Players Championship 2016: Tee Times, TV and Livestream Schedule for Thursday
One of the major stops on the road to the U.S. Open will get underway Thursday morning at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, where Rickie Fowler will look to defend his Players Championship crown.
According to the PGA Tour's official website, a total of $10.5 million will be on the line, with $1.89 million going to the victor, so whoever comes out on top Sunday will get a healthy payout for four days of work. This is also an opportunity for some of golf's biggest stars to pick up a major feather in their cap before heading to the Oakmont Country Club in Pennsylvania for June's U.S. Open.
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Below are the tee times for Thursday's opening round, followed by three of the more interesting groups to follow as play unfolds.
Players Championship Viewing Schedule
TV Info: Golf Channel (1-7 p.m. ET)
Livestream: PGA Tour Live
Players Championship Tee Times
| 7:15 a.m. | 1 | Ricky Barnes | Jason Kokrak | Patton Kizzire |
| 7:15 a.m. | 10 | Jason Gore | Graham DeLaet | Francesco Molinari |
| 7:26 a.m. | 1 | Cameron Tringale | Daniel Summerhays | Will Wilcox |
| 7:26 a.m. | 10 | Johnson Wagner | Jerry Kelly | Kevin Chappell |
| 7:37 a.m. | 1 | Freddie Jacobson | Chad Campbell | Matthew Fitzpatrick |
| 7:37 a.m. | 10 | Gary Woodland | David Hearn | Hudson Swafford |
| 7:48 a.m. | 1 | Shane Lowry | Troy Merritt | Paul Casey |
| 7:48 a.m. | 10 | Matt Every | Webb Simpson | Ernie Els |
| 7:59 a.m. | 1 | J.B. Holmes | Brian Harman | Chesson Hadley |
| 7:59 a.m. | 10 | Tony Finau | Peter Malnati | K.J. Choi |
| 8:10 a.m. | 1 | Jim Herman | Emiliano Grillo | Brooks Koepka |
| 8:10 a.m. | 10 | Danny Willett | Brandt Snedeker | Justin Rose |
| 8:21 a.m. | 1 | James Hahn | Bill Haas | Ryan Moore |
| 8:21 a.m. | 10 | Martin Kaymer | Henrik Stenson | Phil Mickelson |
| 8:32 a.m. | 1 | Charley Hoffman | Danny Lee | Chris Kirk |
| 8:32 a.m. | 10 | Russell Knox | Jim Furyk | Billy Horschel |
| 8:43 a.m. | 1 | J.J. Henry | Steven Bowditch | Nick Taylor |
| 8:43 a.m. | 10 | Branden Grace | Jason Day | Jordan Spieth |
| 8:54 a.m. | 1 | Jason Dufner | Kevin Kisner | Luke Donald |
| 8:54 a.m. | 10 | Chris Stroud | Daniel Berger | Bernd Wiesberger |
| 9:05 a.m. | 1 | Martin Laird | Jhonattan Vegas | Si Woo Kim |
| 9:05 a.m. | 10 | Ian Poulter | Marc Leishman | Bernhard Langer |
| 9:16 a.m. | 1 | Chez Reavie | Kyle Reifers | Zac Blair |
| 9:16 a.m. | 10 | Brendan Steele | Jamie Lovemark | Jeff Overton |
| 12:30 p.m. | 1 | Kevin Na | Morgan Hoffmann | Chad Collins |
| 12:30 p.m. | 10 | Boo Weekley | Shawn Stefani | Andres Gonzales |
| 12:41 p.m. | 1 | Jonas Blixt | Sean O'Hair | Adam Hadwin |
| 12:41 p.m. | 10 | Ryan Palmer | Patrick Rodgers | Carlos Ortiz |
| 12:52 p.m. | 1 | Carl Pettersson | George McNeill | Jason Bohn |
| 12:52 p.m. | 10 | Bryce Molder | William McGirt | Colt Knost |
| 1:03 p.m. | 1 | Robert Streb | Kevin Streelman | Brendon Todd |
| 1:03 p.m. | 10 | Scott Piercy | Ben Martin | Hunter Mahan |
| 1:14 p.m. | 1 | Fabian Gomez | Padraig Harrington | Retief Goosen |
| 1:14 p.m. | 10 | Vaughn Taylor | Matt Jones | Vijay Singh |
| 1:25 p.m. | 1 | Zach Johnson | Patrick Reed | Sergio Garcia |
| 1:25 p.m. | 10 | Brian Stuard | David Lingmerth | John Senden |
| 1:36 p.m. | 1 | Adam Scott | Rickie Fowler | Matt Kuchar |
| 1:36 p.m. | 10 | Justin Thomas | Davis Love III | Alex Cejka |
| 1:47 p.m. | 1 | Hideki Matsuyama | Graeme McDowell | Louis Oosthuizen |
| 1:47 p.m. | 10 | Smylie Kaufman | Jimmy Walker | Russell Henley |
| 1:58 p.m. | 1 | Bubba Watson | Rory McIlroy | Dustin Johnson |
| 1:58 p.m. | 10 | Camilo Villegas | Harris English | Keegan Bradley |
| 2:09 p.m. | 1 | Scott Brown | Harold Varner III | Byeong-Hun An |
| 2:09 p.m. | 10 | Brendon de Jonge | Erik Compton | Soren Kjeldsen |
| 2:20 p.m. | 1 | Ken Duke | Steve Wheatcroft | Andy Sullivan |
| 2:20 p.m. | 10 | John Huh | Spencer Levin | Rafa Cabrera Bello |
| 2:31 p.m. | 1 | Mark Wilson | Charles Howell III | Jon Curran |
| 2:31 p.m. | 10 | Greg Owen | Scott Pinckney | Kiradech Aphibarnrat |
Groups to Watch
Martin Kaymer, Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson
Having missed the cuts for the Masters and Valero Texas Open, Phil Mickelson got his season back on track at the recent Wells Fargo Championship, finishing tied for fourth.
Mickelson's 2015 Players Championship ended earlier than expected after he missed the cut. His preparations suffered from the fact he hadn't played in a tournament since the Masters in early April.
Much has changed in the space of a year, with the PGA Tour highlighting one of the biggest improvements:
Watching Mickelson alone will provide enough drama, while two former champions round out the group. Martin Kaymer won The Players Championship in 2014, and Henrik Stenson paced the field in 2009.
Branden Grace, Jason Day and Jordan Spieth
Jordan Spieth hasn't played a competitive round of golf since his final-round collapse at the Masters.
Overcoming such a grand disappointment can be difficult, but the 22-year-old hasn't let it affect his psyche, per ESPN.com:
"I'm not taking it very hard. I've got ladies at the grocery stores putting their hand on me and going, 'Really praying for you. How are you doing?' I'm like, 'My dog didn't die. I'll be OK. I'll survive.' It happens. Actually, I laugh about it now. I really do. But it keeps coming up, and I understand that.
"
The bookmakers haven't soured much on Spieth, giving him the second-best odds (9-1) of winning The Players Championship behind Rory McIlroy (15-2), per Odds Shark.
Jason Day (11-1) has the third-best odds, which is far from a surprise since he's No. 1 in the World Golf Ranking. Day's previous results in the tournament have left a lot to be desired, and based on that, it's fair to question his status as a top contender:
| 2010 | +6 | Missed Cut |
| 2011 | -9 | 6th |
| 2012 | +5 | Missed Cut |
| 2013 | -5 | 19th |
| 2014 | DNP | DNP |
| 2015 | +10 | Missed Cut |
Golf Channel's Brandel Chamblee argued Day's iron play has been his downfall in the past. The 28-year-old might have a solution to remedy the problem, per ESPN.com's Jason Sobel:
Both Day and Spieth will want to get their Players Championships off on the right foot. The former is particularly attuned to how much a poor start can doom one's chances to playing through the weekend.
Watching two of the best golfers playing in the same group at one of the top events on the PGA Tour calendar is must-see television for any fan.
Adam Scott, Rickie Fowler and Matt Kuchar
Adam Scott could use a strong finish at The Players Championship after enduring what has been a underwhelming run of late. He was a non-factor at the Masters, winding up 42nd. He posted solid but unspectacular scores at both the Arnold Palmer Invitational and Wells Fargo Championship.
If Scott can get back to the run of form he enjoyed before heading for Augusta—wins at the WGC-Cadillac Championship and Honda Classic and a second-place finish at the Northern Trust Open—he could move one step closer to capturing his second major championship at the U.S. Open.
Fowler, meanwhile, is still looking for his first victory on the PGA Tour this year. He has finished in the top 10 six times in 12 tournaments, but he has yet to put it all together over four rounds. His Players Championship triumph from last year could provide him with the necessary confidence to get in the win column in 2016.
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