Straka Shares Lead as Weather Chaos Hits Players Championship
Sepp Straka grabbed a share of the lead at The Players Championship Thursday, navigating TPC Sawgrass with remarkable short-game wizardry for a 5-under 67. The Austrian saved par seven times and chipped in for eagle, finding himself tied atop the leaderboard with Maverick McNealy, Lee Hodges, and Sahith Theegala as darkness suspended play.
Austin Smotherman stands at 5 under with a 15-foot birdie putt waiting on his final hole. He opted to mark his ball and return Friday morning as darkness fell.
“Do I wish I hit the chip in the morning as well? Went back and forth,” Smotherman said. “The fact I was even questioning it, I probably should have maybe backed off.”
The opening round featured everything you’d expect from TPC Sawgrass – 38 balls found the water on the closing three-hole stretch alone. Add in two eagles from the fairway and a weather pattern that cycled through downpours and sunshine within minutes, and you’ve got classic Players Championship drama.
What’s surprising is how well the 67s held up. It’s the highest leading score after round one since 2017.
“No one went really low this afternoon, which I expected them to, just because the conditions were pretty benign,” Rory McIlroy noted after assessing his disappointing 74.
Straka’s bogey-free round required some serious scrambling, particularly on the back nine. He saved par with a 12-foot putt on 10, found water on the par-5 11th yet still escaped with par thanks to another 12-footer, and chipped in from 50 feet for eagle on 16.
“I felt like all day I was playing from the rough, which is not ideal out here,” Straka said. “Fortunately my iron play and wedge play was pretty nice today, and I was able to make a lot of putts to save some pars.”
Theegala’s round featured its own highlight-reel moment when his wedge from just under 100 yards crashed into the pin for eagle on No. 12.
“For it to crash into the pin and go in is pretty cool. It’s a nice bonus,” Theegala said.
Back Issues Take Center Stage
McIlroy played despite back spasms that forced him to withdraw from Bay Hill last weekend. While he reported no physical pain, his putter gave him fits – he failed to make anything beyond 6 feet all day.
Collin Morikawa wasn’t as fortunate. The two-time major champion, who’s been playing stellar golf this season, withdrew after just one hole when his back seized up during a practice swing. Ryan Fox never even made it to the first tee, requiring surgery to remove kidney stones.
Meanwhile, Justin Thomas continued his comeback from November back surgery with an impressive 68 – a dramatic turnaround after shooting 79-79 at Bay Hill last week.
“Literally every single thing you could imagine I did quite a bit better,” Thomas said.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler struggled off the tee and posted a 72, then spent over an hour on the range in a downpour working on his swing.
Cameron Young, Russell Henley and Taylor Moore also posted 68s, while Xander Schauffele and Tony Finau sit one back after shooting 69. Finau’s round was particularly volatile – he strung together four straight birdies followed immediately by four consecutive bogeys.
Henley nearly missed his restart during the morning’s 21-minute weather delay. After dashing to the clubhouse from the second green, Ben Griffin saved him by alerting him that play was resuming.
That brief delay was just enough to prevent four players from completing their opening rounds before darkness fell. They’ll return Friday morning to finish up before second-round play begins.
