The Players Championship does not quite have the same status as it did before many of goal’s leading lights headed for the LIV Tour, but it remains one of the key dates on the PGA Tour calendar and drama is usually guaranteed every March at Sawgrass.
The illustrious tournament, which was previously marketed as the Fifth major, was moved from May in 2019 and has now become part of the key preparations for the Masters, which is only just over a month away.
Not surprisingly, Scottie Scheffler is being seen as the man to beat in Ponte Vedra this year as he has claimed the last two Players Championships, but the world number one has not quite been in the unstoppable form he has demonstrated in previous springs, so there will be plenty who will head to the Stadium Course fancying their chances.
One of those will be Russell Henley, who triumphed at last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hall, but the man from Georgia may be mindful that he has missed five of his last eight Sawgrass cuts.
- SEPP STRAKA TO WIN THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP (EACH-WAY)
- HIDEKI MATSUYAMA TO WIN THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP (EACH-WAY)
- SHANE LOWRY TO WIN THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP (EACH-WAY)
- DANIEL BERGER TO WIN THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP (EACH-WAY)
Straka Can Build On Fine Week
There are four players punters should consider backing for Players Championship glory this week and the one who could make the most significant push is Austrian Sepp Straka.
It is noticeable that the three Players champions who played at Bay Hill the previous week headed to Sawgrass having posted a fine result in the Arnold Palmer - Scheffler finished first and fourth the last two years, while Rory McIlroy was sixth before his 2019 win.
That bodes well for Straka, who was fifth in Orlando last week, four shots behind Henley even though he started the week with a 77.
He already knows what it is like to win a PGA Tour title this year, having grabbed glory in January’s American Express, and he followed that up with seventh at Pebble Beach and 11th at the Cognizant Classic before last week’s effort.
Straka also brings decent Sawgrass form to the table as he was ninth in 2022 and 16th last year, so he could be set for his fourth PGA triumph which would be his biggest.
SEPP STRAKA TO WIN THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP (EACH-WAY)
Matsuyama Has The Game To Tame Sawgrass
Sawgrass is a venue where quality ball-striking and a strong all-round game can produce a triumph and it would not be a surprise if Hideki Matsuyama became a factor in the PGA Tour’s marquee tournament.
The 2021 Masters champion won The Sentry at the start of the year in Hawaii and has played solidly since, closing with a 69 last week that secured a 22th-place finish.
The Japanese star’s course form is particularly encouraging as he has posted four top-ten finishes at the Florida course.
Significantly, two of those have come in his last two appearances as he was fifth in 2023 when he gave his rivals a head start after carding an opening 74, and then he was sixth last year.
A great deal of confidence can be taken from the fact he has broken 70 in each of his last six rounds at the venue, so he knows how to get to grips with the layout and, as always, he is bound to be a fearsome competitor if he can smell that he has a chance of glory.
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA TO WIN THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP (EACH-WAY)
Consistent Lowry Is Usually A Threat
If a strong Bay Hill result is going to become a key indicator of a future Players performance, then Shane Lowry could come into this week’s equation, but there is more to like about the Irishman’s Sawgrass chances than just his seventh spot last week.
It could have been so much better for the former Open champion after he allowed a 36-hole lead slip from his grasp with a Saturday 76, but there is a sense he has been knocking on the door for a while.
He took in lots of action on the DP World Tour after September’s Tour Championship and he has finished in the top-20 in nine of his last 11 tournaments worldwide.
His best Players finish came in 2021 when he was eighth and he also has the memory of a hole-in-one on the course’s most famous hole, the island-green par-three 17th the following year, so he will be able to reflect upon plenty of good times as he looks to finally get over the line.
SHANE LOWRY TO WIN THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP (EACH-WAY)
Berger Search For Home-State Joy
The final player in our quartet of hopefuls is Florida’s own Daniel Berger, who has been displaying some decent form recently.
He was second at the Phoenix Open at the beginning of last month and also runner-up in November’s RSM Classic, so there appears to be evidence that he is getting back to the top of his game.
That was certainly apparent last week at Bay Hill where he claimed 15th spot, but that finish could have been so much better had he not fired a 78 in the first round.
He displayed plenty of determination to get back into contention when it could have been easy to just put the tournament to one side and concentrate on the following week, so he deserves plenty of credit for that.
It is three years since he last made a Sawgrass appearance, but his two most recent showings are encouraging.
He was 13th in 2022 when he got off to a great start with a 67 and was ninth the previous year, so he has some good course form in the book and is worth an each-way investment upon his return.
DANIEL BERGER TO WIN THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP (EACH-WAY)
