Crucial Summer Momentum Up for Grabs in Wide-Open Sunday at Players Championship

Last year, Martin Kaymer turned his career around by winning The Players Championship and carrying that momentum over to the U.S. Open in June, where he won his second major.

This Sunday at The Players, there will be dozens of golfers trying to follow in his footsteps.

Chris Kirk is alone in the lead at 10 under par, but his lead is hardly a comfortable one. In fact, the leaderboard at TPC Sawgrass is more packed than it ever has been heading into championship Sunday. There are 30 players within five strokes of the lead, which CBS Sports' Kyle Porter pointed out, a number that far surpasses the previous record of 20 back in 1982: 

A quick rundown of the contenders is an impossible ask.

Kevin Kisner, Ben Martin and Bill Haas are all tied at nine under par; six players are at eight under par, including Kevin Na and 2008 Players Championship winner Sergio Garcia; Rickie Fowler and Billy Horschel highlight the six golfers at seven under par; nine, including Rory McIlroy, Bubba Watson, Ian Poulter and Zach Johnson, are at six under; and Patrick Reed is tied with four others five back of the lead.

Oh, and it's probably worth nothing that last year's champ, Kaymer, is lurking right there at four under par.

That, my friends, is how you set up a thrilling Sunday of golf.

With Phil Mickelson and Masters champion Jordan Spieth at home after missing the cut and Tiger Woods currently tied for 68th, the winner of The Players—colloquially known as the fifth major—will be in the driver's seat heading into the summer.

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Everywhere you look there are great storylines.

Take the leader, Kirk, a 30-year-old who is a three-time PGA Tour champion but has never sniffed the lead at a major or The Players Championship. However, he played some of the best golf of his career last fall to win the Deutsche Bank Championship in the FedEx Cup Playoffs and is trying to establish himself as a consistent threat on the big stages.

Kirk finished his round on Saturday with three birdies on the final four holes.

Kisner, who will join Kirk in the final pairing on Sunday, is a Players Championship rookie. While it's long been said that this course at TPC Sawgrass is one that favors veterans, 31-year-old Kisner, who has never won on the PGA Tour and never made the cut of a major, isn't rattled.

“Everybody talks about pressure and nerves and all that, but we’ve been through it all,” Kisner said after his round on Saturday, as reported by Golf Channel's Will Gray. “If we’ve gotten here, we’ve done Tour school, we’ve won tournaments. Just because it’s a bigger stage doesn’t mean we’re going to suck all of a sudden.”

Na, who had the tournament lead after 36 holes and was out in front for a good portion on Saturday until a double bogey on 18 derailed him a bit, is still in position for the biggest win of his career. With the infamous yips on his swing a thing of the past, the engaging and quirky golfer has been a lot of fun to watch during the first three days of play.

He isn't always the best judge of his own swing, however, as his reaction to his great shot on 17 will tell you. The PGA Tour's official Twitter account provided highlights:

While guys such as Kirk, Kisner and Na are looking for a win at The Players to not only give them the confidence heading forward but to also raise their profiles, other golfers who are already in the spotlight could still use this big boost.

Take Garcia, for example, the volatile Spaniard who is still seeking his first major championship. A second victory at The Players could give him the self-belief to spur him to a career-defining victory this summer.

He's playing very well off the tee and from the fairways, it should be noted, although his problems with the putter continue to plague him.

"[Garcia] is giving nearly four strokes to the field on the greens," Bob Harig of ESPN.com wrote. "If he were simply average, instead of eight under, he'd be 12 under and leading the tournament by two strokes."

Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images

Garcia's friend Rickie Fowler is still seeking his first major too, although he'd certainly take a Players Championship victory first. The 26-year-old American, who finished in the top five in all four majors last year but still came to TPC Sawgrass battling "overrated" claims, per a Golf.com poll (via SB Nation's Emily Kay) discussed, has made 16 birdies in the last three rounds.

Then, of course, there's McIlroy. The world No. 1 is coming off a spectacular win at the WGC-Cadillac Matchplay Championship and still searching for his first win at The Players Championship. A victory here could give him a terrifying leg up heading into a summer where he is the defending champion at two of the three majors.

No matter what, it looks like it's going to be a can't-miss final 18 at TPC Sawgrass. Golf is a game where anything can happen, as this leaderboard jam-packed with superstars and unknowns neck-and-neck shows.

There will be more than merely The Players Championship on the line Sunday—confidence and momentum are up for grabs, too. 

With the razor-thin margins on the PGA Tour, those factors can make all the difference.