LHPParent,
As noted above, there are plenty of threads on this topic already.
My 2012 did PG National Academic, my 2016 did not. Both did Stanford Futures and All Star camps. Both did HF Jupiter and Long Island. 2016 did HF Sac.
IMHO, the rating my 2012 got from the PG event, the exposure to the coaches who were there, and the top prospect status he got there were all significant factors in his recruiting process. He was a national class talent and the rating from PG was a trusted "third party" assessment of his baseball tools, i.e., trusted by college coaches.
My 2016 was not at the same baseball tools level. Again, IMHO the PG National Academic was not a fit for him. He would not have received a high rating. We were concerned that that could hinder his recruiting chances so we focused on getting direct exposure to college coaches where he was a fit for their programs. We focused on the best for him; the academic D3's that are a large part of HF events. The time and money we would've spent at PG National Academic (lower fee but travel across the country for us), we directed to HF Sac and then went to HF Long Island as planned.
There are plenty of coaches at all levels/divisions at PG events. But not knowing who would be there was a factor in whether it made sense for my 2016 to go. My 2012 was a D1 talent and was rated highly by PG. It didn't matter whether there were a lot of schools there or not (though there were that fit him and he was offered by several immediately after they saw him at National Academic). His high rating and positive review was marketable to all schools.
I've commented on Stanford camps several times. I am not as bullish on them as I was several years ago. Too crowded. Expensive. And not enough coaches. But if you have the time and $$$ and want a really fun experience for your player, then by all means. I wouldn't do it again.
Headfirst is the premier academic showcase organization in my book. Both on how they run the camps and the depth and breadth of schools attending. Again, IMHO.
But as always, fish in the right pond. It could be HF or Top96 or Showball or PG or Stanford or...some combination or something else.
Go where the schools on your player's vetted list will be.