PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Bud Cauley was 5 years old when he attended his first Players Championship and as a professional he’s played the PGA Tour’s flagship event four times, not to mention countless recreational rounds as a north Florida resident. None of those outings at TPC Sawgrass could compare to Saturday’s.

Cauley tied for the round of the day with a 6-under 66 that was nearly eight strokes better than the field average (73.83) on a blustery day with wind gusts to 30 mph.

“It’s probably definitely the best round I’ve played around here. I grew up here, lived here for a little while after college,” said Cauley, who was then asked if he’d ever played the Stadium Course in such demanding conditions. “If it was blowing this hard, I probably would have just went home. Probably not.”

Although Cauley moved to South Florida in 2015, he was born in Daytona Beach, which is about an hour south of TPC Sawgrass. He moved to Ponte Vedra Beach when he turned pro.

Coming back to play his hometown event is always special but even more so this year given Cauley’s limited Tour status; he is playing this season on a major medical extension. He last played the event in 2019 (not including 2020 when The Players was canceled after one round because of the COVID-19 pandemic). Cauley didn’t even know he was in this year’s field until Monday afternoon when he was added following Lee Hodges’ withdrawal.

“I was out practicing at Bear’s Club, actually, and the phone rang and told me I was in. I was kind of hopeful that being one out I might get a chance, but you never know,” said Cauley, who turns 35 Sunday.

“It was nice that it was on Monday, also, where I didn’t have to sweat it until Wednesday afternoon or something. I was able to come out here Tuesday and Wednesday and have a normal couple days.”