My recommendation is to practice it and learn it as written. Once you have it down cold, then, if you want to re-imagine it a little bit and change it some, feel free. But to start, you need to learn it the way it's presented. Those licks start and end on the right beat to fit the lick. If you branch out and start playing it different from the start, it's not going to sound right. Here's an example.
Examples 1 - 4 all prep you for playing example 5. Those little licks can be moved all around if you want, but they build into lick 5. Lick 5, otoh, starts on beat 2 and ends on beat 1. If you start it on beat 3, or even the & of beat 2, it's going to throw that lick off, and it's not going to sound quite right or have the affect that it would if it was played as written.
Having said that, if you skip to the Group 1 Solo, you'll see that it has that lick from example 5 as well as some of those little building blocks from examples 1 - 4. Example 5 in that solo still starts on beat 2. The little building blocks may not start on the same beat as they did in examples 1- 4, but their timing is always the same.
Having started that course this time last year (and still working on parts of it), if you work the process like Griff outlines it, you'll have the licks down cold by the time you get to that first solo. I wouldn't look to re-imagine the licks any earlier than that solo. Work the process like Griff lays it out. If you do, I promise you (because it's been my experience) that the course will move your playing forward considerably.