Danny Walker top-10 in TPC Sawgrass debut

• Danny Walker, a Jacksonville resident, finished tied for sixth place in the Players Championship.
• Walker, who entered the tournament with limited PGA Tour experience, earned $843,750 for his performance.
• Walker’s performance moved him up 79 spots in the FedEx Cup standings and will significantly improve his world ranking.

(This story has been updated to add new information.)

PONTE VEDRA BEACH | Oh, Danny Walker, the prize, the prize is calling.

The Players Championship’s finish had to wait until St. Patrick’s Day, but the 29-year-old’s weekend at The Players earned him by far the biggest pot of gold — $843,750 — of his golfing career.

For the Jacksonville resident, four days in Ponte Vedra Beach have more than quintupled his all-time PGA Tour earnings on the golf course.

“Not even a year and a half ago, I had little to no money in my bank account,” he said following the round. “It’s a big change.”

The Bradenton native, a University of Virginia standout living on the First Coast, kept his cool against the giants of golf with a 2-under 70 in Sunday’s final round.

Six career PGA Tour events leading up to Thursday. Two career cuts made before the previous week. Now, he’s finished the Tour’s flagship event in a tie for sixth at 9 under, three shots behind playoff participants Rory McIlroy and J.J. Spaun at The Players Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass, all while lining up in groups that included the likes of Wyndham Clark, Shane Lowry and Jordan Spieth.

“It was a lot of fun,” Walker said. “That’s the position you want to be in, just having a chance to win a big event like this. Had a lot of fun. Overall I think played well and handled it well. No regrets out there for sure.”

Until Thursday morning, when Jason Day withdrew due to illness and Walker took his place in the 144-man field, he had $179,668 in career earnings on the Tour.

That number just jumped upward, way upward, into seven figures for Walker, who vaulted 79 spots from 125th to 46th in the FedEx Cup standings. Entering 284th in the Official World Golf Ranking, he’s certain to increase substantially in that category as well.

After making the cut on the number and surging onto the leaderboard with a third-round 66, Walker showed few signs of final-round nerves on the biggest stage of his career.

Consistent from the start of the week to the finish, Walker made only two bogeys Sunday, on the par-4 No. 4 and the par-3 No. 13, with birdies on Nos. 2, 5, 10 and 11. He briefly climbed as high as a tie for third on the leaderboard.

“I don’t know how else to say it,” he said, “but yeah, surreal is a good word.”