It’s time for the PGA Tour’s major championship.
Most of the world’s best players will head to TPC Sawgrass just outside of Jacksonville, Fla., for the Players Championship. The PGA Tour doesn’t operate golf’s four majors, so this is the Tour’s flagship tournament.
The 144-player field will vie for part of a $25 million purse, with the winner collecting $4.5 million. There will also be 450 FedExCup points on the line, the same as a major and 250 more than a regular, non-signature Tour event.
From its field, course, history, tee times and how to watch, here’s what you need to know for the 2025 Players Championship.
The field
It’s the PGA Tour season’s best field.
Of the top 50 players in the world, 48 of them are teeing it up at TPC Sawgrass. And the higher the ranking, the better, as the last five Players champions have been ranked inside the top 10 entering the week.
There are eight past champions in the field: Scottie Scheffler (2023, 2024), Justin Thomas (2021), Rory McIlroy (2019), Si Woo Kim (2017), Jason Day (2016), Rickie Fowler (2015), Matt Kuchar (2012) and Adam Scott (2004).
There are 25 players this week making their Players debut: Jacob Bridgeman, Brian Campbell, Rafael Campos, Laurie Canter, Frankie Capan III, Will Chandler, Patrick Fishburn, Ryan Gerard, Chris Gotterup, Max Greyserman, Joe Highsmith, Rico Hoey, Rasmus Højgaard, Mac Meissner, Matt McCarty, Chandler Phillips, Aldrich Potgieter, Kevin Roy, Isaiah Salinda, Hayden Springer, Jackson Suber, Jesper Svensson, Alejandro Tosti, Karl Vilips and Vince Whaley.
Of those 25, eight are rookies. Only three rookies have finished in the top 5 since 1998: David Lingmerth (T2 in 2013), Camilo Villegas (T3 in 2006) and Fulton Allem (T3 in 1998).
Scheffler is looking to become the first three-time Players champion since Jack Nicklaus (1974, 1976, 1978) and the first to three-peat at a Tour event since Steve Stricker at the John Deere Classic (2009-11).
The field will feature Laurie Canter, a former LIV Golf player. The Englishman cracked the top 50 in the world two weeks ago, which will make him the first player to play on the both PGA Tour and LIV.
Despite speculation earlier this year, Tiger Woods will not be teeing it up at TPC Sawgrass. He is one of four eligible players who did not commit, along with Ernie Els, Alex Noren and Brendon Todd.
The course
Many players consider TPC Sawgrass’s Stadium Course one of the best layouts on Tour.
Built in 1980, the par-72 Pete Dye design stretches 7,352 yards. It has 5,500 square feet greens, 92 bunkers and water is in play on 17 holes. This year, the course will be a bit longer, as the tee box on the par-5 9th is being pushed back, which could make for the first 600-yard hole in Players Championship history.
In 2024, TPC Sawgrass was the 15th hardest course on Tour, yielding a scoring average of 71.471 (-0.529). Its hardest holes were the par-4 14th and the par-4 18th, both ranking Nos. 48 and 49 on Tour last season in terms of difficulty at 0.258 strokes over par.
Its easiest hole last year was the par-5 16th, the 43rd least difficult hole on Tour with a scoring average of 4.452 (-0.548).
And its signature hole is the par-3 17th island green. It measures about 137 yards, completely surrounded by water with a 78-foot green and a small bunker in the front.
The record for most water balls during a Players Championship is 93, set in 2007.
There have been 14 holes-in-one on the island green, with three coming in 2023, the first time there were multiple aces on No. 17 in a single tournament.
Aces are already unforgettable, but doing it on TPC Sawgrass’s penultimate hole is on another level.
“Look, you go, you play this game, just special things happen sometimes,” Shane Lowry said after his ace on No. 17 in 2022. “It’s pretty cool to do it there, one of the most iconic holes in golf. Yeah, what can I say? It was a special thing to happen.”
The pros make it look easy. It's not.
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 6, 2023
We captured video and data of every amateur that played No. 17 @TPCSawgrass for one day.
The results ... pic.twitter.com/xGp2vw8EVq
History: Unprecedented times
Since 1974, the Players Championship has provided many indelible moments.
Five years ago, however, the tournament is remembered for not finishing.
The 2020 Players began on March 12, one day after Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19 and caused the NBA, along with many other sports leagues, to shut down in the early days of the pandemic. The Players, though, went on as normal, with Hideki Matsuyama racing out to a two-stroke lead after equaling the course record of 63.
Afterward, the PGA Tour announced that the final three rounds would continue without spectators.
Then, a few hours later, the Tour changed course, canceling the remainder of the tournament, along with its next three events: the Valspar Championship, the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play and the Valero Texas Open.
Half of the $15 million purse was given to players who completed the first round, amounting to $52,000 each.
"We have pledged from the start to be responsible, thoughtful and transparent with our decision process,” the Tour said in a statement. “We did everything possible to create a safe environment for our players in order to continue the event throughout the weekend, and we were endeavoring to give our fans a much-needed respite from the current climate.
“But at this point—and as the situation continues to rapidly change—the right thing to do for our players and our fans is to pause.”
With most major sports leagues on hiatus, the Tour was facing blowback for continuing. Before the cancelation, McIlroy even called for all players and caddies to get tested, and said the Tour needed to be shut down if anyone was positive.
The Tour resumed two months later at the Charles Schwab Challenge in Texas with no spectators.
The 2021 Players was contested a year into the pandemic, with Thomas winning.
“It’s good to be back,” Schauffele said ahead of the 2021 Players. “It’s kind of crazy that it’s been a full year since this crazy COVID thing happened.”
The tournament might not have been completed five years ago, but it was certainly an unprecedented time nobody will forget.
How to watch (all times EST)
- Thursday: 1-7 p.m. (Golf Channel)
- Friday: 1-7 p.m. (Golf Channel)
- Saturday: 2-7 p.m. (NBC)
- Sunday: 1-7 p.m. (NBC)
ESPN+ will also have featured coverage each day, starting at 7:30 a.m. (except in Round 3 it will start at 8 a.m.) and ending at 7 p.m.
Round 1 and 2 tee times
Groupings and starting times for the first and second round of THE PLAYERS Championship pic.twitter.com/0L8Tb9SrlR
— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) March 10, 2025
This article was originally published on www.si.com as 2025 Players Championship Preview: Field, Course, History, Tee Times, How to Watch.
