The unofficial fifth major is back.
The Players Championship returns to TPC at Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. Last year’s winner, will not, however. Cameron Smith joined LIV Golf last summer, and because of that, he and several other golfers who also left for LIV are prohibited from competing in the tournament.
MORE: Smith might attend Players Championship as a fan, despite ban
That doesn’t mean the field will be missing all its previous winners. Past champions Justin Thomas (2021), Rory McIlroy (2019), Webb Simpson (2018), Si Woo Kim (2017), Jason Day (2016) and Rickie Fowler (2015) will all be competing, looking to join Jack Nicklaus, Fred Couples, Steve Elkington, Hal Sutton, Davis Love III and Tiger Woods as the only players with multiple wins in the event.
MORE: Inside TPC Sawgrass’ infamous Island Green
The Sporting News will be tracking live scores and highlights from Thursday’s Round 1 leaderboard. Follow for results from the first day of the tournament.
MORE: Watch the Players Championship live with fuboTV (free trial)
Players Championship leaderboard 2023
| Rank | Player | Score (hole) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Collin Morikawa | -7 (16*) |
| 2 | Chad Ramey | -6 (14) |
| 3 | Taylor Pendrith | -5 (F) |
| T4 | Min Woo Lee | -4 (F) |
| T4 | Christiaan Bezuidenhout | -4 (F) |
Players Championship live updates, highlights from Thursday’s Round 1
(All times Eastern)
12:26 p.m. — Morikawa makes a difficult tee shot on the long par 3 8th hole look easy by knocking it to inside 20 feet. He’ll have a good chance to extend his lead at the top with another birdie.
12:17 p.m. — What a round Morikawa has going! A nice putt for birdie on No. 6 has pushed him into the solo lead at -7.
Another birdie for @Collin_Morikawa 👀
He now owns the solo lead @THEPLAYERSChamp. pic.twitter.com/6zKLkw82XI
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 9, 2023
11:24 a.m. — Another bogey for McIlroy drops him all the way down to +4 and close to the very bottom of the leaderboard. He has really been off his game in the early going.
11:22 a.m. — Min Woo makes his first mistake of the day, coming up short and finding the water on the famous 17th hole. He’ll have his work cut out for him to avoid a double bogey.
11:16 a.m. — Min Woo Lee has been receiving treatment out on the course for what looks to be some sort of calf issue. A physiotherapist was out massaging his leg and he had to take a seat in the fairway briefly. Despite the ailing calf, he rolls in a birdie on the 16th hole to take the solo lead at -6.
10:58 a.m. — Morikawa hits an absolute beauty on his second shot into the par 5 second hole, setting up a short eagle putt. He drains it and suddenly he has moved into a tie for the lead!
235 yards ➡️ 3 feet 👀 @Collin_Morikawa is now tied for the lead after the eagle on No. 2 @THEPLAYERSChamp. pic.twitter.com/UVpJHuOxC9
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 9, 2023
10:51 a.m. — After a great shot out of the pine straw at hole No. 1, Scheffler rolls in a 12-foot putt for his first birdie of the day to move to -1. Meanwhile, McIlroy misses a short one for par and he has now dropped to +3. A miserable start to the week for the Northern Irishman.
10:43 a.m. — Collin Morikawa just made his third birdie of the day after sticking it close to move to -3.
Smooth as silk.@Collin_Morikawa is heating up @THEPLAYERSChamp. pic.twitter.com/ajxmivhYE6
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 9, 2023
10:38 a.m. — The biggest names out on the course currently are Jon Rahm, Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy. They represent arguably the three best golfers in the world today, and they’re making the turn to hole No. 1 right now. Rahm is at -2, Scheffler is at even and McIlroy is struggling a bit at +2 right now.
10:25 a.m. — The biggest highlight of the day so far belongs to Hayden Buckley, who hit a perfect shot on the famous island green 17th hole for an incredible hole-in-one. That’s how you do it.
🚨 BUCKETS FOR BUCKLEY! 🚨 @HBuckley13 makes a hole-in-one at the 17th hole in the second group of the day! pic.twitter.com/Cd7BULOB2W
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 9, 2023
10:11 a.m. — Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of The Players Championship 2023! It’s a beautiful Thursday morning at TPC Sawgrass and the first wave of players is already well underway in their opening round.
What channel is the Players Championship on today?
- TV channel: Golf Channel, NBC
- Live stream: ESPN+, fuboTV
Golf Channel and NBC will be the television homes of the 2023 Players Championship. Golf Channel will broadcast the first two rounds of the event, while NBC will finish out the weekend coverage on Saturday and Sunday.
ESPN+ will carry featured groups and select holes. For those looking to watch the main televised action, fuboTV will carry both Golf Channel and NBC coverage. The streaming service offers a free trial.
Here’s the TV schedule for this weekend’s tournament:
| Date | Time (ET) | TV channel |
|---|---|---|
| Thursday, March 10 | Noon-6 p.m. | Golf Channel |
| Friday, March 11 | Noon-6 p.m. | Golf Channel |
| Saturday, March 12 | 1-6 p.m. | NBC |
| Sunday, March 13 | 1-6 p.m. | NBC |
Players Championship tee times 2023
- Round 1 (Thursday, March 9)
| Time (ET) | Tee | Group |
|---|---|---|
| 6:50 a.m. | 1 | Robby Shelton, Austin Smotherman, Min Woo Lee |
| 6:50 a.m. | 10 | Danny Willett, Brandon Wu, Davis Thompson |
| 7:01 a.m. | 1 | Kevin Streelman, Denny McCarthy, Matthew NeSmith |
| 7:01 a.m. | 10 | Adam Long, Hayden Buckley, Taylor Montgomery |
| 7:12 a.m. | 1 | Byeong Hun An, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Doug Ghim |
| 7:12 a.m. | 10 | Tommy Fleetwood, Taylor Pendrith, Callum Tarren |
| 7:23 a.m. | 1 | Michael Thompson, Brendon Todd, Keith Mitchell |
| 7:23 a.m. | 10 | Si Woo Kim, Webb Simpson, Tyrrell Hatton |
| 7:34 a.m. | 1 | Kevin Kisner, Nick Taylor, Corey Conners |
| 7:34 a.m. | 10 | Tony Finau, Tom Kim, Patrick Cantlay |
| 7:45 a.m. | 1 | Trey Mullinax, Cam Davis, Tyler Duncan |
| 7:45 a.m. | 10 | Collin Morikawa, Adam Scott, Rickie Fowler |
| 7:56 a.m. | 1 | Adam Svensson, Joel Dahmen, Robert Streb |
| 7:56 a.m. | 10 | Jon Rahm, Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy |
| 8:07 a.m. | 1 | J.J. Spaun, Chad Ramey, Luke List |
| 8:07 a.m. | 10 | Justin Rose, Billy Horschel, Hideki Matsuyama |
| 8:18 a.m. | 1 | Russell Henley, Mackenzie Hughes, Brian Harman |
| 8:18 a.m. | 10 | Nico Echavarria, Sungjae Im, Harris English |
| 8:29 a.m. | 1 | Emiliano Grillo, Mark Hubbard, Matt Wallace |
| 8:29 a.m. | 10 | Jhonattan Vegas, Peter Malnati, Ryan Fox |
| 8:40 a.m. | 1 | Nate Lashley, Troy Merritt, Kelly Kraft |
| 8:40 a.m. | 10 | Adam Hadwin, Patrick Rodgers, Greyson Sigg |
| 8:51 a.m. | 1 | Aaron Baddeley, David Lingmerth, Ben Martin |
| 8:51 a.m. | 10 | Nick Hardy, Eric Cole, Harrison Endycott |
| 11:50 a.m. | 1 | Kevin Tway, Russell Knox, Chesson Hadley |
| 11:50 a.m. | 10 | David Lipsky, S.H. Kim, Tyson Alexander |
| 12:01 p.m. | 1 | Andrew Putnam, Maverick McNealy, Doc Redman |
| 12:01 p.m. | 10 | Kramer Hickok, Lee Hodges, Will Gordon |
| 12:12 p.m. | 1 | Beau Hossler, Adam Schenk, Stephan Jaeger |
| 12:12 p.m. | 10 | Ben Griffin, Matthias Schwab, Justin Lower |
| 12:23 p.m. | 1 | Lucas Herbert, Aaron Wise, Jason Day |
| 12:23 p.m. | 10 | Sepp Straka, Garrick Higgo, Stewart Cink |
| 12:34 p.m. | 1 | Matt Fitzpatrick, Viktor Hovland, Shane Lowry |
| 12:34 p.m. | 10 | Chez Reavie, Tom Hoge, Francesco Molinari |
| 12:45 p.m. | 1 | Kurt Kitayama, Will Zalatoris, Xander Schauffele |
| 12:45 p.m. | 10 | J.T. Poston, Lucas Glover, Matt Kuchar |
| 12:56 p.m. | 1 | Max Homa, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth |
| 12:56 p.m. | 10 | K.H. Lee, Martin Laird, Gary Woodland |
| 1:07 p.m. | 1 | Sam Burns, Cameron Young, Sahith Theegala |
| 1:07 p.m. | 10 | Ryan Brehm, Ryan Armour, Scott Stallings |
| 1:18 p.m. | 1 | Chris Kirk, Seamus Power, Keegan Bradley |
| 1:18 p.m. | 10 | Ryan Palmer, Patton Kizzire, Alex Smalley |
| 1:29 p.m. | 1 | Sam Ryder, Davis Riley, Taylor Moore |
| 1:29 p.m. | 10 | Dylan Frittelli, Jerry Kelly, Wyndham Clark |
| 1:40 p.m. | 1 | Alex Noren, Thomas Detry, Max McGreevy |
| 1:40 p.m. | 10 | Scott Piercy, James Hahn, Nick Watney |
| 1:51 p.m. | 1 | Joseph Bramlett, Justin Suh, Andrew Novak |
| 1:51 p.m. | 10 | Aaron Rai, Dylan Wu, Erik Barns |
- Round 2 (Friday, March 9)
| Time (ET) | Tee | Group |
|---|---|---|
| 6:50 a.m. | 1 | David Lipsky, S.H. Kim, Tyson Alexander |
| 6:50 a.m. | 10 | Kevin Tway, Russell Knox, Chesson Hadley |
| 7:01 a.m. | 1 | Kramer Hickok, Lee Hodges, Will Gordon |
| 7:01 a.m. | 10 | Andrew Putnam, Maverick McNealy, Doc Redman |
| 7:12 a.m. | 1 | Ben Griffin, Matthias Schwab, Justin Lower |
| 7:12 a.m. | 10 | Beau Hossler, Adam Schenk, Stephan Jaeger |
| 7:23 a.m. | 1 | Sepp Straka, Garrick Higgo, Stewart Cink |
| 7:23 a.m. | 10 | Lucas Herbert, Aaron Wise, Jason Day |
| 7:34 a.m. | 1 | Chez Reavie, Tom Hoge, Francesco Molinari |
| 7:34 a.m. | 10 | Matt Fitzpatrick, Viktor Hovland, Shane Lowry |
| 7:45 a.m. | 1 | J.T. Poston, Lucas Glover, Matt Kuchar |
| 7:45 a.m. | 10 | Kurt Kitayama, Will Zalatoris, Xander Schauffele |
| 7:56 a.m. | 1 | K.H. Lee, Martin Laird, Gary Woodland |
| 7:56 a.m. | 10 | Max Homa, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth |
| 8:07 a.m. | 1 | Ryan Brehm, Ryan Armour, Scott Stallings |
| 8:07 a.m. | 10 | Sam Burns, Cameron Young, Sahith Theegala |
| 8:18 a.m. | 1 | Ryan Palmer, Patton Kizzire, Alex Smalley |
| 8:18 a.m. | 10 | Chris Kirk, Seamus Power, Keegan Bradley |
| 8:29 a.m. | 1 | Dylan Frittelli, Jerry Kelly, Wyndham Clark |
| 8:29 a.m. | 10 | Sam Ryder, Davis Riley, Taylor Moore |
| 8:40 a.m. | 1 | Scott Piercy, James Hahn, Nick Watney |
| 8:40 a.m. | 10 | Alex Noren, Thomas Detry, Max McGreevy |
| 8:51 a.m. | 1 | Aaron Rai, Dylan Wu, Erik Barns |
| 8:51 a.m. | 10 | Joseph Bramlett, Justin Suh, Andrew Novak |
| 11:50 a.m. | 1 | Danny Willett, Brandon Wu, Davis Thompson |
| 11:50 a.m. | 10 | Robby Shelton, Austin Smotherman, Min Woo Lee |
| 12:01 p.m. | 1 | Adam Long, Hayden Buckley, Taylor Montgomery |
| 12:01 p.m. | 10 | Kevin Streelman, Denny McCarthy, Matthew NeSmith |
| 12:12 p.m. | 1 | Tommy Fleetwood, Taylor Pendrith, Callum Tarren |
| 12:12 p.m. | 10 | Byeong Hun An, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Doug Ghim |
| 12:23 p.m. | 1 | Si Woo Kim, Webb Simpson, Tyrrell Hatton |
| 12:23 p.m. | 10 | Michael Thompson, Brendon Todd, Keith Mitchell |
| 12:34 p.m. | 1 | Tony Finau, Tom Kim, Patrick Cantlay |
| 12:34 p.m. | 10 | Kevin Kisner, Nick Taylor, Corey Conners |
| 12:45 p.m. | 1 | Collin Morikawa, Adam Scott, Rickie Fowler |
| 12:45 p.m. | 10 | Trey Mullinax, Cam Davis, Tyler Duncan |
| 12:56 p.m. | 1 | Jon Rahm, Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy |
| 12:56 p.m. | 10 | Adam Svensson, Joel Dahmen, Robert Streb |
| 1:07 p.m. | 1 | Justin Rose, Billy Horschel, Hideki Matsuyama |
| 1:07 p.m. | 10 | J.J. Spaun, Chad Ramey, Luke List |
| 1:18 p.m. | 1 | Nico Echavarria, Sungjae Im, Harris English |
| 1:18 p.m. | 10 | Russell Henley, Mackenzie Hughes, Brian Harman |
| 1:29 p.m. | 1 | Jhonattan Vegas, Peter Malnati, Ryan Fox |
| 1:29 p.m. | 10 | Emiliano Grillo, Mark Hubbard, Matt Wallace |
| 1:40 p.m. | 1 | Adam Hadwin, Patrick Rodgers, Greyson Sigg |
| 1:40 p.m. | 10 | Nate Lashley, Troy Merritt, Kelly Kraft |
| 1:51 p.m. | 1 | Nick Hardy, Eric Cole, Harrison Endycott |
| 1:51 p.m. | 10 | Aaron Baddeley, David Lingmerth, Ben Martin |