World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler knows his way around TPC Sawgrass and disclosed what it takes to succeed at The Players.

This year, he has already nailed Sepp Straka (66-1) in The American Express, Joe Highsmith (110-1) in the Cognizant Classic and Russell Henley (65-1) in the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Anyone who followed his sports betting picks could have seen massive returns on betting apps like FanDuel , DraftKings and Fanatics.

And, of course, Scheffler and McIlroy will be teeing off together on Thursday and Friday alongside Xander Schauffele. So the chirping and “advice” giving certainly won’t end at the range. If all goes well, it may even continue into Sunday evening.

Rory is the most experienced when it comes to The Players, having performed as many as 15 times during the competition. This trio will play in the 'featured' group during the first two years, so there is no doubt that their group will attract the most attention. In addition to their group, there are several interesting groups.

The first two rounds will be highlighted by the grouping of world Nos. 1, 2 and 3 as, respectively, Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Xander Schauffele will play together. They will start off at 1:29 p.m. EDT on Day 1.

Scottie Scheffler returns as a two-time defending champion at The Players; Rory McIlroy looks to win at TPC Sawgrass for a second time; Xander Schauffele, Collin Morikawa, Ludvig Åberg, Tommy Fleetwoo

The stars will be 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 will see many of those big names play alongside one another the first two days at TPC Sawgrass.

The 51st edition of The Players Championship continues Friday, March 14, on the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass. The grouping of world Nos. 1, 2 and 3 — Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Xander Schauffele, respectively — will again play together, going out at 8:24 a.m. EDT.