Palm Harbor, Florida – Peter Malnati had one career win to his credit when he stood on the 71st hole of the Valspar Championship during Sunday’s final round . . . tied for the lead at 11 under par with Cameron Young – who was seeking his first win. Just as Malnati poured in his six-footer for birdie on the Copperhead’s tough par 3 seventeenth, Young had dropped a shot on the home hole in the group ahead. Leading by two, Malnati made par on the home hole to seal the victory for the first time in 9 years (2015 Sanderson Farms Championship) to close out the Florida Swing.
Peter Malnati had played in seven previous Valspar Championships with only one made cut, making this win all the more special . . . especially since it was the journeyman’s first win in front of his family.
“That moment of winning a tournament and having your family come out on the green, the big hugs and all that, that’s something I’ve seen other families have and that has been my dream. If I had never had the moment I had today, I would have been completely fine. But, man, that was special.”
Malnati is one of six player-directors on the PGA TOUR Board, he understands what it takes for an event of this magnitude to be successful. After the win, he was grateful in victory, praising the event staff and the Tampa community. “On a larger scale, this win is for Tampa, it’s for the Copperheads, it’s for Valspar and it’s for Innisbrook. If we don’t have communities that believe in what the PGA TOUR does and sponsors who support what the PGA TOUR does, we don’t have those moments. This tournament is a shining example of that and I couldn’t be more proud and more honored to win here, to win an event like this.”
In regards to the Copperhead Course, Malnati said, “I analyze golf courses on basically two criteria – are they conditioned well enough that you feel that if you execute well you can get a good result and does the course distinguish good shots from bad shots. This golf course is a 10 out of 10 on both criteria. It’s amazing.”
