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When it comes to March Madness, Jacksonville fans haven't seen anything yet.
Circle March 2026 as a thoroughly maddened month on the calendar for Northeast Florida, jam-packed nearly from start to finish with 31 days of sports action.
Golf? It's back, as usual, with the PGA Tour's showcase event at The Players Championship.
Running? The Gate River Run is ready to roll for year 49.
Basketball? Try a two-week stretch of college men, college women, high school boys and high school girls in action at both VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena and the University of North Florida's UNF Arena.
That's just part of a one-month sports smorgasbord that will also include regular-season games for the Jacksonville Icemen in hockey and Sporting Club Jacksonville in both men's and women's soccer, plus numerous college contests (JU, UNF, Edward Waters, Flagler College, Trinity College of Jacksonville and FSCJ). Off the field, the Jacksonville Jaguars will be in the thick of NFL free agency. And the Jacksonville Sharks begin their indoor season in March, although the home opener must wait for April.
Here's a guide, by no means exhaustive, to the list of prominent March sports events taking place across the First Coast.
March 3-9: ASUN women's basketball tournament. The 12-team tournament comes to Jacksonville with first-round games on March 3, quarterfinals on March 5, semifinals on March 7 and the title game on March 9 at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena.
March 4-8: ASUN men's basketball tournament. Again, 12 teams, 11 games and a NCAA Tournament berth on the line at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. The first round is March 4, then quarters on March 6, semifinals on March 7 and the final on March 8.
March 5-7: Epson Tour, Atlantic Beach Classic. The women's golf series arrives at Atlantic Beach Country Club for three days of competition with a $250,000 purse at stake.
March 5-7: FHSAA boys and girls basketball tournaments, Classes 1A and 2A. In all, 16 teams from around the state will contest these games at UNF Arena as the state hoops finals come to Jacksonville for the first time since 1976. Several area teams are among the 1A and 2A contenders.
March 7: Gate River Run. The annual 15-kilometer run through downtown Jacksonville, San Marco and St. Nicholas celebrates its 49th edition this year. The 2025 race recorded 13,852 finishers, its highest total since 2017.
March 7: Sporting Jax men's soccer vs. Hartford Athletic. That game, the club's USL Championship official debut, will be the first for any Jacksonville soccer franchise in a fully professional men's league since the Jacksonville Armada played in the North American Soccer League in 2017.
March 9-14: FHSAA boys and girls basketball tournaments, Classes 3A-7A. As with the previous week, there's a heavy-duty dose of hoops, with five state boys champions and five state girls champions to be crowned in a 30-game, one-week span at UNF Arena.
March 10-15: The Players Championship. The eyes of the golf world turn to The Players Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass for the PGA Tour's flagship event. After the practice rounds, military appreciation concert and other festivities on March 10-11, the four rounds of competition start March 12.
March 21: Bob Hayes Invitational Track Meet for high schools. Traditionally the centerpiece of Jacksonville's track regular season, long billed as the nation's largest single-day high school track and field meet, the annual competition honors Jacksonville two-sport Olympic and Pro Football Hall of Fame legend Bob Hayes and draws huge numbers of middle school and high school athletes to UNF.
March 24: Florida State vs. Florida baseball. The Seminoles and Gators tangle in the annual college baseball showdown at VyStar Ballpark. Last year's Jacksonville meeting ended in a walk-off grand slam by FSU's Alex Lodise to complete a cycle in his hometown.
March 27: Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp Opening Day. They are the champions now, and the Miami Marlins' Triple-A affiliates will open their International League campaign against the Rochester Red Wings at VyStar Ballpark.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: March in Jacksonville sports has Players Championship, River Run
Continue reading...
Circle March 2026 as a thoroughly maddened month on the calendar for Northeast Florida, jam-packed nearly from start to finish with 31 days of sports action.
Golf? It's back, as usual, with the PGA Tour's showcase event at The Players Championship.
Running? The Gate River Run is ready to roll for year 49.
Basketball? Try a two-week stretch of college men, college women, high school boys and high school girls in action at both VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena and the University of North Florida's UNF Arena.
That's just part of a one-month sports smorgasbord that will also include regular-season games for the Jacksonville Icemen in hockey and Sporting Club Jacksonville in both men's and women's soccer, plus numerous college contests (JU, UNF, Edward Waters, Flagler College, Trinity College of Jacksonville and FSCJ). Off the field, the Jacksonville Jaguars will be in the thick of NFL free agency. And the Jacksonville Sharks begin their indoor season in March, although the home opener must wait for April.
You must be registered for see images
Here's a guide, by no means exhaustive, to the list of prominent March sports events taking place across the First Coast.
March 3-9: ASUN women's basketball tournament. The 12-team tournament comes to Jacksonville with first-round games on March 3, quarterfinals on March 5, semifinals on March 7 and the title game on March 9 at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena.
March 4-8: ASUN men's basketball tournament. Again, 12 teams, 11 games and a NCAA Tournament berth on the line at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. The first round is March 4, then quarters on March 6, semifinals on March 7 and the final on March 8.
March 5-7: Epson Tour, Atlantic Beach Classic. The women's golf series arrives at Atlantic Beach Country Club for three days of competition with a $250,000 purse at stake.
March 5-7: FHSAA boys and girls basketball tournaments, Classes 1A and 2A. In all, 16 teams from around the state will contest these games at UNF Arena as the state hoops finals come to Jacksonville for the first time since 1976. Several area teams are among the 1A and 2A contenders.
You must be registered for see images
March 7: Gate River Run. The annual 15-kilometer run through downtown Jacksonville, San Marco and St. Nicholas celebrates its 49th edition this year. The 2025 race recorded 13,852 finishers, its highest total since 2017.
March 7: Sporting Jax men's soccer vs. Hartford Athletic. That game, the club's USL Championship official debut, will be the first for any Jacksonville soccer franchise in a fully professional men's league since the Jacksonville Armada played in the North American Soccer League in 2017.
March 9-14: FHSAA boys and girls basketball tournaments, Classes 3A-7A. As with the previous week, there's a heavy-duty dose of hoops, with five state boys champions and five state girls champions to be crowned in a 30-game, one-week span at UNF Arena.
You must be registered for see images
March 10-15: The Players Championship. The eyes of the golf world turn to The Players Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass for the PGA Tour's flagship event. After the practice rounds, military appreciation concert and other festivities on March 10-11, the four rounds of competition start March 12.
March 21: Bob Hayes Invitational Track Meet for high schools. Traditionally the centerpiece of Jacksonville's track regular season, long billed as the nation's largest single-day high school track and field meet, the annual competition honors Jacksonville two-sport Olympic and Pro Football Hall of Fame legend Bob Hayes and draws huge numbers of middle school and high school athletes to UNF.
You must be registered for see images
March 24: Florida State vs. Florida baseball. The Seminoles and Gators tangle in the annual college baseball showdown at VyStar Ballpark. Last year's Jacksonville meeting ended in a walk-off grand slam by FSU's Alex Lodise to complete a cycle in his hometown.
March 27: Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp Opening Day. They are the champions now, and the Miami Marlins' Triple-A affiliates will open their International League campaign against the Rochester Red Wings at VyStar Ballpark.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: March in Jacksonville sports has Players Championship, River Run
Continue reading...
