Observations from Day 1 at THE PLAYERS

Day 1 Observations from TPC Sawgrass

It was 6:20 am and completely dark outside on Thursday, March 14th when I received my media credential to cover the 50th anniversary of THE PLAYERS Championship. The energy building outside the media center was palpable as the Eastern sun began to illuminate the kelly green grass at TPC Sawgrass. The buildout is massive and a pure spectacle to witness firsthand.

I walked into the media center breakfast room with my head held high, proud to represent the Rotoballer team, although I knew the skepticism in the room around another guy from gambling Twitter entering the halls would manifest some resistance. I popped into the office of the individual responsible for granting my credentials to introduce myself and issue a genuine thank you. After taking my spot in the 4th row, I plugged in my laptop and began to work on my Round 1 Matchup bets article.

It was time to get boots on the ground and get to walking.

The People Love Jordan

I spent most of the morning bouncing back and forth between the Schauffele-Burns-Fleetwood group and the McIlroy-Hovland-Spieth group. Instantly, you understand the stardom and name recognition of Jordan Spieth. "Is this Spieth's group?". "Spieth is coming up next." Everyone recognizes the pairing because of Jordan Spieth, despite playing in a group with two top-5 players in the world. The fandom is real and casual golf fans love Jordan!

The Bounce Was Back

Rory McIlroy came storming out of the gates with birdies on his first three holes. The fears that he was battling struggles with his wedges and approach game were quickly put to rest as he stuck two wedge shots within 5 ft. of the hole. The Rory bounce-step was back and he was cruising down the fairways a good 20 yards ahead of Spieth and Hovland.

He looked focused and confident with the putter, but he still seems to be fighting the "left-miss". It bit him of his 9th hole of the day (Hole 18) where he found the water hazard to the left and also on his 16th hole (Hole 7). That said, TEN birdies on the day and it's all systems go for Rory week!

A Spirited Debate

Following the group on the course, you couldn't hear the conversation between Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy as they "discussed" where the ball crossed on No. 7 for Rory McIlroy. You got the sense from the hand gestures that it was quite animated, but I was standing on the other side of the fairway and at the time it looked like they both agreed and trying to figure it out with a rules official.

Then came a quick, cold handshake on 18 between all three members of the grouping. Spieth and Hovland bolted through the media scrum trying to ask questions and it was clear they did not want to talk about it. McIlroy then had to answer some tough questions but did so in a fashion that I thought was candid and honest. I got back to the media center and was rather stunned to learn that the PGA Tour actually tweeted out the full 8 minute video and audio from the incident, promoting it rather than burying it. It was interesting to say the very least.

Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth and Viktor Hovland discuss McIlroy's drop on No. 7.

Rory makes double bogey to move from solo leader to T2. pic.twitter.com/dkV6a5Q22W

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 14, 2024

Justin Thomas Is Ready To Work

The very first player that arrived to the practice grounds from the afternoon wave was Justin Thomas. I saw him diligently working on his putting from 10-12 ft accompanied by his caddie Bones and his father Mike Thomas. Both looked on from each side of his putting stroke as he brushed in 10 footers with relative ease.

It's yet to be seen if this translates into better putting on the course, but I found it noteworthy that he was putting in the work a good 2 hours prior to his tee time. Thomas has made 8 consecutive cuts at THE PLAYERS, the most of any active player in the field this week.

The Afternoon Shine

I'll be interested to see how the final scoring shakes out to see if there was a definitive wave advantage. From my perspective, the course seemed to really firm up later in the afternoon, and the greens developed that familiar "shine" which is usually indicative of dryer, faster surfaces. The course was soft early in the morning, and it was essentially point and shoot for many groups, particularly those starting on the easier back nine.

I know that TPC Sawgrass has sub-air green complexes which gives them the ability to manipulate the surfaces when they feel it is needed. For Friday's action, I think the players who are notoriously aggressive players, who go off with a morning tee time could have the opportunity to blitz the course before the speed ratchets up in the afternoon. It is something I will definitely keep my eye on tomorrow.

The Rough

The rough is up, and the rough is tough. I witnessed it on the first hole of the day when Sam Burns hit it right next to me in the right rough on #10. He took one look at the bow and said "Wow" as he shook his head. He was barely able to advance it 100 yards and came up a good 30 yards shy of the green while taking a monumental divot. It's the highest I have ever seen the rough at TPC Sawgrass, and the overseed combined with a rainy 2024 in Florida has it looking ultra-LUSH!

It's a legitimate hazard this year, leading me to bump up the importance of Driving Accuracy when I look at in-play action. Players seemed to hitting significantly more Drivers than I can remember at TPC Sawgrass and the fairways are playing very soft. If you can keep it in the short grass, you will be able to have a wedge or short iron in your hands on numerous holes. I'm going to keep an eye out for the mowers, but if they let it grow over the weekend, we are going to see a bunch of guys struggling to control shots from the rough.

Here is a look at the lush rolling hills alongside the 18th green. TV just does not do it justice and there is no spot where you get a flat lie. Pete Dye was certainly in his bag when he designed this masterpiece. Good luck getting up and down from here.

See you tomorrow!

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