The stars are out bright and early Thursday morning for the first round of the 2025 Players Championship. Featuring a full field of 144 players, the PGA Tour's flagship event has many of those big names playing alongside one another across the first two days at TPC Sawgrass. Follow Players Championship live leaderboard coverage during Round 1.

His cellphone buzzed around 7 a.m., less than two hours after Danny Walker woke up but earlier than he ever truly expected to feel it vibrate. 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

There are eight past champions in the field: Scottie Scheffler (2023, 2024), Justin Thomas (2021), Rory McIlroy (2019), Si Woo Kim (2017), Jason Day (2016), Rickie Fowler (2015), Matt Kuchar (2012) and Adam Scott (2004).