Palm Harbor might not be the first place you think of when checking out golf in the Sunshine State, but less than an hour from Tampa you will find a cozy golf nook.

Since 2000 the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort has hosted the Valspar Championship. PGA Tour players call it one of the best tests of golf on their schedule. It’s not often a course with “resort” in the title gives a stern but fair test to the professionals. With five sets of tees, this course satisfies the best in the world but equally pleases and challenges the weekend golfer. The unusually undulated Florida terrain, pure and fast greens, and use of five par 3s make this a memorable stop.

Larry Packard designed the par-71 course in the 1970s. The name “Copperhead” comes from the numerous copper pennies the crew found while building the course. To this day, no one knows why so many coins were discovered.

The golf course is well-documented on top-100 lists, but a piece of its history is not as publicized. Reporting by the Tampa Tribune detailed an elaborate international criminal bust in 1988 involving many, including Pablo Escobar. According to public records, a U.S. Customs Service agent went undercover for years, serving as a pivotal playmaker for drug lords. In a staged “wedding” at Innisbrook Resort, the agency was able to get all of the suspects together in one place. The sting led to 100 indictments, more than $600 million in fines and forfeitures, and instigated the fall of the seventh-largest privately held bank in the world at the time. The movie The Infiltrator included these events in its plot.

© Innisbruck Resort

Take advantage of staying on site and soak up all the golf you can. The resort offers three other courses (one, a nine-hole track) plus a giant, 100-percent grass tee practice area. Amenities also include restaurant options, a spa, six pools, and tennis and pickleball courts.

HOLE 1
560 yards, par 5
The round begins with a par 5 and downhill drop, an unexpected feature for Florida golf. The dogleg right forces you to be precise or else you get a rude introduction to the reputation earned by the rough.

HOLE 3
442 yards, par 4
Water comes into play on both sides of this fairway. The short grass snakes through, moving from left to right. The No. 1 handicapped hole for the front two tees, it is properly named “Narrow Neck.” Bunkering surrounds almost the entire green to visually intimidate you.

HOLE 5
607 yards, par 5
Take in the picturesque view at this tee. The hole moves uphill, making this par 5 feel even longer than the yardage book reads. Your second shot will be a blind one before the fairway moves from right to left into a Christmas stocking-shaped green.

HOLE 12
373 yards, par 4
The “Copperhead” hedging greets you at the tee of this par 4. You can play this hole a few different ways, making it a favorite hole for many. You can blast your tee shot and flirt with the water crossing the fairway into a pond to the right and short of the green; this will leave you a shorter shot into the bunker-protected green. You could also take less club off the tee with more to chew on for your approach. As you make your way to putt, you cross a rustic-style stone bridge and are nearly guaranteed to see Florida wildlife.

Hole 18 © Innisbruck Resort

HOLE 14
590 yards, par 5
Ready for a double dogleg? You cannot get greedy on this hole. This is at least a 3-shot par 5 for many. Water on the right, bunkers gobbling a missed green and the longest rough on property lurk here. It is hard to get comfortable angles due to the few but troublesome trees at this hole.

HOLE 16
458 yards, par 4
Water carves the right side of the fairway as the par 4 bends to the right. The more aggressive you play, the better your reward. It’s almost a zigzag to the green the way the trees and water outline your second approach.

HOLE 17
206 yards, par 3
Moving uphill, this oval green sits vertically and is protected by bunkers on each side … except if you miss it short.

HOLE 18
443 yards, par 4
The finishing hole climbs uphill. Bunkers bring you into the clubhouse. There are 10 bunkers on this hole, and they are thoughtfully placed to force precision on your tee shot and approach. The green slopes back to front to really make you earn what is hopefully a good finish to the round.

COPPERHEAD COURSE
Innisbrook Resort
36750 U.S. Highway
19 N. Palm Harbor, FL 34684
tel 727 942 2000