J.J. Spaun and Rory McIlroy shake hands after their third round at The Players. | Photo by Brian Spurlock/Getty Images
J.J. Spaun holds a one stroke lead going into the final round. Here are tee times for the final round of The Players.
Fifty-four hole leaders do not have a good history at TPC Sawgrass; yet, J.J. Spaun hopes to break that mold.
Since 2007, nine players have held a one-shot advantage through 54 holes and none of them went on to win, per Justin Ray. That includes last year, when Xander Schauffele held a one shot lead after three rounds. But Scottie Scheffler passed him by with a historic final round 64 to win The Players for a second straight year.
Considering the wind will continue to blow on Sunday, anything can happen. But Spaun did handle the treacherous conditions better than anyone on Saturday, firing a 2-under 70 to take control of the championship at the 54-hole mark. Whether he continues to play well with the final round pressure on the line remains to be seen.
Another vital tidbit for Sunday’s final round is that the PGA Tour moved up the tee times to cater to inclement weather set to strike Northeast Florida in the afternoon. The final pairing will go off at 10:00 a.m. ET and everyone will play in threesomes off of split tees as the tour hopes to wrap up play by 3:00 p.m. ET.