Green on the Island Green: Rising country star Riley Green headlines Players concert

Riley Green is no stranger to the First Coast — as an opening act.

He will get the stage all to himself on March 7 — and that stage is the Island Green at the Players Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass.

The Players Championship announced this week that Green, the Academy of Country Music new male artist of the year in 2020, will perform at the Military Appreciation Day Concert to kick off Players week.

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Ceremonies at the 17th green will begin at 4:30 p.m. The concert is included with the price of a Players Championship ticket, with Tuesday practice round tickets free to members of the military. Parking must be purchased separately at theplayers.com.

Green has performed in Jacksonville three times, opening at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena for Luke Bryan on Oct. 28, 2022 the night before the Florida-Georgia game; for Jason Aldean at the arena in January of 2020 and for Brad Paisley at Daily’s Place in 2019.

Green, 34, played football at Jacksonville State (Ala.) and appeared on the CMT reality series “Redneck Island.” His roots in music go back to the club his grandfather ran in Alabama and he mixes old school country with his own style.

Indeed, one line from his hit “I wish Grandpas Never Died,” goes: “I wish country music still got played on country radio.”

Times-Union features editor Tom Szaroleta wrote after the 2020 concert: “Give [Green] a few years and don’t be surprised if he’s headlining arenas himself one day.”

Players sets military policy

All active duty, retired, reserve and National Guard members verified through the military identification system and one dependent are provided access to complimentary Players tickets for practice rounds March 7 and 8 and one competitive round, March 9-12.

Tickets are available while supplies last. Complimentary tickets secured through this verification process will include a $20 digital voucher that can be used at any on-site food vendor for food and non-alcoholic beverages.

Veterans verified through the military identification system and one dependent are provided access to discounted tickets March 7-8 and one competitive round March 9-12.

Those tickets also include a $20 digital voucher for food and beverage purchases.

Military and veterans tickets can be obtained by visiting theplayers.com/tickets and clicking on “Claim Tickets” in the Military Admission section. Military designation must be verified by using GovX.

The Patriots Outpost near the 16th tee will open on March 7 and is open to active duty, retired, reserve, National Guard members, veterans and their dependents.

The Players is also sponsoring its annual Military Job Fair, in partnership with the Jacksonville Military Veterans Coalition, March 4 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Patriots’ Outpost. The Military Job Fair is free and open to military personnel, veterans and military spouses. Approximately 30 companies with existing job opportunities will be on-site.

Tour partners for bet monitoring

The Tour announced two new agreements that will enhance monitoring capabilities as part of an expanded Integrity Program.

A new partnership with U.S. Integrity, paired with an extension of the Tour’s existing relationship with Genius Sports, will provide the organization with best-in-class bet monitoring services through 2024.

The PGA Tour Integrity Program, established Jan. 1, 2018, covers all facets of competition and operations, including players and their support teams, all tournament staff and volunteers, all Tour employees and the PGA Tour Policy Board.

The Tour will continue to work with Genius Sports to facilitate tailored educational programs for players, caddies and officials. Educational workshops reinforce the PGA TOUR’s regulations and highlight the risks associated with betting-related corruption. Additionally, custom-made e-learning modules are available on a worldwide basis to all PGA Tour players in multiple languages.

Morikawa, Scott join TGL

Major champions Collin Morikawa and Adam Scott have joined Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm and Justin Thomas as players committed to play in TGL, a new primetime virtual golf league in partnership with the PGA Tour that will begin play in 2024. The announcement was made by TMRW Sports co-founders Woods, McIlroy and founder and CEO Mike McCarley.

“As we fill out the TGL roster, the additions of champions like Collin Morikawa and Adam Scott continues to fuel our momentum towards the launch of TGL. The caliber of players Morikawa and Scott represent is indicative of the quality of competition we are striving to create within TGL,” said McCarley. “They both embrace what TGL can provide for fans, a short-form, elite competition in primetime where world-class players square off in team match play.”

Following nearly two years of development, Woods, McIlroy, and McCarley announced the formation of TMRW Sports and TGL last year. TGL will showcase team competitions from a purpose-built venue in Palm Beach, fusing advanced tech and live action in primetime on Monday nights.

Woods and McIlroy have now been joined by Morikawa, Rahm, Scott, and Thomas as the first six golfers committed to compete in the league’s inaugural season kicking off in 2024. Six teams of three Tour players will meet head-to-head in 18-hole match play events on virtual courses, with 15 Monday night matches, followed by semifinals and finals.

ROAD TO THE PLAYERS

Dates: March 9-12, Players Stadium Court at TPC Sawgrass.

Tickets: theplayers.com. 

Days until the first round: 42

Tournaments until The Players: Seven.

Players trivia: The last three Players Championships have been decided by one shot. The winning margin in the previous three was three or more shots. Cameron Smith's one-shot victory was the 20th by one shot or in a playoff since the tournament moved to the Players Stadium Course in 1982.

PGA TOUR

Event: Farmers Insurance Open, Wednesday-Saturday, Torrey Pine Golf Club, La Jolla, Calif.

At stake: $8.7 million purse ($1,566,000 and 500 FedEx Cup points to the winner).

Defending champion: Luke List.

TV: Golf Channel (Wednesday-Thursday, 3-7 p.m.; Friday, 3-5 p.m.; Saturday, 2:30-4:30 p.m.); CBS (Friday, 5-8 p.m.; Saturday, 4:30-8 p.m.).

Area players entered: Jonathan Byrd, Harris English, Lanto Griffin, Patton Kizzire, Philip Knowles, David Lingmerth, Trey Mullinax, Doc Redman, Sam Ryder, Davis Thompson, Michael Thompson, Carl Yuan.

Notable: List shot 66 in the final round to come from five shots back, then birdied the first hole of sudden death to beat Will Zalatoris. … Last week’s American Express winner, Jon Rahm, leads the field, along with Justin Thomas, Xander Schauffele, Collin Morikawa and Tony Finau. … Griffin is making his first start on the Tour since the 2022 John Deere Classic. He underwent back surgery last July and played in the Korn Ferry Tour’s event in the Bahamas last week. … Five-time PGA Tour winner J.B. Holmes is making his first start since the 2021 Fortinet Championship. Holmes is competing on a Major Medical Extension with 26 starts available to earn 288.816 FedExCup points.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Riley Green gets his chance as headliner at Players Championship concert