Jordan Spieth Limps to 3-Over 1st Round at 2018 Players Championship

Jordan Spieth struggled mightily in the first round of the 2018 Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, on Thursday, as he shot a three-over 75.

The world No. 4 entered the clubhouse in a tie for 82nd place after carding four bogeys, one double bogey, one birdie and one eagle in the opening round of the unofficial fifth major.

Spieth was nine shots behind co-leaders Dustin Johnson and Webb Simpson at the end of his round.

Barring a significant turnaround on Friday, Spieth is in danger of missing the cut for the fourth consecutive year at The Players Championship.

Spieth's round got off to an inauspicious start Thursday when he three-putted from relatively close range to bogey the par-four 10th, as seen in the following video courtesy of the PGA Tour:

He followed that up with another bogey on No. 11 after finding the water with his second shot.

The 24-year-old quickly erased those bogeys, however, when he found the green on the drivable par-four 12th and sunk an eagle putt:

Although it seemed like Spieth was back on track, his shaky play returned on the ensuing hole when he hit his tee shot into the water again and recorded a double bogey on the par-three 13th.

With another bogey on No. 16, Spieth made the turn at three over par.

At that point, Jason Sobel of The Action Network attempted to quell the narrative that Spieth has fallen by the wayside:

Spieth didn't do himself any favors, though, when he bogeyed the par-three third to drop even further to four over.

While Spieth came from behind at the 2018 Masters to finish third, he hasn't won a tournament since last July's Open Championship.

Although that means it has been less than a year since he won, Kyle Porter of CBS Sports pointed out that those around him in the World Golf Ranking have enjoyed more recent success:

After the bogey on No. 3, Spieth went on to card three consecutive pars before registering his first birdie of the day on the par-four seventh.

He then went on to par both No. 8 and No. 9 to finish his round at three over.

Spieth's lack of success at the Players Championship over the years is difficult to explain considering the fact that he has 14 professional wins to his credit in six years.

Even though Spieth is scuffling again at the Players, Porter believes he is bound to turn things around as the 2018 season progresses:

Spieth tends to be a streaky golfer, and he is capable of breaking out of slumps without much rhyme or reason.

No area of Spieth's game was working Thursday, though, and unless he makes some significant adjustments ahead of the second round, he may be watching from home once again on Saturday and Sunday.