THE PLAYERS: First Round Notebook

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Photos by Jim Brady/Florida Sports Wire

COMPLETED First-Round Leaderboard

Pos.

Player

R1

T1

Maverick McNealy

67 (-5)

 

Lee Hodges

67 (-5)

 

Sepp Straka

67 (-5)

 

Sahith Theegala

67 (-5)

 

Austin Smotherman

67 (-5)

 

Maverick McNealy (T1/-5)


30-year-old seeks his second win on TOUR in his 175th career start (2024 RSM Classic)

Cards 67 or better for the fifth time in seven opening rounds in 2026; entered the week ranked No. 2 on TOUR in first-round scoring average in 2026 at 67.33 (Chris Gotterup/66.33)

Second career 18-hole lead/co-lead on TOUR (1-for-1); won the 2024 RSM Classic

Making his seventh start of the 2026 season; has one top-10 finish (10th/Farmers Insurance Open)

Making his sixth appearance at THE PLAYERS Championship (best: T9/2024)

Matches his low 18-hole score in 17 career rounds at THE PLAYERS Championship (previous instance: 2024/R1)

Hit only 5-of-14 fairways (ranks T110 in the field)

 


Lee Hodges (T1/-5)


30-year-old seeks his second win on TOUR in his 129th career start (2023 3M Open)

Third career 18-hole lead/co-lead on TOUR (1-for-2); won the 2023 3M Open

Making his fifth start of the 2026 season; has one top-10 finish (T6/Sony Open in Hawaii)

Making his fourth appearance at THE PLAYERS Championship (best: T35/2024)

Cards his low 18-hole score in 11 career rounds at THE PLAYERS Championship (previous: 69/2024/R1)

Finished T6 at the Sony Open in Hawaii to reach the Top 100 threshold and satisfy his Major Medical Extension, earning him a spot in the field at THE PLAYERS Championship

Led the field in Strokes Gained: Putting (3.964) in round one

Sepp Straka (T1/-5)


32-year-old seeks his fifth win on TOUR in his 194th career start (previous wins: 2022 Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches, 2023 John Deere Classic, 2025 American Express, 2025 Truist Championship)

One of three players who carded a bogey-free opening round (Ludvig Åberg, Viktor Hovland)

Fifth career 18-hole lead/co-lead on TOUR (0-for-4); most recent: 2025 Genesis Scottish Open/finished 7th

Making his sixth start of the 2026 season; has one top-10 finish (T2/AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am)

Making his sixth appearance at THE PLAYERS Championship; has one top-10 finish (T9/2022)

Matches his low 18-hole score in 19 career rounds at THE PLAYERS Championship (previous instance: 2022/R4)

 


Sahith Theegala (T1/-5)


28-year-old seeks his second win on TOUR in his 133rd start (2023 Fortinet Championship)

Third career 18-hole lead/co-lead on TOUR (0-for-2); most recent: 2024 Sentry/finished 2nd

Making his fifth appearance at THE PLAYERS Championship, he has one top-10 finish (T9/2024)

Making his eighth start of the 2026 season; has three top-10 finishes (T8/The American Express, T7/Farmers Insurance Open, T6/Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard)

Matches his low 18-hole score in 15 career rounds at THE PLAYERS Championship (three previous instances; 2024/R2, 2024/R3, 2025/R2)

 


Austin Smotherman (T1/-5)


31-year-old seeks his first win on TOUR in his 84th start; best finish: T2/2026 Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches

Looks to become the third player to make THE PLAYERS Championship his first victory on TOUR (Craig Perks/2002, Tim Clark/2010)

Fourth career 18-hole lead/co-lead on TOUR (0-for-3); most recent: 2026 Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches/finished T2

Making his seventh start of the 2026 season; has two top-10 finishes (T8/The American Express, T2/Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches); withdrew from last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard with a back injury prior to his third round

Making his second appearance at THE PLAYERS Championship (T35/2023)

Cards his low 18-hole score in five career rounds at THE PLAYERS Championship (previous low: 69/2023/R3)

 


Miscellaneous Notes


Making his second start of the 2026 season since returning from back surgery in November, 2021 PLAYERS Champion Justin Thomas (T6) opens with 4-under 68, his first time breaking 70 in the first round of THE PLAYERS (11th appearance)

Two-time PLAYERS Champion (2023, 2024) and World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler (T40/E) entered the week with the longest active cuts made streak on TOUR (69)

Making his 24th consecutive start at THE PLAYERS, the longest active streak, 2004 champion Adam Scott (T40/E) recorded his 23rd birdie all-time on No. 17, the second-most in PLAYERS history (26/Bernhard Langer)

Two-time PLAYERS Championship winner (2019, 2025) and World No. 2 Rory McIlroy (T69/+2) cards his first over-par round on TOUR since the 2025 TOUR Championship (R3/71); withdrew from last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard with a back injury prior to his third round

Ryan Fox (llness) withdrew prior to the start of the first round and was replaced by David Ford (T82/+3)

FedExCup leader Collin Morikawa (back) withdrew during the first round

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