when does the players championship start

The Players Championship 2026 at TPC Sawgrass starts on Thursday, March 12, 2026 and runs through Sunday, March 15, 2026.

Quick Scoop

⛳ Key details at a glance

• Tournament: The Players Championship (PGA Tour “fifth major”)

• Location: TPC Sawgrass, Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida

• Dates: March 12–15, 2026 (first round begins March 12)

• Typical daily schedule: First-round tee times from around 7:40 a.m. ET on Thursday.

Why these dates matter right now

• In 2025, The Players ran Thursday–Sunday, March 13–16, keeping the traditional mid-March slot on the PGA Tour calendar.

• For 2026, the event again sits in that same early-to-mid-March window, with tournament play officially listed as March 12–15 at TPC Sawgrass.

So if you’re planning to watch or follow along, circle Thursday, March 12, 2026 as the day “The Players” actually starts.

Extra context for golf fans

• The event is promoted as the first huge stop of the year on the PGA Tour after the West Coast swing, often called the “fifth major” thanks to its field strength and massive purse.

• The 2026 field features over 120 players and includes almost all of the top 50 in the world rankings, so storylines and drama should be heavy from day one.

“The first big tournament of the year, The Players Championship 2026, is just around the corner,” as one German golf outlet put it.

TL;DR

• When does The Players Championship start?
  • Thursday, March 12, 2026 (Round 1 at TPC Sawgrass, Florida).

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.