Horschel and Ernst both missed the cut in their PLAYERS debut. (Getty Imgaes)

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

Editor’s note: Billy Horschel and Derek Ernst won each of the last two weeks on the PGA TOUR and are playing in their first PLAYERS Championship this week. They will file a daily diary for PGATOUR.COM, documenting their week on and off the course beginning Tuesday.

Previous entries: Thursday | Wednesday | Tuesday

Billy Horschel: It sucks that I missed the cut. I can go back and look at my holes and the mistakes I made were just simple mistakes. I didn't make enough birdies to offset them like I have in the past.

I felt more prepared for golf today than I had the whole week. But I felt I needed another four or five hours of practice to feel like I put the work in I needed to. When you win, everything changes a little bit. There’s more media requests, more obligations. I've got to learn how to deal with that better so I can prepare better because I didn't feel prepared teeing it up on Thursday and on Friday I shot 71 and missed the cut by three.

On 18, I hit a bad tee shot and it went in the water. It's disappointing. I never hit in the water there when I play the course. There's just no bailout room on that hole.

I knew what the cut was when I made the turn. I knew what I needed to. I knew I needed to make birdies and what the number was going to be. I was trying to get to the number and move on to get myself in a better position for the weekend.  Like I said, unfortunately, I just hit a bad, bad tee shot on 18.

The next two days being home and this tournament is going on and me not being in it is the worst thing about this week. That's what's going to piss me off a little bit that I'm not playing the weekend when I should be playing the weekend. It's just added motivation. I've got to understand the time restraints change a little bit. I just can't go to a tournament and do my own thing anymore. There are things I'm going to have to be obligated to do, which I'm more than willing to take care of. I just have to learn how to work that around what I need to do to feel ready for a tournament.

But Ernie Els said to me you would have taken that win and missed the cut this week, wouldn't you?  And I said, yeah, that's a good way to put it. The cut streak means nothing. You don't get a gold star at the end of the day or a gold medal or a million dollars for having the longest cut streak. It doesn't mean diddly‑squat.  So we'll just be ready to go in two weeks at Memorial.

Derek Ernst: It was a long week. After winning last week, I didn’t even play here on Monday and on Tuesday I played nine holes and was exhausted. Wednesday was another nine holes after about an hour-and-a-half of media, so I played basically one round and didn’t get used to the course. It was the least amount of preparation I’ve ever had going into a tournament. Considering how big this tournament is, it’s not the greatest feeling to have.

The thing about this course is you have to know where to leave the ball and not knowing the course well I might go for something then realize that was dumb and there’s no chance to get up and down. That happened a lot this week and I shot 81 Friday and missed the cut because of it.

This was kind of like a practice round for next year; that’s what I’m going to take from it. I’m just disappointed in how I played, but I also understand it was tough coming off last week because I put so much energy into that week.

The best part of this week was playing with Louis Oosthuizen and Angel Cabrera. Louis is the nicest guy and we got along really well. The worst part is not playing great and not being healthy. Those are the two biggest disappointments. But I’m going to go get healthy and make sure I’m ready for the U.S. Open qualifier I have Monday back at my home course in Las Vegas, TPC Summerlin.

It still hasn’t sunk in that I won at Quail Hollow, though. Maybe it will when I get back to Vegas tomorrow morning and I’m laying on my couch. The trophy might be there, too. They said they were going to send it to me so maybe then I’ll finally realize it and it will sink in.

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- A day after tying the course record, Robert Castro went the other direction.

Castro carded a 6-over 78 on Friday at TPC Sawgrass -- a 15-shot swing from his opening round as he went from a three-shot lead to trailing by eight heading into the weekend.

"If it was easy, everybody would do it," Castro said. "I wouldn't have been embarrassed or felt bad or anything if I would have shot two 76s this week. It's a hard golf course.

"I'm 3‑under par, and beating 110 of the best players in the world through 36 holes. So I just kept telling myself, it's not easy. It's not easy. It's not easy."

The day started easy enough for Castro, who birdied the par-5 second after reaching the green in two and two-putting from 25 feet.

Things started to go south beginning on the fourth, however, where he missed the green on his approach, then nearly chipped off the green and into the water.

Castro went on to bogey the hole and thee of his next four.

On the par-5 11th, Castro's troubles continued when he found the water on his second shot on the 550-yard hole. He made bogey.

Things went from bad to worse on No. 12, where Castro was forced to take a drop after an errant tee shot to the right. He laid up short of the green on his next shot, then missed an 8-foot bogey putt and made double.

On the upside, Castro parred each of his last six holes and will play the weekend in his first PLAYERS Championship.

"Kind of a loose short game on the front, and then I kind of settled down," he said. "It was nice to finish with six really solid holes.

"Obviously THE PLAYERS Championship is huge all over the world, so it's exciting. It's a good place to be. I've played plenty of Friday rounds, three or four outside the cut, and that's no fun, you know. Today was fun."

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Charles Howell III thinks par will be a good score over the weekend at TPC Sawgrass, so needless to say he was happy to get out early Friday.

Howell shot a 67 to get to 6 under halfway through THE PLAYERS Championship, which means he'll be around for the weekend for the first time since 2007 after making the cut here for just the fifth time in his career.

"We had the best weather we could ever play this course in," said Howell, whose 67 was his best score in the tournament by two strokes and just his second in the 60s. "The greens were better this morning because we had no traffic on them. But right there the last few holes, they were starting to get baked out a bit."

That includes the difficult 18th, where Howell ran his chip 20 feet past the hole before sinking the putt to save par and cap a bogey-free round.

"I putted well today," said Howell, who took five fewer putts than in the opening round with 28. "The greens were perfect this morning. It was like putting on carpet out there."

Howell has played well this season with five top 10s, including a second and third, but he's still looking for his first win since 2007.

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Robert Castro opened with a course record-tying 63 to take a three-shot lead on Thursday. Whether he still has that lead by the time he tees off Friday afternoon, who knows. Conditions appear to be good for scoring again and already a few players -- Tiger Woods among them -- have started to make a move. Here's a look at who and what to watch for this afternoon.

Roberto Castro (12:46 p.m. ET): A big reason Castro was able to go so low in the opening round was because he hit close -- six of his approach shots were inside 5 feet. That will be a tall order come the afternoon when the wind is expected to increase along with the temperature, making for a firm, fast golf course.

Hunter Mahan, Rickie Fowler (1:18 p.m. ET): After failing to break 70 in 16 of his last 17 rounds, which included a pair of missed cuts and two other finishes near the bottom of the leaderboard, Mahan was "stress free" with a 67 Thursday. Given his accuracy, he should fare well here (two years ago, he finished sixth). Fowler, on the other hand, struggled to a 73 and will have some ground to make up to make the cut.

Keegan Bradley, Graeme McDowell (1:28 p.m. ET): Both were 2 under on Thursday, and McDowell comes into this week having recently won at another Pete Dye course (Harbour Town).

Zach Johnson (1:49 p.m. ET): Perhaps lost in all the headlines Thursday was Johnson, who was superb with seven birdies and just one bogey. Johnson has played progressively better here the last three years, finishing 32nd, 22nd, 12th and second.

Rory McIlroy, Steve Stricker, Adam Scott (1:49 p.m. ET): McIlroy finally broke par here with a sublime 66 in the opening round and he finally appears to be comfortable around this place. His last two wins have also come on Pete Dye courses. Stricker was nearly as good with a 67 and between the three the group made just two bogeys.

Billy Horschel and Derek Ernst are playing in their first PLAYERS Championship this week. (Getty Images)

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

Editor’s note: Billy Horschel and Derek Ernst won each of the last two weeks on the PGA TOUR and are playing in their first PLAYERS Championship this week. They will file a daily diary for PGATOUR.COM, documenting their week on and off the course beginning Tuesday.

Previous entries: Wednesday | Tuesday

Billy Horschel: TPC Sawgrass exaggerates your mistakes, especially in tournament conditions, if you don't miss in the right spots and I didn't miss in the right spots and shot 76. I got some bad breaks out there, too. Some bunkers have a lot of sand in them and some don't. I just don't get it. On No. 10, for example, I'm not sure if I just shanked it or there was just no sand in the bunker. I had a simple bunker shot on No. 14 and made the smallest swing and the club bounced off like it was on concrete.

I don't know what golf course Robert Castro was playing. I don't care if it's not in a tournament or is in a tournament, a 63 is just spectacular. Me, I just need to work on a couple things and not make stupid mistakes. I was probably the most frustrated after I bogeyed Nos. 7 and 8 (I started on the back nine) because I just made bad mistakes there and didn't trust what I wanted to do.

There have been times when I put extra pressure on myself playing in front of family and friends like I am this week, but I didn't think about that today. I was just playing bad and was upset. It was just a frustrating day. It was also the worst I could have done today.

I don't feel like I've worked hard enough this week, plus the rain cut short my practice last week. I don't care how tired I am, I need to feel like I'm ready and prepared for Friday. Who knows, I'll probably shoot 4 or 5 under on Friday.

Derek Ernst: It was an up-and-down round of 74. I bogeyed the second hole, a par 5, and that took the wind out of my sails a little bit. It's a short par 5 and I had an iron in my hand and I pulled it and ended up on a downslope on the short side and ended up three-putting.Then on No. 6 I hit driver trying to be aggressive and it went into a bunker and kicked left and ended up against a tree, so I had to take an unplayable and I ended up making double bogey.

I also didn't wake up feel very good -- I had a headache and a stomach ache and was fighting them all day long.I took some Advil throughout the day but couldn't get it to go away. Afterward, I ended up going to Roy's for dinner and ate a lot of food, so that helped.

I need to play well on Friday -- I think the cut will be around 1 under. It's going to be difficult, though. The wind is supposed to pick up in the afternoon and it's going to be warm, so the course is going to be firm and fast.

If there was one thing I was happy about it was my finish. I hit my approach shots to under 12 feet on each of the last three holes and birdied one of them (No. 16), so I ended strong. Friday I'm just going to have to stay patient and leave it under the hole a lot and manage myself around the course a little bit better and then hopefully can make it to the weekend.

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Tiger Woods has just one career victory in THE PLAYERS Championship.

He nearly had his first bogey-free round, too.

Woods was near flawless Thursday at TPC Sawgrass, where he made six birdies on his way to a 67, which came within a stroke of matching his career low here.

"I felt like I hit the ball good enough, but more importantly, I missed the ball in all the correct spots," said Woods, who also broke 70 in the first round of THE PLAYERS for the first time in his career. "I left myself some easy up‑and‑downs, and I was able to convert those up‑and‑downs."

Through his first 12 holes, Woods had nine one-putts.

He was also abloe to make birdies, at one point pouring in four straight in the middle of his round, and finished the day 18-for-19 on putts inside 10 feet.

Overall, Woods hit 10 of 14 fairways and 12 greens in regulation and finished with 24 putts.

The only hiccup for Woods came on the 18th.

Woods hit 8-iron from 200 yards on the 469-yard finishing hole, but his ball trundled off the back of the green, leaving him a difficult up-and-down.

Facing a delicate chip shot up the slope to the short side of the hole, Woods left his shot in the fringe before taking two more to get down.

"I was surprised how far the ball was going," Woods said. "The ball was just traveling out there."

Still, Woods is in good position. He is in a tie for fourth four shots off the lead of Roberto Castro, who had a course record-tying 63.

Though it's been a dozen years since Woods has won here, and he hasn't finished in the top 10 during that period, he arrived this week with three wins this season. He has also finished outside the top just once in his five stroke-play starts on the PGA TOUR.

Friday, Woods hopes he can take advantage of an early tee time the way Castro did in the opening round.

"This afternoon, the short ones were not easy," he said. "There were a lot of spike marks, lot of bumps. The greens will certainly be smoother."

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- It was golf’s version of H-O-R-S-E, and Rory McIlroy wouldn’t give up the tee box to Steve Stricker.

“Steve and I halved every hole for the first 11 holes,” McIlroy said. “We both birdied the exact same holes.”

They shot nearly identical scores, too -- McIlroy a 6-under 66 and Stricker a 67 in the opening round of THE PLAYERS Championship.

The third member of the group, 2004 PLAYERS champion, Adam Scott wasn’t too bad, either. He shot 69.

“I think when you get all three guys playing well in a group, you sort of feed off one another,” McIlroy said. “It was a good group to be a part of.”

It was a good round for McIlroy, too, beyond just the score.

In three previous trips here, McIlroy had never made the cut or broken par. Thursday, he made six birdies and no bogeys, turning in 31 after starting on the back nine.

If there was something that McIlroy, who just turned 24, learned in his previous appearances, it’s that he doesn’t need to hit driver often at TPC Sawgrass.

In the past, he would hit the big club on Nos. 2, 5, 7 and 9. And that was on just the front nine. “Maybe six or seven drivers last year,” McIlroy added.

Thursday, he didn’t any drivers on the front nine, and he hit just three overall (on Nos. 11, 14 and 16).

“There is no point,” he said. “The par‑5s on the front nine, for example, there is no point hitting driver off either one of those for me because I'm still going to reach the green with a 3‑wood off the tee if I want to.

“I'm playing nine as a three-shotter this week; I don't think I'll go for the green once. And the second hole I was still hitting iron in after hitting 3‑wood off the tee.”

The point McIlroy is making is that it is more important to keep his ball in the fairway.

“Once you do that,” he said. “The way I feel like I'm hitting my irons, I can take advantage of that.”

Everyone in the group did, too, with 16 birdies and just two bogeys between the three.

“I was a little surprised when I teed off that someone was 5 under already,” said Scott, playing for the first time since winning the Masters. “I thought it might play a little tougher than that. But it was ideal.  There wasn't even a breath of wind hardly the front nine. The greens seemed pretty receptive, too, so if you were in the fairway you could attack.”

For McIlroy, a consistent swing has allowed him to do just that in recent weeks after struggling in the beginning of the season. In his last three starts, McIlroy has finished 10th, 25th and second.

“I'm definitely a lot more relaxed coming in here this year,” said McIlroy, who last two wins happen to come on Pete Dye-designed courses. “Whatever I do this week what I felt coming in is I'll do better than I ever have before. I feel like I've got the game to contend. I just wanted to go out and play well, and that's what I've done so far.”

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- No one has ever successfully defended at THE PLAYERS Championship, where Matt Kuchar will begin his quest to become the first to do so this afternoon.

With pristine conditions -- sunny skies, hardly a breath of wind -- scoring has been good so far in the opening round at TPC Sawgrass. Will it continue? Here is a look at who and what to watch for this afternoon.

Lee Westwood (1:18 p.m. ET): The Englishman has knocked on the door a few times here -- most recently in 2010 when he was in contention going into Sunday before shooting 74 to finish fourth. He also finished fifth and sixth in 1998 and 1999 and given his ball-striking abilities should be a factor again.

Phil Mickelson (1:28 p.m. ET): As difficult as this tournament -- or Mickelson -- is to predict, Lefty has been largely consistent if nothing else since his win here in 2007. He's finished in the top 25 every other year the last five and for his career has eight top 25s in the event.

Webb Simpson (1:28 p.m. ET): The reigning U.S. Open champion admitted to a lack of confidence earlier this season. Then he finished second at Hilton Head, where he lost in a playoff. He's missed three of four cuts here, however.

Sergio Garcia (1:39 p.m. ET): The 2008 champion (he also finished second the year before) has just one finish in the top 20 since, but he has played well this year with three top 10s. His ball-striking should work well here, but with Garcia it all comes down to how well he putts.

Luke Donald (1:39 p.m. ET): The former world No. 1 finished sixth last year and tied for fourth the year before with all of last last eight rounds and 11 of his last 12 on the Stadium Course at par or better.

Tiger Woods (1:49 p.m. ET): For all his accomplishments, Woods has won THE PLAYERS just once, in 2001. Though he has three wins this season, he has just one top 10 here since that lone victory a dozen years ago.

Matt Kuchar (1:49 p.m. ET):The defending champion has finished in the top 15 in three of the last four years and in 2004 he tied for 16th. This season, Kuchar has four top 10s, including a win.

Brandt Snedeker (1:49 p.m. ET): He was admittedly exhausted after being in contention at the Masters and subsequently missed the cut in Hilton Head. He was also one of the hottest players in the game before getting injured in February. Snedeker has struggled here, missing the cut each of the last four years.

Billy Horschel and Derek Ernst are playing in their first PLAYERS Championship this week. (Getty Images)

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

Editor’s note: Billy Horschel and Derek Ernst won each of the last two weeks on the PGA TOUR and are playing in their first PLAYERS Championship this week. They will file a daily diary for PGATOUR.COM, documenting their week on and off the course beginning Tuesday.

Previous entry: Tuesday

Derek Ernst: I got up around 8 a.m., ate breakfast at the hotel then came here and practiced for 90 minutes before the press conference they have for all the rookies. I feel comfortable for some reason, but all it is is talking, not brain surgery. It’s kind of fun to have people want to listen to what I have to say. Maybe I’m relaxed because it’s just another golf tournament and it’s just the name on it that’s different. It’s still just golf with a stick, a ball and a hole.

I finally texted Wayne Gretzky back today, too, and said, ‘Thanks Mr. Gretzky for everything. I appreciate it coming from a champion like you. It means a lot.’ It’s pretty cool and still blows my mind that he texted me. They’re already talking about trying to hook us up to play in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am next year.

Today, I played the back nine at TPC Sawgrass. My caddie had to try the shot at No. 17 they have them do on Wednesday every year.He hit it solid -- left and in the water. But I like the finishing holes here. They make for an anything-can-happen moment and it makes it entertaining for everyone else. I’ve never hit it in the water on 17 in the few rounds I’ve played here and knock on wood hope I won’t this week.

Tonight, I’m going to a bible study with Zach Johnson, Kevin Streelman and a few other guys. We’re having dinner at Fred Funk’s house and afterward there’s a private concert with Tenth Avenue North, which is my favorite Christian band. Tomorrow, I’m playing with Angel Cabrera and Louis Oosthuzien at 8:18 a.m.. I’ve never played with either of them but to play with Angel who was just in a playoff at the Masters is kind of cool. Since we tee off at 8:18 a.m., I’ll wake up around 6 a.m. and get breakfast here and warm up for about 55 minutes and then head to the first tee. I know I’m going to have fun whether I shoot 80 in the first round or 60.

Billy Horschel: I was up at 6 a.m. and got here an hour later, then had to do an appearance on Morning Drive for Golf Channel at 7:30 a.m., then I hit a few balls, then had a press conference since it’s my first time back after my win two weeks ago.

I’m happy I took last week off because I feel more rested. Tuesday and Wednesday are supposed to be light days, but I knew I had to do a lot of stuff with the media and I didn’t get enough practice in. I’d like to have another day to practice to be honest. I just don’t feel like I got enough in, and I’m a perfectionist.

The toughest part of this week has been saying no. It’s hard for me to say no to anybody -- whether it’s the media, or a fan for an autograph. I want to accommodate everybody but sometimes I push the boundaries and it ends up cutting into my practice time. I’m still learning how to handle that and learn how to say no.

I’m always a little nervous but this week I feel like once I get out there it’ll be just another tournament. I’m playing with Dustin Johnson and Ernie Els. I know Dustin from his days at Coastal Carolina and we’ve played together before. I’ve never played with Ernie, but we had lunch together in New Orleans, and it should be a good group. We tee off at 8:29 a.m., but it’s tough for me to go to bed early because I’m always staying up late. I’ll just go back to the house and hang out with my wife and parents, who are staying with me this week -- my house is regimented in terms of who can stay and who can’t.

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Billy Horschel estimates that he has played about 80 rounds on the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass since moving here four years ago. Not that he has any home-field advantage this week.

“The problem is that the course is completely different than when we play it,” said Horschel, who is making his first PLAYERS Championship appearance this week. “The greens aren’t tournament speeds. The rough isn’t tournament rough. It’s all a little bit different.”

A lot different, actually.

Jim Furyk and Vijay Singh have been longtime residents of the area but neither has ever won at TPC Sawgrass, and they’ve combined for just seven top 10s between them.

Fred Funk, who used to live next to the first tee on the Valley Course here, and Mark McCumber are the only residents to have won THE PLAYERS (though Jacksonville native David Duval also did).

But looking closer, there are things Horschel will rely upon this week.

“I think the advantage I get out of it is I know where you can miss on the golf course,” Horschel said. “The lines don't look as intimidating because I know there is more room.

“It's not much of an advantage. I guess it just makes it a little bit more comforting seeing that I've played it.”

No first-time participant has ever won here, either.

Horschel, however, is on a hot streak. He’s finished in the top 10 in each of last four starts, which included his first win as well as second- and third-place finishes.