The world’s best players head to TPC Sawgrass this week for the PGA Tour’s flagship event, the Players Championship. Since 2007, the Players has been contested in May, but it returns to its original spot on the schedule in March this year, making it the first marquee event of the season.
While there were doubts about whether or not two of the biggest stars in the sport would play, it appears those were quelled on Monday. Both Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson were out at TPC Sawgrass practicing, and they are each scheduled to play on Thursday. Woods had skipped the Arnold Palmer Invitational due to a neck injury, while Mickelson just wanted to see how the course played this time of year before making his final decision.
The two aging legends will take on arguably the best field in golf, as the likes of Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy, Francesco Molinari, Brooks Koepka and the rest of the top 50 players in the world are all set to tee it up. Webb Simpson, the defending champion, will play alongside Woods and Patrick Reed on Thursday and Friday.
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TV Schedule
The Golf Channel will carry live coverage on Thursday and Friday from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. ET. NBC will provide coverage on Saturday beginning at 2 p.m. and on Sunday beginning at 1 p.m.
Leader board
Follow all the action from Ponte Vedra Beach on the Golf Digest PGA Tour leader board.
Thursday Tee Times
No. 1 Tee
7:40 a.m. — Charl Schwartzel, Tyrrell Hatton, Thorbjorn Olesen
7:50 a.m. — Lucas Glover, Louis Oosthuizen, Talor Gooch
8:01 a.m. — Chris Kirk, Brian Gay, Matt Wallace
8:11 a.m. — Charles Howell III, Aaron Wise, Scott Piercy
8:22 a.m. — Adam Long, Danny Willett, Vijay Singh
8:32 a.m. — Cameron Champ, Michael Kim, Cameron Smith
8:43 a.m. — Marc Leishman, Ian Poulter, Adam Hadwin
8:53 a.m. — Kevin Tway, Grayson Murray, Brian Harman
9:04 a.m. — Brice Garnett, Patrick Cantlay, Ryan Armour
9:14 a.m. — Ollie Schniederjans, Abraham Ancer, Seamus Power
9:25 a.m. — Kevin Streelman, Harris English, Peter Uihlein
9:35 a.m. — Nick Watney, Bronson Burgoon, Eddie Pepperell
12:35 p.m. — Brian Stuard, Chez Reavie, Patrick Rodgers
12:45 a.m. — Danny Lee, Jason Kokrak, Scott Langley
12:56 p.m. — Aaron Baddeley, Branden Grace, John Huh
1:06 p.m. — J.B. Holmes, Jason Dufner, Russell Henley
1:17 p.m. — Brandt Snedeker, Troy Merritt, Jimmy Walker
1:27 p.m. — Tiger Woods, Webb Simpson, Patrick Reed
1:38 p.m. — Henrik Stenson, Adam Scott, Martin Kaymer
1:48 p.m. — Francesco Molinari, Jason Day, Tony Finau
1:59 p.m. — Rickie Fowler, Brooks Koepka, Jordan Spieth
2:09 p.m. — Bud Cauley, Sam Saunders, Matthew Fitzpatrick
2:20 p.m. — Rafa Cabrera Bello, Sung Kang, Tyler Duncan
2:30 p.m. — Anirban Lahiri, Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Ryan Blaum
No. 10 Tee
7:40 a.m. — Chesson Hadley, Michael Thompson, Corey Conners
7:50 a.m. — Scott Brown, Byeong Hun An, Beau Hossler
8:01 a.m. — Ryan Palmer, Trey Mullinax, Sungjae Im
8:11 a.m. — Ted Potter, Jr., Patton Kizzire, Brendan Steele
8:22 a.m. — Keith Mitchell, Austin Cook, Tommy Fleetwood
8:32 a.m. — Justin Rose, Xander Schauffele, Justin Thomas
8:43 a.m. — Bryson DeChambeau, Bubba Watson, Billy Horschel
8:53 a.m. — Dustin Johnson, Jon Rahm, Sergio Garcia
9:04 a.m. — Phil Mickelson, Matt Kuchar, Rory McIlroy
9:14 a.m. — Harold Varner III, Sam Ryder, HaoTong Li
9:25 a.m. — Alex Cejka, Tom Hoge, Brandon Harkins
9:35 a.m. — Scott Stallings, Rory Sabbatini, Joel Dahmen
12:35 p.m. — Charley Hoffman, Luke List, Kelly Kraft
12:45 a.m. — Vaughn Taylor, Nick Taylor, J.T. Poston
12:56 p.m. — Alex Noren, Richy Werenski, Dominic Bozzelli
1:06 p.m. — Andrew Putnam, Gary Woodland, Russell Knox
1:17 p.m. — Keegan Bradley, Andrew Landry, Si Woo Kim
1:27 p.m. — Kyle Stanley, Daniel Berger, Kevin Kisner
1:38 p.m. — Hideki Matsuyama, Zach Johnson, Stewart Cink
1:48 p.m. — Satoshi Kodaira, Paul Casey, Jim Furyk
1:59 p.m. — Martin Trainer, Kevin Na, Jhonattan Vegas
2:09 p.m. — Emiliano Grillo, Shane Lowry, Martin Laird
2:20 p.m. — Ryan Moore, J.J. Spaun, C.T. Pan
2:30 p.m. — Denny McCarthy, Wyndham Clark, Lucas Bjerregaard
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