PONTE VEDRA BEACH, FL –The 2025 PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass has reached its halfway point with Min Woo Lee and Akshay Bhatia sitting atop the leaderboard, tied at 11 under par after two rounds. The duo has set the pace in this star-studded field, navigating the challenging Stadium Course with poise and precision through 36 holes.
The 26-year-old Lee and Bhatia, just 23, both emerging talents on the PGA Tour, have turned heads with their consistent play, each posting scores of 133 over the par-72 layout.
“Felt really good over the ball,” said Lee. “Just really good numbers and rolled some putts in. Today was solid again and hopefully two more of them.”
Bhatia said, “So, all in all, it’s all the same and it’s just been an intense focus kind of week for me. I feel like that was my goal to start the week. It takes so much to win golf tournaments, especially a PLAYERS Championship. So, I just got to carry that mentality into these next couple days.”
They sit one stroke ahead of J.J. Spaun (68), who is alone in third on 10 under. One further back was a pair of heavyweights in Rory McIlroy (68) and Collin Morikawa (65), who lurk at 9 under, alongside Alex Smalley (67).
The tournament, boasting a $25 million purse and often dubbed the “5th Major,” saw its share of drama on Friday: Justin Thomas unleashed a jaw-dropping 62, matching the course record after a shaky 78 on Thursday. Despite JT’s heroics, he remains seven shots back at 4 under, a testament to the leaderboard’s depth.
Top-10 Leaders: THE PLAYERS
Pos-Player-To Par (Rd 2)
1. Akshay Bhatia -11 (-6)
1. Min Woo Lee -11 (-6)
3. J.J. Spaun -10 (-4)
4. Collin Morikawa -9 (-7)
4. Alex Smalley -9 (-5)
4. Rory McIlroy -9 (-4)
7. Lucas Glover -8 (-2)
7. Will Zalatoris -8 (-6)
9. Tommy Fleetwood -7 (-6)
9. Jake Knapp -7 (-4)
Credit: PGA Tour Media, Grok, Getty Images
