Second-Round Notes – Friday, March 13, 2026
The weather: Partly cloudy and breezy. High of 71. Wind NE at 8-14 mph.
36-hole cut: 73 professionals at 2-over 146 from a field of 123 professionals.
Second-Round Leaderboard
| Pos. | Player | R1 | R2 | Total |
| 1 | Ludvig Åberg | 69 | 63 | 132 (-12) |
| 2 | Xander Schauffele | 69 | 65 | 134 (-10) |
| 3 | Cameron Young | 68 | 67 | 135 (-9) |
| T4 | Corey Conners | 69 | 67 | 136 (-8) |
| T4 | Justin Thomas | 68 | 68 | 136 (-8) |
CAN LUDWIG NOW JOIN HENRIK ? …
As a @THEPLAYERS after Stenson became the first & still only #Sweden golfer in 2009 to win at Tour HQ
Read: https://t.co/ZhApq5X5fL
UPI/Getty
✅ @TOURMISS pic.twitter.com/lHj4o5XGHU
— Fatiha (@TOURMISS) March 14, 2026
Ludvig Åberg (1st/-12)
- 63 marks the second-lowest 18-hole score in PLAYERS history (lowest: 62, Justin Thomas/2025/R2, Tom Hoge/2023/R3) and his lowest on TOUR since the 2025 Farmers Insurance Open (63/R1)
- Marks his sixth career 36-hole lead/co-lead on TOUR; 1-for-5 converting to victory (2023 RSM Classic); last to hold the 36-hole lead/co-lead at THE PLAYERS and go on to win: Rory McIlroy/2019
- Third player to post 29 on the front nine at TPC Sawgrass (others: Dustin Johnson/2022/R4, Martin Kaymer/2014/R1)
- Joins Derek Fathauer (2015/R1) as the only players to post 5-under on Nos. 1-4 at TPC Sawgrass
- Becomes the third player in PLAYERS history to eagle Nos. 2 and 9 in the same round at TPC Sawgrass (others: Chandler Phillips/R1/2025, Henrik Stenson/R2/2013)
- Leads the field in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee (4.087) through two rounds; led the field in Strokes Gained: Approach the Green (4.005) and Strokes Gained: Tee to Green (7.258) in round two
- Making his third career appearance at THE PLAYERS; finished solo eighth in his debut in 2024 and missed the cut in 2025
- Posted his first top-10 in five starts during the 2026 season at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard (T3)
- Seeks his third career PGA TOUR victory (2023 RSM Classic, 2025 Genesis Invitational)
- Looking now to become only the second Swede since Henrik Stenson in 2009 to win the championship.
Xander Schauffele (2nd/-10)009
- 65 matches his low 18-hole score in 24 career rounds at THE PLAYERS Championship (R1, R3/2024)
- Eight birdies in a round are the most in his career at TPC Sawgrass (previous: 7; R1, R3/2024)
- Hit every fairway in a round (14 of 14) for the third time in his career (2025 Baycurrent Classic/R4, 2018 CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES/R3)
- Two career runner-up finishes at THE PLAYERS (2018, 2024)
- One top-10 finish in five starts during the 2026 season (T7/The Genesis Invitational)
- Seeks his 11th PGA TOUR victory and second in his last seven starts (2025 Baycurrent Classic)
- See full story of Schauffele’s round: https://www.golfbytourmiss.com/2026/03/schauffele-proudly-declares-when-quizzed-difference-in-his-players-second-day-65-i-hit-every-fairwayt-every-fair/
Miscellaneous Notes
- Cameron Young (3rd/-9) posts 67 for his low 18-hole score in 16 career rounds at TPC Sawgrass (previous: 68/R3/2023, 68/R1/2026); T51 (2023) marks his best finish in four previous appearances at THE PLAYERS
- Making his second start of the 2026 season since returning from back surgery in November, 2021 PLAYERS Champion Justin Thomas (T4/-8) takes his best career position through 36 holes at THE PLAYERS (previous: T16/2022)
- Corey Conners (T4/-8) birdies five of his first six holes and cards 67; has two top-10s in six previous appearances at THE PLAYERS (7th/2021, T6/2025)
- Two-time PLAYERS Champion (2023, 2024) and World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler (T51/+1) extends his longest active cuts made streak on TOUR to 70
- Rory McIlroy makes the cut by a shot in his defence of The Players Championship. Read full story: https://www.golfbytourmiss.com/2026/03/mcilroy-brilliantly-birdies-last-but-faces-anxious-afternoon-wait/
