(Photo credit: Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Maverick McNealy, Lee Hodges, Sahith Theegala and Sepp Straka formed a tie for the lead in Thursday's weather-hit opening round of The Players Championship when play was suspended in fading light.

Surprise package Austin Smotherman, one of four players yet to complete the opening round, has a chance to seize the outright lead when play resumes on Friday as he faces a 15-foot birdie putt on his final hole -- the par-5 ninth.

McNealy, Hodges, Theegala and Straka fired matching 5-under-par 67s on a day of mixed weather conditions at TPC Sawgrass, where the course was relatively firm in the morning before being softened by early afternoon thunderstorms.

Former world No. 1 amateur McNealy, who teed off in the morning wave, reeled off five birdies in his first 12 holes on his way to an early one-shot lead. He was then caught late in the day by fellow American Hodges, who birdied two of his last three holes, and Austrian Straka, who eagled the par-5 16th with a chip-in from 50 feet.

American Theegala made it a four-way tie at the top after covering his back nine in 3 under, with a hole-out eagle at the par-4 12th.

World No. 6 Russell Henley and fellow American Justin Thomas, who won this event in 2021 and is making his second PGA Tour start of the year after undergoing back surgery in November, were among a group of four players who opened with 68s on a tightly bunched leaderboard.

Top-ranked Scottie Scheffler, bidding for a rare third victory at The Players Championship, produced a mixed bag as he opened with an even-par 72. He birdied his final hole, the par-5 ninth, following consecutive bogeys.

World No. 2 and defending champion Rory McIlroy, looking to shrug off a back injury that led to his withdrawal from last week's Arnold Palmer Invitational, experienced a frustrating day as he battled to a 74. Often wayward off the tee, he mixed three bogeys with a lone birdie to finish seven strokes off the pace.

The elite field is one of the strongest in the game with the top 10 golfers in the world rankings -- and 47 of the top 50 -- assembled at TPC Sawgrass for the tournament's 52nd edition.

However, World No. 4 Collin Morikawa withdrew from the tournament due to a back injury after playing just one hole. After teeing off on the 10th hole and making a par, he experienced some discomfort while taking a practice swing on the 11th tee box.

--Mark Lamport-Stokes, Field Level Media