Players Championship live stream: Time, TV schedule, and how to watch Tiger Woods on Friday

The Players Championship was supposed to be different this year. The move to March meant the wind was supposed to kick up and a stiffer test created for one of the strongest fields of the year in golf. We heard about it in practice rounds and from the elder set in the field, who played this championship in March before the move to May 12 years ago.

Then we got a nice, soft, benign test in the opening round on Thursday. The wind came from the usual May direction, out of south, and it never really picked up as both the morning and afternoon waves on the tee sheet posted low scores at TPC Sawgrass. The course is also quite soft given the time of year, meaning these talents can fire darts into the pins and whale away with the driver with reduced fear of the ball running out beyond the fairway once it hits the ground. The PGA Tour also chose to mow the rough at a relatively short height. So you had minimal wind, soft conditions, and rough far less penal than expected. The scores were low.

Friday’s weather does not look particularly challenging, either, which means Tiger Woods will have a fresh, soft golf course on which to post a low number. Tiger is out early in the second round after firing a respectable 2-under 70 late on Thursday afternoon. Tiger’s putting, the primary area of concern at the start of the week, was actually a positive in the first round. He was on the plus-side in strokes-gained putting and had no three putts. The putting was, reportedly, why a new coach — or maybe it’s just a set of eyes — was brought in with Matt Killen trailing Tiger with his phone this week.

But while the putting was solid, his ballstriking and work off the tee were underwhelming. The 2-under round has him within five of the lead, but given the conditions, he could have done more damage. The greens for his second round will be “fresh” in the morning, something he often cites after a poor or exemplary day putting. It’s reasonable to assume the ballstriking will get back to normal, which for Tiger is good to great. Now if he can keep his putter rolling comparably to Thursday, we’re looking at a significant move to the top of the leaderboard. Here are your nuts and bolts for the second round at The Players.

Friday morning is arguably the biggest day of the year for the PGA Tour’s OTT streaming service, PGA Tour Live. That’s because they have Tiger Woods playing at their marquee event. The stakes do not get higher for the Tour and the interest, as we know, is never higher without Tiger as part of the equation. So it’s a big morning for PGA Tour Live, which is now carried exclusively via NBC Sports Gold. Here are all your media options for the second round at TPC Sawgrass:

1 p.m. to 7 p.m. ET — Golf Channel

7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET: PGA Tour Live starts with coverage from range and opening holes

7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. ET: Free PGA Tour live stream on Twitter

Featured Groups (NBC Sports Gold subscription required)

1 to 7 p.m. ET -- fuboTV, Golf Channel simulcast stream

Noon to 7 p.m. ET: PGA Tour Radio on Sirius-XM (Ch. 92/208 and streamed here)

Tiger will tee off in the morning wave on Friday, playing alongside Webb Simpson and Patrick Reed again for the second round. They go at 8:32 a.m. ET off No. 10, facing that challenging finishing stretch early in the day. Golf Channel’s TV coverage will not be live until 1 p.m. ET, so you’ll have to settle for live look-ins from their pregame show or go for the subscription to NBC Sports Gold if you want to watch.

Here’s the full tee sheet for Friday’s second round at TPC Sawgrass (all times ET):