The Players Championship has revealed two featured groups for the opening rounds at TPC Sawgrass. Several of the biggest names in golf will play together when the tournament begins next week.
The pairings were announced during NBC’s broadcast of the Arnold Palmer Invitational on March 8. The first two rounds will take place on March 12 and 13 at the Players Stadium Course in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.
One featured group includes defending champion Rory McIlroy, Hideki Matsuyama and Xander Schauffele. McIlroy returns after winning the event last year in a three-hole playoff against J.J. Spaun. It was his second Players Championship title.
The other group features world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler with Justin Thomas and Tommy Fleetwood. Scheffler has won the tournament twice, including back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024.
Last year, McIlroy and Scheffler were placed in the same featured group. This time, the PGA Tour has separated them.
The event will have a 123-player field. Full tee times and starting holes for the opening rounds will be announced on March 10.
Three FedExCup champions are part of the featured groups: Scheffler (2024), Thomas (2017) and Fleetwood (2025).
Schauffele is still looking for his first win at the tournament. He finished runner-up in 2018 and again in 2024. Matsuyama’s best result came in 2023, when he finished fifth.
Thomas also has good memories at Sawgrass. He won the Players Championship in 2021 and recently returned to competition after missing several months following microdiscectomy surgery last year.
The tournament begins Thursday at TPC Sawgrass. Fans can watch coverage on PGA Tour Live through ESPN+, along with broadcasts on
Everything to know about The Players Championship 2026
With the featured groups already announced, attention now shifts to the key details for The Players Championship 2026, including the broadcast schedule, prize purse and how players qualified for the field at TPC Sawgrass.
TV schedule (All times ET)
Coverage of the tournament will run throughout the week with studio coverage from Live From The Players on Golf Channel and live tournament broadcasts beginning Thursday.
Monday, March 9
- 3–5 p.m.: Live From The Players
- 7–9 p.m.: Live From The Players
Tuesday, March 10
- 9 a.m.–5 p.m.: Live From The Players
- 7–9 p.m.: Live From The Players
Wednesday, March 11
- 7:30 a.m.–4 p.m.: Live From The Players
- 6–9 p.m.: Live From The Players
Thursday, March 12
- 10 a.m.–1 p.m.: Live From The Players
- 1–7 p.m.: Round 1 (Golf Channel)
- 7–9 p.m.: Live From The Players
Friday, March 13
- 10 a.m.–1 p.m.: Live From The Players
- 1–7 p.m.: Round 2 (Golf Channel)
- 7–9 p.m.: Live From The Players
Saturday, March 14
- 10 a.m.–2 p.m.: Live From The Players
- 2–7 p.m.: Round 3 (NBC/Peacock)
- 7–9 p.m.: Live From The Players
Sunday, March 15
- 9 a.m.–1 p.m.: Live From The Players
- 1–6 p.m.: Final Round (NBC/Peacock)
- 6–8 p.m.: Live From The Players
Purse and prize money
The Players Championship has one of the biggest prize funds on the PGA Tour. The total purse this year is $25 million, with the winner earning $4.5 million and 750 FedExCup points.
Cut rule
After 36 holes, the top 65 players and ties will advance to the weekend rounds.
How players qualify for the field
The field at The Players Championship is made up of players who qualify through several categories. These include:
- Winners of PGA Tour events since the previous Players Championship
- The top 100 players from the previous season’s FedExCup Fall standings
- Masters champions from 2021–2025
- Winners of The Players Championship and The Open from 2021–2025
- Winners of the U.S. Open and PGA Championship from 2021–2025
- FedExCup champions from the 2020-21 through 2025 seasons
- Winner of the 2023 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play
- Winners of the Genesis Invitational (2024–2026)
- Winners of the Arnold Palmer Invitational (2024–2026)
- Winners of the Memorial Tournament (2023–2025)
- Top 50 players in the Official World Golf Ranking through the Cognizant Classic
- Top 10 players in the 2026 FedExCup standings through the Cognizant Classic
- The previous year’s Kaulig Companies Championship winner (PGA Tour Champions)
- The leading player from the previous season’s Race to Dubai who earned a PGA Tour card
- The leading player from the previous Korn Ferry Tour points list