When the inaugural Players Championship was held in 1974, Jack Nicklaus was the winner, earning a $50,000 prize money payout for his victory from an overall purse of $250,000. It was the 54th of 73 PGA Tour titles that Nicklaus won in his career,

As the PGA Tour's flagship event, The Players Championship offers the largest purse with the largest first-place payout on the season schedule. The field of 144 will compete for $25 million, with $4.5 million going to the champion on the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass.