Players Championship 2022: Tommy Fleetwood's 66 Highlights Rain-Shortened Round 1

Tommy Fleetwood and Tom Hoge are on top of the leaderboard after Thursday's action at the Players Championship.

The first round at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, was impacted by "dangerous weather" that caused play to be suspended at 11 a.m. ET. The tournament resumed after a four-hour delay, preventing a large portion of the field from finishing.

Fleetwood and Hoge got their 18 holes in, finishing with 66s to lead the tournament.

The delay will create a busy schedule the rest of the week, but there is plenty of time for big names in the star-studded field to get into contention.

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Leaderboard

T1. Tommy Fleetwood (-6)

T1. Tom Hoge (-6)

T3. Kramer Hickok (-5)

T3. Joaquin Niemann (-5)

T3. Keith Mitchell (-5)

T3. Anirban Lahiri (-5) 

T7. Brian Harman (-4)

T7. Sam Burns (-4)

T7. Abraham Ancer (-4)

Full leaderboard and stats via PGATour.com.

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Tommy Fleetwood and Will Zalatoris were among those who thrived in the early session while the sun was still out.

Fleetwood, Zalatoris and Harold Varner III were each at four under at the rain delay.

When play resumed, Varner jumped out to a solo lead at seven strokes under par thanks to five birdies on the back nine. His lead was short-lived, however, as a triple bogey on the vaunted 17th hole ruined his round:

Varner also bogeyed 18 to finish with a 69.

Fleetwood, who began the round on the back nine, had little trouble after returning to the course, finishing with a 66:

Tom Hoge then joined Fleetwood at six strokes under par, with an eagle on No. 2 especially helping his round.

Keith Mitchell was poised to enter the clubhouse with a share of the lead, but a bogey on 18 put him one stroke back alongside a long list of contenders.

Anirban Lahiri is among those in good shape thanks to one of the best shots of the day:

They are part of a crowded leaderboard, with world No. 1 Jon Rahm especially a name to watch after he finished Round 1 at three strokes under par. 

Big names like Brooks Koepka, Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas and Collin Morikawa all barely even got started on Thursday before darkness ended the round. 

These players will be back in action early on Friday in what could be a long day as they play nearly two full rounds.