Afternoon groups find tough going in first round

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PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- It was the best of times and the worst of times Thursday in the opening round of THE PLAYERS Championship, and tee-off times largely determined which fate each of the 144 competitors would encounter.

"We had to put everything into it to get it around." -- Alex Cejka (Getty Images)

"It absolutely mattered what time you were on the golf course," Alex Cejka, who played in the more difficult afternoon wave, said after scraping his way to 72, level par on THE PLAYERS Stadium Course at the TPC Sawgrass. "For those of us who played this afternoon, we had to put everything into it to get it around."

While conditions were hardly what one would consider easy in the morning -- the layout already was fast and the greens firm -- increasing winds dried out the layout, put more trepidation into club selection, and generally messed with players' minds.

Players with morning starts recorded seven of the top eight scores; the lone exception was former British Open champion Todd Hamilton with a 3-under 69.

Hamilton was one of just eight players who broke par out of the afternoon wave and the field scoring average in the later half was 74.50, nearly two strokes higher than the 72.83 average submitted by morning starters. That latter group, led by overall leader Sergio Garcia's 66, posted 26 sub-par scores.

"You have to make some putts because the wind is going to create some problems here and there even if you're hitting it well," said Hamilton, who needed just 27 on the slick and swerving TPC Sawgrass greens. "At a tournament like this on a course set up this hard, you know it's going to be a challenge."

Players should also know, said Jeff Maggert, what they are getting into once lunch is finished.

"I think, realistically, you have to know it's going to be harder in the afternoon," Maggert said after a colorful 72 that included three bogeys and a double-bogey offset by five birdies. "You can't set up the course firm in the morning and risk having it be over the top in the afternoon. There's no way you can have the golf course play the same all day long. If you accept that going in, you're probably going to be OK handling it."

Expectations also need to change, Hamilton said. "You just know you're looking at a golf course one or two shots harder [than earlier in the day]," he said.

Compounding problems was not only the force of the wind and that it was drying out the 7,215-yard golf course, but also that breezes swirled and were elusive to gauge.

"A tough day; the wind's tricky to pick out," Stewart Cink said following his afternoon 71. "You're looking at the compass like the way we always do and you see it coming one way, and then on your face you feel it coming from about 90 degrees the other direction. It's just winding it's way through these trees and it's tough -- tough out there to hit the right club, and tough to keep it on line. "

"It was just really hard out there," added Chris DiMarco, who also shot 71 later in the day. "You just had to stay in the right position. It's the kind of course where you've got to let birdies come to you, without a doubt. If you try to make birdies on this golf course, that's when you can doubles and bogeys."

DiMarco added that although it was easy to get frustrated, players who teed off late needed to keep in mind that they were due for the breather segment Friday morning.

"I looked earlier, and there was a lot of guys under par this morning," he said. "Hopefully that will repay us and we'll get a lot of holes in without much wind tomorrow like these guys didn't play in the wind."