“Every week Justin’s pretty close,” he said of Thomas. “So every week I know there’s a chance that someone can pass me. I definitely want to stay there, but if someone passes me it’s not going to change anything. Obviously this week if I play really well I’ll still be number one. If I don't, someone’s going to pass me, which is okay.”

Johnson outplayed all his contenders. Thomas opened with a one-over 73, Spieth a three-over 75 and Rose and Rahm four-under 68s.

“I felt like it was a really solid day,” Johnson said. “I drove it really well, hit a lot of greens. I wasn't too sharp with the irons, but I still was on the green and rolled the putter very well.”

Tiger returns to Sawgrass!

Tiger Woods battled back from a poor start to fire a 72 on day one of THE PLAYERS Championship as Phil Mickelson endured a nightmare finish at Sawgrass. Two-time champion Woods posted the best score of his star grouping with Mickelson and Rickie Fowler, with all three players struggling to keep their balls on dry land over the closing holes – with Mickelson dropping seven shots in a damaging four-hole stretch from the 14th.

Woods looked at odds with his swing early on and had to scramble hard to save par at the first two holes, but he missed from five feet at the third and another poor drive at the fifth also led to bogey. But the vast galleries following the big-name three ball were treated to a vintage Woods eagle at the ninth, where he hammered a superb second over the trees to the fringe and he holed the putt from just inside 20 feet.

Tiger went on to say, post round;

“I felt like today the way I was hitting the golf ball, especially toward the back nine, that I felt like I should have shot something in the 60s, but didn’t do it, said Woods afterwards. It was nice to turn it completely around there at nine, but I had two par-fives on the back nine and could have played those under par.

“A lot of guys were under par, a bunch of guys in the 60s today, and it was playing a little bit on the softer side, and with this heat, even the wind picked up, with this heat the ball’s flying forever. We have to go out there and tear this place apart early on Friday. We’ve got to be aggressive and go low. This golf course is playing a little bit on the easier side, there are too many guys out there that are playing really well and going low, and my responsibility was to go low and shoot something in the red.”