2023 The Players Championship preview: Spieth, Thomas, Homa, Scheffler, Rahm, McIlroy…
Top golfers will be competing this week in the Players Championship at Ponte Vedra Beach in Florida, to try and win the biggest PGA purse of the season.
Top PGA golfers will be teeing off at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra beach in Florida heading into the weekend, to compete in the Players Championship which offers the biggest purse on the tour.
World No. 1 to be determined this weekend
The world number one ranking is at stake in the tournament, and to make the competition even more exciting, current number one Jon Rahm has been grouped with Rory McElroy and Scottie Scheffler who are both in the running for the top spot. They will play head-to-head in the first two rounds of The Players.
Rahm is looking to extend his incredible winning streak that has already earned him almost $10 million in the first few weeks of 2023 alone. The Spaniard’s performance at last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational was his worst since July, tied for 39th, but he was able to hold on to the world number one position.
McIlroy finished the competition tied for second, just missing the chance to take the top spot from Rahm. He is seeking to become the first golfer to win the Players Championship twice since Tiger Woods, having earned his first victory in 2019. The golfer from Northern Ireland is slightly favored to win the event.
🗣️ "The emergence of LIV has benefitted the PGA Tour."
— Sky Sports (@SkySports) March 7, 2023
Rory McIlroy claims LIV Golf has caused the PGA Tour to rethink its strategy and suggests that innovation for the tour is something that will benefit all of professional golf. 💬pic.twitter.com/yS4FMd77gS
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Scheffler was also in a position to retake the number one ranking from Rahm last week, but finished the Arnold Palmer contest tied for fourth place.
Good morning. 2 featured groups have already been named for @THEPLAYERSChamp this week:
— Jeff Eisenband (@JeffEisenband) March 6, 2023
Rahm-McIlroy-Scheffler
Spieth-Thomas-Homa
That'll work. pic.twitter.com/dZc8B1v2i9
Another star-studded featured group
The other notable group for the first two days of the Players Championship includes Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, and Max Homa. Thomas is also seeking his second victory at TPC Sawgrass, after winning the tournament in 2021. Homa, a six-time PGA Tour winner, was his Presidents Cup teammate. Spieth will be looking to improve on his performance last year, when he missed the cut to play the final two rounds.