach the green in two you'll need to go over the trees left or carve your drive around the corner. Even with trees being more scattered and sparse on this hole you can still get unlucky if you're too far left. And that Copperhead rough takes no prisoners anywhere on the course.
You won't see the green for your second shot. If you're laying up you want to stay just inside the right fairway mounding at the corner of the second dogleg. Any further right and you run the risk of rinsing one in the lake on that side. If you're going for the green in two you want to aim directly over the mound and right corner tree to carry the lake.
The green is deep, skinny, and one of the fastest moving putting surfaces on the course. Everything moves down hard and left. Bunkers protect the green on the lower front-left and upper right sides. The front-left bunker is larger and deeper.
When you watch the PWPICopperhead livestream you'll see how absolutely bonkers it is that players on Tour actually reach here in two.
HOLE NO. 15: Snake Bite (Par-3, 208/172 Yards)
Standing on the tee you probably wouldn't think so but No. 15 at Copperhead is the kind of hole that can leave you scratching your head in bewilderment walking off the green.
You have a downhill shot over a lake that won't come into play unless you make one of the worst swings in your life. Choosing the right club and taking the wind into consideration should be all you need to hit the green.
The green is the largest of all par-3s on the course making it one of the easiest to hit. But therein also lies the problem because if you're not close to the hole you'll be left with a putt that could be 75 feet or longer. By the way did you know "snakie" is golf slang for a 3-putt? It seems appropriate to mention here.
Bunkers left, bottom-left, and front-right are all pretty straightforward and none of them are deep. And the putting surface is one of the flattest you'll have all day. If you miss the green it's preferable to be in one of these the bunkers rather than the rough. There are no greener pastures here and the rough is so deep your ball might as well be camouflaged.
HOLE NO. 16: Moccasin (Par-4, 458/376 Yards)
If you've somehow managed to play well to this point the final three holes collectively nicknamed The Snake Pit is Copperhead's smirking revenge.
One of the most brutal finishing stretches on the PGA Tour every season begins with your tee shot on No. 16. And it's defined by excess. The lake is blatantly confrontational. The fairway narrows, curls, and slopes toward the water the more aggressive you intend to be. If you think you can outsmart this watery serpent by playing a drive out safely to the left, think again. The rough is so thick over here your ball can be completely buried. And if you're in or around the thicket of trees any ideas of going for the green will be met by a "No, no, no!" full Mutumbo.
Your approach will be over water no matter where you're hitting from. The closer you are to the lake the more tree branches extending into the fairway and a front-right bunker come into play. The further you are from the lake the longer your shot is into the shallow, elevated green. Pick your poison there is no antivenom.
The green generally slopes down and to the right with two large bunkers patrolling for misses on both sides. The right bunker is deeper and more demanding. Shots that just hang on to the green front or back can have you looking at painfully long putts. And the back-right half of entire the green is barely 40 feet deep making for rebellious pin locations.
This is a hole that can throw you beyond the brink of common sense in deciding how to execute each shot. And it usually does. In Valspar Championship history there are more bogeys, double-bogeys, and triple-bogeys here than anywhere else on Copperhead.
HOLE NO. 17: The Rattler (Par-3, 206/171 Yards)
It's not the longest par-3 on Copperhead but it might be the biggest backbreaker. No. 17 historically surrenders the fewest birdies of all par-3s during the Valspar Championship.
Your shot is uphill to a slightly elevated green. From the tips trees leaning in from the left are a mental nuisance. And visually it's the most claustrophobic of all par-3s with chains of trees packed in and running straight up the chute.
Two small bunkers crowd the left side of the green. One larger, deeper bunker defends the right. And another medium sized bunker guards the back. There's heavy rough everywhere you look. The green is almost three times as wide in the back as it is in the front so you have more room to miss left or right and still be on the green if you go long. The complication with this however is a bat out of hell downward slope and walloping green depth that can leave you with hot putts of more than 100 feet.
This hole is named The Rattler and if you're worried about running into rattlesnakes here? Well, don't be. Do be worried unfortunately this hole can rattle your skull.
HOLE NO. 18: The Copperhead (Par-4, 443/376 Yards)
If there were referees in golf you'd be getting a standing 8 count on the 18th tee. And if you're not already out on your feet prepare for Copperhead haymakers.
Your tee shot is uphill into a fairway with so many bunkers (all of them with high mounded edges) it looks like craters on the moon. And the only good lie you'll find in the rough is if you're hallucinating.
Your second shot is also uphill and into a green that's nightmare fuel. You can't see the putting surface if you're in any of the bunkers. From the fairway the putting surface is mostly concealed and looks like a stick of gum. But it's a treacherous deception.
The green is actually fairly deep. That's the deception. The treachery is some of the most ruthless movement on any green you played all round. The front bunker is unkind well below the putting surface. The back-right bunker is troublesome with the green sloping down and to the right. After your final putt falls have a porterhouse just a few paces away at Packard's Steakhouse. Whether it's for the mouthwatering cuisine or simply to get your swelling and bruising down. Either way you have deserved it.
What an AGNB review on the Copperhead Course!!! This is an absolute PHD class from the Mayor!!! WOW!!!!!
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