For release: March 9, 2021
THE PLAYERS Championship 2021 Pre-Tournament Notes
PGA TOUR Media Contacts: Stewart Moore (904) 540-2765 stewartmoore@pgatourhq.com
Tracey Veal (904) 412-6132 traceyveal@pgatourhq.com (credentials)
Dates: March 8-14, 2021
Where: Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida
Course: TPC Sawgrass (THE PLAYERS Stadium Course)
Defending champion: Rory McIlroy
Purse: $15,000,000 ($2,700,000/winner)
FedExCup: 600 points to the winner
Field size: 154
Format: 72-hole stroke play
Things to Know
- THE PLAYERS Championship marks the one-year anniversary of the PGA TOUR’s shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic; after the first round of THE PLAYERS in 2020, the tournament was canceled and the TOUR did not resume for 13 weeks
- 2019 champion Rory McIlroy seeks his first successful title defense on the PGA TOUR; no defending champion has ever won THE PLAYERS
- FedExCup leader Bryson DeChambeau enters the week as the only player with multiple victories during the 2020-21 season
- Reigning FedExCup champion and World No. 1 Dustin Johnson seeks first PLAYERS Championship title
Notes on the Field
- 28 of the top 30 in the FedExCup standings (all but No. 8/Brooks Koepka, No. 25/Matthew Wolff)
- 48 of the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking, tied for the most during the 2020-21 season (U.S. Open) (all but No. 12/Brooks Koepka, No. 20/Matthew Wolff)
- 112 PGA TOUR winners, the second-most among all TOUR events since 2000 (113/2020 RBC Heritage)
- 120 players that qualified for the previous season’s FedExCup Playoffs, the second-most of any tournament in the FedExCup era (121/2015 PLAYERS Championship)
- 10 past PLAYERS winners: Adam Scott (2004), Phil Mickelson (2007), Sergio Garcia (2008), Henrik Stenson (2009), Matt Kuchar (2012), Rickie Fowler (2015), Jason Day (2016), Si Woo Kim (2017), Webb Simpson (2018), Rory McIlroy (2019)
- Eight of 11 FedExCup champions: Brandt Snedeker (2012), Henrik Stenson (2013), Billy Horschel (2014), Jordan Spieth (2015), Justin Thomas (2017), Justin Rose (2018), Rory McIlroy (2016, 2019), Dustin Johnson (2020)
A look back at Thursday, March 12, 2020
- 7:40 a.m. ET – First tee shot is hit at THE PLAYERS Championship
- Noon ET (approx.) – PGA TOUR announces events across all Tours will proceed as scheduled, but will do so without fans in attendance, starting with the second round of THE PLAYERS Championship and continuing through the Valero Texas Open
- 7:40 p.m. ET – Play is suspended due to darkness
Leaderboard
| Pos. | Player | Score |
| 1st | Hideki Matsuyama | 63 (-9) |
| T2 | Harris English | 65 (-7) |
| T2 | Christiaan Bezuidenhout | 65 (-7) |
| T2 | Si Woo Kim | 65 (-7) |
- 10 p.m. ET (approx.) – PGA TOUR announces the cancellation of THE PLAYERS Championship, and events across all Tours, through the Valero Texas Open (with the exception of the Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship, which was postponed)
THE PLAYERS Championship and the FedExCup
- 23rd official FedExCup event in the 2020-21 season
- 11 of the 13 winners of the event have advanced to the season-ending TOUR Championship in the FedExCup era
- Rory McIlroy (2019) is the only player to win the event and go on to win the FedExCup in the same season
- Tiger Woods (2013) is the only player to enter THE PLAYERS with the lead in the FedExCup standings and win the event
Current FedExCup standings
- Bryson DeChambeau took over the lead in the FedExCup standings with his win at last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard (his ninth week at No. 1 this season)
- With the winner of THE PLAYERS receiving 600 FedExCup points, each player currently 17th or higher (with the exception of No. 8 Brooks Koepka/WD) is within reach of the No. 1 position
| Pos. | Player | Points | Wins | Top-10s | Pts. Behind | Starts |
| 1 | Bryson DeChambeau | 1,375 | 2 | 4 | – | 7 |
| 2 | Patrick Cantlay | 1,234 | 1 | 4 | 141 | 9 |
| 3 | Viktor Hovland | 1,204 | 1 | 4 | 171 | 10 |
| 4 | Xander Schauffele | 1,110 | 0 | 5 | 265 | 9 |
| 5 | Dustin Johnson | 1,105 | 1 | 4 | 270 | 6 |
| 6 | Harris English | 1,000 | 1 | 5 | 375 | 12 |
| 7 | Tony Finau | 980 | 0 | 5 | 395 | 10 |
| 8 | Brooks Koepka | 960 | 1 | 4 | 415 | 9 |
| 9 | Max Homa | 909 | 1 | 3 | 466 | 13 |
| 10 | Justin Thomas | 897 | 0 | 4 | 478 | 9 |
Defending champion Rory McIlroy
Back-to-Back
- Returns to TPC Sawgrass as the defending champion after the 2020 event was canceled
- Is also the most recent champion at two other tournaments won in 2019 that have been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic: RBC Canadian Open, World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions
- No player has ever won THE PLAYERS back-to-back
- Never successfully defended a PGA TOUR title (0-for-11; did not defend three of 14 titles won prior to 2019 THE PLAYERS Championship)
| Tournament | Result |
| 2021 THE PLAYERS Championship | TBD |
| 2019 Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard | T6 |
| 2017 TOUR Championship | Did not qualify |
| 2017 Dell Technologies Championship | MC |
| 2016 Wells Fargo Championship | T4 |
| 2016 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play | 4th |
| 2015 PGA Championship | 17th |
| 2015 WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational | DNP |
| 2015 The Open Championship | DNP |
| 2013 BMW Championship | T59 |
| 2013 Deutsche Bank Championship | T47 |
| 2013 PGA Championship | T8 |
| 2013 The Honda Classic | WD |
| 2012 U.S. Open | MC |
| 2011 Wells Fargo Championship | MC |
- Multiple wins at four different PGA TOUR events
| Tournament | Years |
| TOUR Championship | 2016, 2019 |
| Dell Technologies Championship | 2012, 2016 |
| Wells Fargo Championship | 2010, 2015 |
| PGA Championship | 2012, 2014 |
2020-21 season
- Four top-10s in nine starts during the 2020-21 season, including both major championships (T8/U.S. Open, T5/Masters Tournament) and his last two starts (T6/WGC-Workday Championship at The Concession, T10/Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard)
FedExCup leader Bryson DeChambeau
FedExCup leader
- Took over the lead in the FedExCup standings after win at last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard
- Second stint and ninth total week this season as FedExCup leader (first stint: after U.S. Open through Vivint Houston Open)
First multiple winner
- Only player to win multiple tournaments during the 2020-21 season (U.S. Open, Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard)
- Second season of his career with multiple victories and first since 2017-18 (the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide, THE NORTHERN TRUST, Dell Technologies Championship)
Statistical leader
- Leads the PGA TOUR in the following statistical categories
| Statistic | Value |
| Wins | 2 |
| FedExCup Points | 1,375 |
| Official Money | 4,477,017 |
| Driving Distance | 323.5 |
| Strokes Gained: Off the Tee | 1.268 |
| Strokes Gained: Tee to Green | 2.083 |
| Strokes Gained: Total | 2.426 |
| Par-3 Scoring Average | 2.89 |
| Par-5 Scoring Average | 4.38 |
| Holes per Eagle | 52.0 |
Reigning FedExCup champion and World No. 1 Dustin Johnson
Winner
- 24-time PGA TOUR winner (tied for 26th all-time)
- Extended streak of consecutive seasons with a win to start his career to 14 with a win at the 2020 Masters Tournament, tying Tiger Woods for third all-time (17/Jack Nicklaus, 17/Arnold Palmer, 14/Woods, 14/Johnson)
- Can become the fourth player to win THE PLAYERS, the FedExCup, a major championship and a World Golf Championships event (Tiger Woods, Henrik Stenson, Rory McIlroy); Justin Rose and Justin Thomas can as well
History at THE PLAYERS
- In 2019, became the first player since Steve Elkington in 1997 to record all four rounds in the 60s at THE PLAYERS (69-68-69-69)
- T5 in 2019 marked his first top-10 in 11 starts at the event
World No. 1
- Holds the No. 1 position in the Official World Golf Ranking for the 118th week in his career, third-most in the OWGR era (1986-present); 683/Tiger Woods, 331/Greg Norman
- Seven PGA TOUR wins when entering the week as World No. 1: 2017 WGC-Workday Championship, 2017 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play, 2017 THE NORTHERN TRUST, 2018 Sentry Tournament of Champions, 2018 RBC Canadian Open, 2020 TOUR Championship, 2020 Masters Tournament
- Last World No. 1 to win THE PLAYERS: Jason Day (2016)
- Last World No. 1 to win on TOUR: Johnson (2020 Masters Tournament)
Jon Rahm (FedExCup No. 17, World No. 2)
- Making fourth start at THE PLAYERS (T72/2017, T63/2018, T12/2019)
- Held the 54-hole lead in 2019, the first of his PGA TOUR career, before closing with a 4-over 76
- Five-time PGA TOUR winner (2017 Farmers Insurance Open, 2018 The American Express, 2019 Zurich Classic of New Orleans with Ryan Palmer, 2020 the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide, 2020 BMW Championship)
- Five top-10s in nine starts during the 2020-21 season, highlighted by a runner-up at the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP @ SHERWOOD
Justin Thomas (FedExCup No. 10, World No. 3)
- One top-10 in five starts at the event (T3/2016)
- Can become the fourth player to win THE PLAYERS, the FedExCup, a major championship and a World Golf Championships event (Tiger Woods, Henrik Stenson, Rory McIlroy); Justin Rose and Dustin Johnson can as well
- Four top-10s in nine starts during the 2020-21 season, highlighted by a T2 at the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP @ SHERWOOD and a solo-third at the Sentry Tournament of Champions
- 13-time PGA TOUR winner; 12 PGA TOUR wins since the start of the 2016-17 season, tied with Dustin Johnson for the most in that stretch
Collin Morikawa (FedExCup No. 15, World No. 4)
- Won the WGC-Workday Championship at The Concession in his most recent PGA TOUR start, earning his fourth title in his 41st career start
- Joined Tiger Woods as the only players to win a major championship and a World Golf Championships event before turning 25
- Making first start at THE PLAYERS (was in the field for canceled event in 2020)
PLAYERS Championship debuts
- 31 players in the field are making their first official start in THE PLAYERS; 15 of the 31 participated in the 2020 PLAYERS Championship before it was canceled
| Participants in 2020 | First-time participants |
| Christiaan Bezuidenhout | Cameron Davis |
| Sam Burns | Doug Ghim |
| Dylan Frittelli | Scott Harrington |
| Lanto Griffin | Harry Higgs |
| Max Homa | Bo Hoag |
| Viktor Hovland | Tom Lewis |
| Nate Lashley | Robert MacIntyre |
| K.H. Lee | Tyler McCumber |
| Collin Morikawa | Maverick McNealy |
| Sebastian Munoz | Matthew NeSmith |
| Joaquin Niemann | Henrik Norlander |
| Victor Perez | Cameron Percy |
| Scottie Scheffler | Doc Redman |
| Adam Schenk | Robby Shelton |
| Sepp Straka | Will Zalatoris |
| Xinjun Zhang |
Balls in the water at No. 17 (since 2003)
| Year | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Total |
| 2019 | 14 | 6 | 8 | 17 | 45 |
| 2018 | 24 | 21 | 6 | 3 | 54 |
| 2017 | 19 | 29 | 10 | 11 | 69 |
| 2016 | 6 | 9 | 17 | 4 | 36 |
| 2015 | 21 | 16 | 3 | 5 | 45 |
| 2014 | 12 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 28 |
| 2013 | 15 | 9 | 7 | 13 | 44 |
| 2012 | 18 | 11 | 4 | 6 | 39 |
| 2011 | 12 | 14 | 8 | 6 | 40 |
| 2010 | 7 | 8 | 5 | 9 | 29 |
| 2009 | 16 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 32 |
| 2008 | 20 | 18 | 10 | 16 | 64 |
| 2007 | 50 | 21 | 10 | 12 | 93 |
| 2006 | 19 | 17 | 12 | 9 | 57 |
| 2005 | 7 | 8 | 25 | 28 | 68 |
| 2004 | 9 | 10 | 4 | 7 | 30 |
| 2003 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 10 | 29 |
| Average | 16.18 | 13.24 | 8.06 | 9.71 | 47.18 |
Tournament records
- Lowest 18-hole score: 63 (eight times; most recent: Brooks Koepka/R4, 2018)
- Lowest 36-hole score: 129 (Jason Day/2016, Webb Simpson/2018)
- Lowest 54-hole score: 197 (Greg Norman/1994, Webb Simpson/2018)
- Lowest 72-hole score: 264 (Greg Norman/1994)
- Largest margin of victory: 7 strokes (Steve Elkington/1997)
- Playoffs: 5 (most recent: Rickie Fowler def. Sergio Garcia and Kevin Kisner, 2017)
- Best come-from-behind win: 6 strokes (Raymond Floyd/1981)
- Youngest winner: Si Woo Kim, 2017 (21 years, 10 months, 16 days)
- Oldest winner: Fred Funk, 2005 (48 years, 9 months, 13 days)