Rory McIlroy continues to sit on the front page of the leaderboard, but TPC Sawgrass still finds ways to put its claws into him at The PLAYERS Championship.

Measuring less than 150 yards, it strikes fear into those who challenge the island green during the Players Championship.

It will be a quick turnaround for many of the names atop the leaderboard at the 2025 Players Championship as second-round play begins. The likes of Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler and

As first alternate at the 51st Players Championship, the 29-year-old PGA Tour rookie who has lived in Jacksonville area for five-and-a-half years assumed getting into the event on Thursday would be a long shot;

It wasn't all sunshine and rainbows for players in the first round of the 2025 Players Championship. With TPC Sawgrass showing more teeth than expected, some competitors are forced to play catch-up to secure a weekend tee time while others will aim to position themselves for a charge over the second 36 holes.

In 42 years at Sawgrass, that's an average of 24 golf balls going splash down each tournament. The field of 144 will hit about 430 tee balls on the 17th hole over the course of four days in 2026, so expect about five percent of this year's tee shots to end up in the drink.