Players Championship 2022: Fleetwood, Hoge Lead as Inclement Weather Suspends Round 2

Inclement weather continued to halt play at The Players Championship in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, on Saturday, to the point where 27 golfers have yet to begin their second rounds.

Thunderstorms, heavy winds and rain have pounded the Players Stadium Course. Only 48 golfers in the 142-person field have finished their second rounds. Sixty-seven others are at least on the course aiming to finish 36 holes.

Thankfully, the weather looks good for Sunday and Monday before thunderstorms roll in Tuesday, so a frenzied race to the finish appears likely at this juncture.

For now, here's a look at the leaderboard heading into Sunday and some highlights and notes from Saturday's play.

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Leaderboard (Top 10 and Ties)

T1. Tommy Fleetwood: -6 (E through 3 in Round 2)

T1. Tom Hoge: -6 (yet to start Round 2)

T3. Joaquin Niemann: -5 (teed off on No. 1 in Round 2)

T3. Keith Mitchell: -5 (yet to start Round 2)

T3. Anirban Lahiri: -5 (yet to start Round 2)

T6. Doug Ghim: -4 (-2 through 14 holes in Round 2)

T6. Kramer Hickok: -4 (+1 through 4 holes in Round 2)

T6. Brian Harman: -4 (E through 3 holes in Round 2)

T6. Harold Varner III: -4 (-1 through 3 holes in Round 2)

T6. Will Zalatoris: -4 (-1 through 3 holes in Round 2)

T6. Cameron Smith: -4 (-1 through 1 hole in Round 2)

T6. Sam Burns: -4 (yet to start Round 2)

T6. Abraham Ancer: -4 (yet to start Round 2)

T6. Taylor Pendrith: -4 (yet to start Round 2)

Full leaderboard: PGATour.com

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Highlights and Notes

It's been brutal for the grounds crew members this week as the team fights to keep the course in good shape. Ultimately, they're the real MVPs of The Players Championship.

Even though the rain stopped and the sun came out, the wind wrecked havoc on the best golfers in the game. Scottie Scheffler, Brooks Koepka and Xander Schauffele all notably found the water on No. 17.

It didn't get any easier for Schauffele, who found the rough on No. 18 and proceeded to hit this 16 feet. He ended up building a snowman on the par-four hole for a quadruple bogey.

Frankly, the conditions were near-impossible to play in at times, as the No. 7 golfer in the world found out the hard way.

Much better days certainly lie ahead for the four-time PGA Tour winner.

The same goes for Matthew Fitzpatrick, as a near-automatic putt became a challenge in the wind:

The elements didn't appear to cause Zach Johnson to accidentally hit the ball on a practice swing, proving that pro golfers are human after all:

As far as the leaderboard goes, no one currently in the top 10 (or ties) sits in the top 20 of the Official World Golf Rankings. Justin Thomas is in sight of the top 10 at three under, while Dustin Johnson sits at two under after these back-to-back birdies:

DJ is safely moving on to the third round with the cut line sitting at even par, although he likely has even more room with Data Golf currently projecting the cut to more likely than not slide down to two over.

That's good news for Rory McIlroy, who finished his two rounds at two over. A double bogey didn't do him any favors:

Still, McIlroy may very well stay alive in this tournament and see 36 more holes of golf.

Play stopped at 6:29 p.m. ET Saturday because of darkness, and it will resume Sunday at 8:15 a.m. ET.