The 2026 Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass features 120 golfers, with ten players facing significant questions about their form heading into the event. Analyst Dylan Dethier highlights those with unfinished business, ranging from young talents to established stars. The tournament serves as a key test before major season.
The Players Championship, often called golf's fifth major, begins this week at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. With a field of 120 competitors, the event provides an early indicator of season performance. Dylan Dethier, a senior writer for GOLF.com, identifies ten PGA Tour pros grouped into tiers based on their recent results and career trajectories.
In the lowest tier, focusing on emerging players, 24-year-old Michael Thorbjornsen seeks to build on his T3 finish at the WM Phoenix Open. His subsequent starts yielded T78, a missed cut, and T33. 'I don’t think I failed out there. I’m just learning,' Thorbjornsen said after Phoenix. Similarly, 25-year-old Johnny Keefer, who tied for seventh at last fall's RSM Classic, has posted T61, T27, T43, T41, and a missed cut this season, excelling off the tee but struggling with putting.
The next group includes veterans like Keegan Bradley, who self-assessed his 2025 season as an 'F' after captaining the U.S. Ryder Cup team. His 2026 starts: missed cut, T43, T29, missed cut, missed cut. Bradley described the post-Cup period as the 'darkest time of my life.' Tony Finau, recovering from a knee injury, opened with two missed cuts but improved to T11 at Torrey Pines and a top-20 at Pebble Beach. 'My iron play has been my bread and butter... Just [haven’t been] up to par,' he noted.
Max Homa arrives after a T13 at the Cognizant Classic, crediting coach Mark Blackburn. 'I’m still getting over some scar tissue... but I’m hitting it really good,' Homa told PGA Tour reporter Paul Hodowanic.
Higher tiers feature major winners like Brooks Koepka, who posted a T9 at Cognizant with sharper irons and a new Spider putter. 'Now it’s just a matter of going to play and build a rhythm,' Koepka said. Jordan Spieth has gained strokes in 19 of 21 recent starts, including T12 and T11 finishes, though tee accuracy remains a concern. Viktor Hovland, fresh off a T13 at Bay Hill, praises his irons but laments driver woes: 'Swinging it well with the irons... as soon as I get my driver in my hands, it’s just not working.' He works with new coach T.J. Yeaton.
Xander Schauffele, a two-time 2024 major winner, had a top-10 at Riviera but missed the cut at Torrey Pines. 'I’m working... Definitely need a little bit more practice,' he stated. At the top, world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, with a win less than two months ago and three top-four finishes in his last five, recently placed T12 and T24. His iron play ranks 88th this season, a dip from prior excellence.
Honorable mention goes to Justin Thomas, returning after five months, having broken 80 in his first competitive rounds while appearing healthy. Other strong performers like Collin Morikawa, Akshay Bhatia, and Rory McIlroy enter with recent wins or contention, earning benefit of the doubt.
