Activities Sports & Athletics Winners of The Players Championship Tournament Past Champions, Trivia, and Playoff Winners at PGA Tour's Flagship Event Print Hal Sutton is a 2-time winner of The Players Championship. Jeff Gross/Getty Images Sports & Athletics Golf Golf Tournaments Basics History Gear Golf Courses Famous Golfers Baseball Bicycling Billiards Bodybuilding Bowling Boxing Car Racing Cheerleading Extreme Sports Football Gymnastics Ice Hockey Martial Arts Professional Wrestling Skateboarding Skating Paintball Soccer Swimming & Diving Table Tennis Tennis Track & Field Volleyball Other Activities Learn More By Brent Kelley Brent Kelley Brent Kelley is an award-winning sports journalist and golf expert with over 30 years in print and online journalism. Learn about our Editorial Process Updated on 03/17/19 The Players Championship was first played in 1974, and below is the list of all the tournament's winners from that year through the present. We'll also look at some trivia plus playoff results. But first, let's see which golfers have won this tournament multiple times. And in its history, there have been only six multiple winners of The Players Championship: 3-Time Winners of The Players Championship Jack Nicklaus, 1974, 1976, 1978 2-Time Winners of The Players Championship Fred Couples, 1984, 1996 Steve Elkington, 1991, 1997 Hal Sutton, 1983, 2000 Davis Love III, 1992, 2003 Tiger Woods, 2001, 2013 The Full List: Winners of The Players Championship Here is the full list of Players Championship winners, from the most recent back to the first: 2019 - Rory McIlroy, 2722018 - Webb Simpson, 2702017 - Si Woo Kim, 2782016 - Jason Day, 2732015 - Rickie Fowler, 2762014 - Martin Kaymer, 2752013 - Tiger Woods, 2752012 - Matt Kuchar, 2752011 - K.J. Choi, 2752010 - Tim Clark, 2722009 - Henrik Stenson, 2762008 - Sergio Garcia, 2832007 - Phil Mickelson, 2772006 - Stephen Ames, 2742005 - Fred Funk, 2792004 - Adam Scott, 2762003 - Davis Love III, 2712002 - Craig Perks, 2802001 - Tiger Woods, 2742000 - Hal Sutton, 2781999 - David Duval, 2851998 - Justin Leonard, 2781997 - Steve Elkington, 2721996 - Fred Couples, 2701995 - Lee Janzen, 2831994 - Greg Norman, 2641993 - Nick Price, 2701992 - Davis Love III, 2731991 - Steve Elkington, 2761990 - Jodie Mudd, 2781989 - Tom Kite, 2791988 - Mark McCumber, 2731987 - Sandy Lyle-p, 2741986 - John Mahaffey, 2751985 - Calvin Peete, 2741984 - Fred Couples, 2771983 - Hal Sutton, 2831982 - Jerry Pate, 2801981 - Raymond Floyd-p, 2851980 - Lee Trevino, 2781979 - Lanny Wadkins, 2831978 - Jack Nicklaus, 2891977 - Mark Hayes, 2891976 - Jack Nicklaus, 2691975 - Al Geiberger, 2701974 - Jack Nicklaus, 272 Some trivia notes to keep in mind: Nicklaus' three wins came in the tournament's first five years when it was not yet known as The Players Championship and not yet played at TPC Sawgrass. Prior to 1988, the tournament was named the Tournament Players Championship. The tournament was first played at TPC Sawgrass in 1982. There has not yet been a back-to-back champion. The tournament's 72-hole scoring record is 264, achieved by Greg Norman during his 1994 victory. Playoffs at The Players Championship The current playoff format is a 3-hole, aggregate score playoff conducted over Holes 16-18. That format was first used in 2015; prior to that, the format was sudden death. 2015: Rickie Fowler and Kevin Kisner finished the three holes at 1-under, Sergio Garcia at even-par. Garcia dropped out and Fowler and Kisner continued into sudden death. Fowler won it with a birdie on the first sudden-death hole. 2011: K.J. Choi defeated David Toms on first playoff hole. 2008: Sergio Garcia defeated Paul Goydos on first playoff hole after Goydos hit into the water on No. 17. 1987: Sandy Lyle defeated Jeff Sluman on the third sudden-death hole. 1981: Raymond Floyd beat Barry Jaeckel and Curtis Strange on the first playoff hole.