The Players Championship LIVE: Updates From Sunday At TPC Sawgrass - Lahiri Leads As Bad Light Stops Play

Welcome to our live blog of the delayed 2022 Players Championship. We will be providing regular updates throughout what is likely to be a mammoth day of golf!

Check out the authors who will be your guides for the day.

Tom Clarke
Elliott Heath
Andrew Wright
Dan Parker

Defending Champion Justin Thomas will have a quiet morning, he can have a lie in as he managed to get his second round complete yesterday. And it was a wonderful 69 to put him in a share of the clubhouse lead.

Thomas holds the clubhouse lead with two-time Masters champ Bubba Watson - who shot a magnificent 68 in the testing conditions on Saturday.

The 17th hole was just one hole the the players had trouble with yesterday - the island green even more testing that usual - check out the video below!

Play resumes at 8.15am ET - not long to go now until what is set to be a manic day at TPC Sawgrass!

Co-leaders Tommy Fleetwood and Tom Hoge are both playing their second rounds today. Fleetwood has already played three holes and Hoge starts at 8.31am local time.

We're here all day to keep you updated with all the action.

2011 PGA Champion Keegan Bradley described his two-shot penalty in round two - read the full story here if you missed it.

The incident at the 16th hole cost him two strokes in what was eventually a 71 (one-under-par), with Bradley describing his round as "one of my best rounds of my life, honestly."

We're up and running here at TPC Sawgrass - it's very chilly! Hoodies up, bobble hats on and, in some cases, two hats on. The sky is clear thankfully and it looks like we're going to get a full day of golf.

SPLASH: Three minutes in and we've already seen a ball in the water on 17!

There were 29 balls in the water on 17 yesterday - check out Kevin Kisner's verdict on how a 10-handicapper would have got on...

Fleetwood drops a shot at the 4th to fall out of the lead - not the ideal start for the Englishman. There's never been an English winner of this tournament somehow! Tommy looks in great shape to end that 'curse' this week though.

His bogey now means Tom Hoge (starting his second round imminently) is out on his own at the top at six-under-par.

How can I play TPC Sawgrass?

Fancy tackling Sawgrass for yourself? It's a public course so anyone can play the famous Players Championship venue...albeit it's pricey.

How cold is it at TPC Sawgrass?

This is Louis Oosthuizen...

The golf hoodie was invented for days like this. Check out the best golf hoodies if you're interested in getting in on golf's newest (and coolest?) trend.

Just seen Adam Scott find the 3rd green. Swing looked as beautiful as ever but the 2004 champion is seven-over-par, no thanks to a quadruple-bogey eight on the 18th back on Thursday.

He'll be missing the cut here after a run of ten consecutive cuts made, which featured four top-tens including a T4 at the Genesis.

For you Rory McIlroy fans out there, it's touch-and-go as to whether we'll see him for the remainder of the tournament as he's +2 after 36 holes and possibly going home early for the first time since last year's Scottish Open.

He's optimistic of his chances of making the cut though:

"I don't know. I might be one short. We'll see what happens tomorrow," he said. "Obviously the double on 7 was very untimely. I thought if I birdied the last and got to 1-over, that should be good enough. I did everything I should have done on 9. I hit four good shots, but the putt just sort of didn't want to go in. Hopefully I've done enough. I mean, it just depends on the conditions tomorrow for the other guys."

Six-way tie for the lead now as Tom Hoge makes a bogey (yes that rhymes) on the opening hole.

It really cannot be overstated just how big a win this would be for Tommy Fleetwood if he gets the job done this week. The Englishman hasn't won in the US and is without a victory anywhere since the 2019 Nedbank Golf Challenge. Fleetwood would pocket $3.6m with a victory here and move from 49th in the world back towards the top 20.

Still an awfully long way to go but what a story that would be.

Elliott Heath, Golf Monthly Senior Staff Writer on the updates here folks. I'm with you until 3pm UK time.

Not seeing a lot of birdies out there right now. Very cold, thick tough and some fresh wind. Conditions are tough! Major championship tough for sure.

Three-putt par for Hoge on the 2nd - disappointing 5-5 start for the American. Still co-leads at five-under but has some tough holes ahead.

Like Fleetwood, Louis Oosthuizen is another man to have never won in the US - somehow. He's going along very nicely at four-under-par and looks to be continuing his form from 2021 where he finished T2-2-T3 in the last three Majors.

Yup, it's cold...

Lovely 20+ footer from Sergio Garcia at the fifth to put the 2008 champion up to two-under-par and just three back of the lead.

For those joining us, we are LIVE all day today as round two concludes at The Players Championship in what looks like a Monday evening finish. I'm Elliott Heath, Senior Staff Writer at Golf Monthly, and I'm here until 3pm when GM veteran Tom Clarke will take the reins.

Also, Fleetwood has dropped two four-under-par now after his second bogey of the day.

Joaquin Niemann holes a monster at the fifth to join the party at five-under. The Chilean still riding high after his Genesis win at Riviera.

Garcia to three-under-par! Meanwhile Sam Burns cleans up at the 4th to stay at five-under. Oosthuizen, who looks like he's climbing Mount Everest with his cold weather gear, drops to three-under.

Do you consider The Players a Major?

Still a no from the majority...

Stunning shot of the 17th in the early Floridian sunshine this morning...

Mountain hiker or golfer?

Projected cut has moved to +1 already after an hour-and-a-half's play. Looks like Rory at +2 may well be in for the final two rounds as scoring is tough. Best round on the course at the moment is two-under.

Keith Mitchell, the Honda Classic champion in 2019, joins the lead at five-under after a birdie at the 12th.

Meanwhile Anirban Lahiri fails to get up-and-down from the sand on the 3rd and drops a shot to fall to four-under.

For those confused about what's going on (I don't blame you), we are still completing the second round of The Players Championship. Looks like we may get nine holes of the third round done this afternoon and then 27 holes played tomorrow. 

Jon Rahm has just hit an absolute beauty from the fairway bunker on six. Looks like the World No.1 will move to four-under-par if he can negotiate his four-footer.

This lip-out - brutal!!

Canada's Taylor Pendrith, the World No.216, now leads at six-under.

Rahm up to four-under after safely negotiating the four-footer as mentioned previously.

Paul Casey looks to be moving to four-under-par after a brilliant approach at the 6th, which is amazing considering he triple-bogeyed the opening hole on Thursday. Heck of a bounce back.

Projected cut back to level par - Rory McIlroy (+2) may be on his way home.

Update on round 3:

Hoge gets back to six-under with a birdie at the 6th. Joins Pendrith at the top of the leaderboard.

Tom Hoge leads on his own after a Taylor Pendrith bogey.

How well do you know the leader? 8 things you didn't know about Tom Hoge

We've just seen footage of Pendrith's bogey...ouch. Missed from inside 3ft. Golf = Hard.

Jon Rahm going along nicely at four-under-par but four men can overtake him as World No.1 this week so the pressure is on.

Playing with Rahm is one of those men Viktor Hovland (-2), who has just hit a laser long iron into the 8th, where Rahm has gone long and looks set to make bogey. 

Hovland at two-under after seven pars and a birdie so far in round two. Very solid stuff.

Rahm did indeed bogey 8 and is back to three-under.

This is the Pendrith missed putt as described earlier...

*Warning: Not for the faint-hearted*

Remember to get in touch with us on Twitter using the hashtag #GMLive

Tell us where you're watching from, how you played today, what you had for lunch or something else.

Meanwhile on the DP World Tour, Pablo Larrazabal has just won the MyGolfLife Open in South Africa. The Spaniard came through a playoff to win his sixth European (DP World) Tour title.

Back in Florida, Tommy Fleetwood birdies the par-5 11th and is back to five-under-par. Come on Tommy!

Projected cut back to +1. Rory McIlroy might want to head to the driving range.

Tom Hoge take a bow! The American rifles a long iron to within 5ft at the par-3 8th from 200+ yards and has a good chance to go two clear at seven-under-par.

Ouch! Jon Rahm three-stabs the ninth for back-to-back bogeys and drops to two-under-par.

Tommy to six-under!

Fleetwood back-to-back birdies at 11 and 12 and he's co-leader (until Hoge birdies 8 and gets to seven-under).

Meanwhile at the ninth, Hovland makes birdie and he's now three-under, one clear of Rahm.

Hoge converts from inside 4ft to get to seven-under-par. Cracking two that.

Elliott Heath signing out from a fun morning at TPC Sawgrass.

Over to the capable hands of Tom Clarke...

Thanks Elliott, enjoy a pint of Cider and a lie down.

Quick Update

Players are still finishing off round 2 - there will them be a cut and round 3 will be played in threeballs from two tees at around 2pm local time.

Tom Hoge leads the way on -7

With Doug Ghim having a cuppa with the clubhouse leader at -4

The cut is +1 at the moment - but could still move. McIlroy and Scheffler among the players currently missing out on round 3 and 4 at the moment.

Let me know who you think is best placed to win at this stage.

Tweet us using the hashtag #GMlive

If you are wondering what the weather is like today at Sawgrass. It is sunny but very cold. Louis Oosthuizen showing a picture tells 1,000 words.

Sergio Garcia knocks in a birdie to move to -3. The Spaniard of course won here in 2008. (Was it really 14 years ago!!!???) 

Jhonattan Vegas was at -5 just two holes ago - but has followed a bogey on 16 with a quadruple bogey on 17. TPC Sawgrass continues to beat golfers up.

Patrick Cantlay battling to make the cut - but this chip in will help! 

DROPPED SHOT

Tommy Fleetwood can't get up and down from a greenside bunker on 15 - falls back to -5 - has the "fun" 16th, 17th and 18th to come.

BIRDIE

Jon Rahm chews up the par-5 11th and holes a nice 10 footer to move to -3

BIRDIE

Cameron Smith holes a lovely putt from just off the green on 11 to move to -4. The Australian is looking comfortable at the moment in these tricky conditions. 

MUD BALL!

News from the PGA Tour that there will not be preferred lies for the final two rounds.

BIRDIE

Niemann moves to -6 with a monster putt from off the green 13. Just one shot back from the leader.

WATCH (IF YOU CAN)

We mentioned Vegas had a quadruple bogey on 17... here is how

CLUBHOUSE LEADER

Harold Varner III makes an excellent up and down on 9 - his 18th - to post the best 36 hole score so far. He can put his feet up now and watch the carnage - he will have a late round 3 tee time.

BIRDIE (Again)

Cameron Smith almost holes his tee shot on 13 to have a tap-in birdie and to join the group on -5.

WINNER

One event that was not hit by storms was the MyGolfLife Open on the DP World Tour where Pablo Larrazabal has triumphed - read the full report

BIRDIE - AND NEW LEADER

Keith Mitchell has birdied the par-3 13th to join Tom Hoge on -7

GREAT GOLF

Patrick Reed is 5 under for the day - with the treacherous 17th and 18th to come.

A TRIO OF BOGEYS

Cantlay, Hovland and Rahm all make a hash of the 14th - all drop a single stroke.

MISSED A TIDDLER

Tom Hoge hits a wonderful iron into 13 and has a five-footer to move back into the lead on his own... but pulls the putt and stays at -7.

CUT UPDATE

The cut line is still +1 which means the likes of Scheffler and McIlroy (+2) are currently missing the final two rounds. However the line could still move - with the top 65 and ties making it through.

NEW LEADER

Keith Mitchell is on fire - he birdies the 4th (his 13th) and is now the leader on his own.

BOGEY

Niemann has made a hash of the 15th - left off the tee, right with his 2nd, he can't get up and down, and holes a decent putt to keep it to just a single dropped shot.
While playing partner Cameron Smith also drops a stoke on the same hole.

BIRDIES

How Mitchell got to the top of the leaderboard.

ELSEWHERE

Jordan Smith lost out to Pablo Larrazabal in a play-off on the DP World Tour - but good to see the Englishman congratulating the Spaniard.

Full report can be read here

PAR SAVE

Keith Mitchell has 8-foot for par on the 5th (his 14th) - but he is not letting go of the lead just yet.

WHAT A SHOT

Abraham Ancer has just hit a beauty of a iron into 15 and has a kick in birdie to get to -15.

BIRDIE

Niemann plays a wonderful chip from a tricky stance to set up a birdie on 16 and to re-join the group on -6.

EAGLE!!!

What a time for a hole out - Eric Van Rooyen spins his approach into the hole on the 9th, his 18th hole to shoot a 67 and to join the group on -6.

What a way to finish the round. 

BOGEY - NEW LEADER

Keith Mitchell has trouble off the tee on 6 and never recovers - has a good attempt at par from a long distance but drops to -7 and level with Hoge.

SORRY PATRICK

Having mentioned earlier how well he was playing - he finished bogey, double to rather throw away his earlier good work.

BOGEY

Niemann hits the green on 17 - but then three jabs to drop back to -5.

WATCH: VAN ROOYEN HOLES OUT FOR EAGLE 

17TH HURTS PLAYERS AGAIN

Cantlay, Hovland and Rahm have been really struggling of late.

On the 17th tee -
Cantlay - long and left - wet
Hovland - short and right - wet
Rahm - makes green but will have a tricky 2-putt

EAGLE - NEW LEADER

Things are really hotting up now - Sam Burns has an aggresive line on 16 - crawls over the water to leave a 50-foot eagle try. Which he drains! Joins the leaders at -7.

BOGEY

Keith Mitchell has dropped another shot to fall back to -6. Had more trouble off the tee, and just failed to get up and down.

DOUBLE BOGEY

Viktor Hovland is the latest person to take the 17th hole at TPC Sawgrass off their Christmas Card list.

WATCH - BURNS GRABS THE LEAD

BOGEY X2

Cameron Smith and Joaquin Niemann both finish disappointingly on the 18th with a dropped shot each. Will start round 3 on -4.

BIRDIE

Paul Casey had a triple on his first hole of the tournament - but has just holed a monster putt on 17 to move to -5. Incredible comeback! 

THE CUT

This is very close - the likes of McIlroy and Scheffler need one more player to drop to +2 for the cut line to move. Lowry and Malnati with a lot of attention all of a sudden!

I am off for a lie down - will leave you in the capable hands of Scotland's finest Andrew Wright for the next three hours. 

Many thanks, Tom. Some fine work. We rejoin the action with Jon Rahm making a crucial birdie at 18 to get in the clubhouse at -3. You'd be daft to think he won't be in the mix come Monday evening! 

SAVE! 

Co-leader Sam Burns makes a crucial 15-footer to save par on his final hole and post a second-round 69. Playing partners Abraham Ancer and Paul Casey follow suit to get in the clubhouse at -5. What a threeball that was!

Lowry birdies

The Irishman holes from 15 feet on the 17th to get back to level par. That will not have gone down well with those on +2 waiting to learn their fate. 

Mitchell's faltering finish

Having led on his own at -8 an hour or so ago, three bogies in four to finish for Keith Mitchell has him two back in a tie for fifth. He'll be pleased to get off the course before any more damage was done.

Hoge finishes on -7

Like his fellow co-leader, Tom Hoge makes an excellent par on 18 from a wayward tee shot. He'll be off in the final group in round three alongside Sam Burns and Harold Varner III. When that is, we have to wait and find out. 

Alongside Hoge, Tyrrell Hatton salvages a bogey after finding the water with his drive. He'll start round three on -1 and still in with a shout!

Cut watch

Those on +2 are running out of time. A bogey for Peter Malnati (+1), who is on the 18th tee, would see them through as it stands. No pressure!

What a finish

Shane Lowry holes from 30 feet on 18 for a second consecutive birdie to finish his round. From on the cut line to under par. Have that.

Elsewhere, Nick Watney has a putt on 17 to get to +1 and put a real dent in the hopes of McIlroy and co. of making the cut. 

It's all going on as the battle to make the cut reaches its conclusion. Malnati has just half-shanked his second on 18 needing a par to guarantee his progression into the final two rounds. 

Behind him, Scott Piercy, who was on two-under, has just hit two balls in the water on 17. He's got nine feet left for a quadruple-bogey seven!!!!!!

The plus-twos are in... for now

To his credit, Piercy makes the quad, but that means those sitting on +2 are now inside the cut line. He'll need to regroup as he needs no worse than a par on 18. 

On the green, Malnati makes a clutch 10-footer to finish +1. It's going down to the wire!

In case you missed it...

Matthew Wolff finished his round a club light after this very gentle club throw into the water on 18. A double-bogey closed out a nine-over 81, so we don't blame him.

From the trees on 18, Scott Piercy hits a brilliant shot into the heart of the green. The situation is... if he or Nick Watney find a birdie on the last, Rory McIlroy - and everyone else on +2 - will miss the cut.

McIlroy makes the cut!

Neither Piercy or Watney can convert from long distance which means Rory McIlroy lives to fight another day... literally. 

Piercy misses from eight feet for par to miss the cut having stood on the 17th on -2 and only five off the lead - that's got to hurt. Watney makes his par to finish +2 and, crucially, in a tie for 65th.

Here's how it all finished

Four days and two rounds later, it came down to the last group to find out who made the last two rounds. Among those to make it were Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler. 

Missing out: Jason Day, Chris Kirk, Marc Leishman, Scott Piercy, and others...

Piercy's horror show

For those following along, brace yourselves, this is not pleasant viewing. Unless you're a huge Rory McIlroy fan, of course...

Round three hole locations

Some tasty-looking pin positions for the third round of this year's much-disrupted Players Championship. Notably, we've got a front hole location on 17 for the first time this week - that could cause some more drama. 

Tee times are next...

McIlroy out with Scheffler, Malnati in round three

The tee times are out and, unsurprisingly, it's a two-tee start and threeballs as tournament organisers attempt to make up as much time as possible.

Rory McIlroy gets his third round underway at 4.54pm local time (8.54pm UK time) alongside Scottie Scheffler and Peter Malnati. He'll need to go low to get back into contention!

Here's a full rundown of the round three tee times from the Players Championship.

Better than most?

The gold man is back doing his mixed-reality thing. This time, he's recreating an iconic Tiger Woods moment from this event 21 years ago. 

It's the best one yet, although the bar wasn't very high...

Rory's putting woes

Of the 71 players to make the cut, McIlroy ranks 70th in Strokes Gained: Putting for the two rounds. He's lost over three strokes to the field, so if he can clean that up in round three, he could make a big move up the leaderboard. 

Watch this space Rory fans!

SERGIO!!

Garcia is among the early starters and gets his third round off to a flyer with a 40-foot eagle at the par-5 2nd. That takes him to -4 and into a tie for 11th. Can the 2008 champion add another Players crown to his roll of honour? 

Reed on the move

Another player making an early move is Patrick Reed. Captain America has struggled for form of late but back-to-back birdies to start round three will have been just what he was looking for. He's three-under, just four shots off the lead.

Elsewhere, Tyrrell Hatton and Francesco Molinari are one-under for their rounds through two holes, and up to -2. 

Just an update on conditions. There is still enough wind out there to challenge the players and it's set to increase as the day goes on. The greens are also noticeably quicker now than they were yesterday, so scoring could be tough later on. 

A chance for those on the course now to make some inroads...

Molinari into the top 20

The Italian holes from the fringe on the par-4 12th (his third) to make it back-to-back birdies and lift himself into the top 20 on -3. The 2018 Open champion attacks the par-3 13th next and has nine feet left to pick up another shot...

MISS

After coming so close to getting his round off to the perfect start with a birdie, World No. 1 Jon Rahm had another mishap on the greens, missing from three feet to card an ugly bogey. 

After finishing birdie-birdie in round two, that's a major setback for the Spaniard!

Sunday surge

This is more like it. After struggling to tame Pete Dye's diabolical Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass, the players are starting to get their own back. 

A group is now forming on -4, with Molinari making it three in a row and Justin Thomas birdieing his opening hole. They're joined by Sergio Garcia, Brendan Steele and Russell Henley.

Bones in a confident mood. Is this the caddie equivalent of the early tee grab?

Henley, Lahiri to -5

The American makes it three straight birdies to start his round. He joins the group at -5 in a tie for fifth, as does Anirban Lahiri with a three at his opening hole.

Elsewhere, Jon Rahm gets back the shot he clumsily dropped at the 1st, with a simple tap-in at the par-5 2nd. 

JT goes back-to-back

The defending champion looks in ominous form here. Two exquisite shots into the heart of the par-5 2nd green sets up another birdie for the former World No. 1. He's got 14 feet on the 3rd for three in a row and to get within one of the seven-under lead.

Anyway, that's all from me - it was a pleasure! I leave you in the remarkably small hands of Dan Parker.

Thanks Andy, stellar work. While my hands may be remarkably small, they type remarkably quickly - I'll be here until the very last putt of this thoroughly enjoyable fourth day of the Players. 

With the leaders nearly out on course, it feels like this tournament is finally gathering some momentum after a less than ideal few days. 

Wherever you're following along with us today, remember you can keep in touch with us using #GMlive on Twitter. Did you play golf today? Who do you think will be leading by the end of today? What did you have for dinner? I'd love to hear from you and hopefully some of your tweets will be featured on our page! 

As for now, that group at -5 is growing larger and larger and Justin Thomas is looking rather ominous...

Back To Back?

No one has ever won back-to-back Players Championships, but Justin Thomas is doing his very best to rewrite history. He put on a ball striking clinic yesterday during a bogey-free round in tough conditions. He's out there with Bubba Watson (-4) right now, who also went bogey-free yesterday. Bubba could go -5 after sticking one close on the 4th hole. 

Leaders are out

The final group has teed off and the third round is now fully underway. Burns, Hoge and Varner III hit their tee shots at 5:16pm local time, so will hope to get 2 hours worth of play in before they lose the light. 

Logjam at -5

There are currently 11 players sat at 5-under par, two shots back of our leaders. Sergio Garcia is the furthest of this group through the round - he's currently on his 7th. Can he post a clubhouse score before we run out of light?

Rory watch

For those watching on Sky Sports in the UK, we got our first sight of Rory McIlroy in round three. He squeezed over the cut line by the barest of margins a few hours ago and will be looking to make a run in what look like reasonable scoring conditions. He chips close on the 10th hole, his first. 

Francesco!

The Italian Ryder Cup hero and 2018 Open Champion nearly has a hole in one 17! He'll join that ever growing group at -5 once he taps in for a well made two. Meanwhile, our final group all end up with pars the first hole with little drama. 

Looks like Matt Fitzpatrick has got over his missed cut. He's taken to Twitter to poke some fun at himself during some incredibly windy conditions from this week. I'm sure we've all missed a putt of that length this weekend, probably in much calmer conditions mind...

Another leader

Eric Van Rooyen, who is sporting a stunning moustache, joins the leaders at -7. He rolls a birdie putt right in the front door on the second hole. 

I can't think of many better moustaches in sport right now, possibly ever. It's right up there with former Australian cricketers Merv Hughes and David Boon for me. For our American readers, they're well worth a Google for yourself - any other great sporting moustaches you can think of? 

HOLE IN ONE!!

Unbelievable scenes as Shane Lowry has a hole-in-one on the famous 17th at TPC Sawgrass! Great stuff from Irishman who may have a large bar tab to contend with by the end of the week. He sends the ball just behind the flag with plenty of spin on it and it nestles in the cup. Lowry duly throws his ball into the crowd - I think I'd have kept it myself, but what a moment for the crowd and for Shane. 

Super Shane 

Here's the video of Shane Lowry's amazing hole-in-one. It'll be interesting to see how he handles his tee shot on 18 with all that adrenaline going through his system - what a moment!

New leaders

Amongst the chaos of the hole-in-one, Sam Burns and Harold Varner III have quietly made their way to -8. An impressive par save on the third keeps Burns at -8. 

Elsewhere, we've had another hole out this time by Doc Redman. It's all happening at Sawgrass, the next couple of hours should be a lot of fun! 

Nerves of Steele

Brendan Steele is making a nice run through the field and a birdie at the 9th takes him into the group at -7. To be honest, I just wanted an excuse to use that pun and I've got nothing else to say about the rather unassuming Steele. All quiet at the top of the leaderboard otherwise...

Shank alert

Spare a thought for Patton Kizzire, who has just shanked he tee shot on the 17th hole. Looking at the replays, Kizzire caught it fat and off the hosel. Ever the professional, Patton hits the green with his next shot. Surely the worst possible place to shank one? 

Here's the video of the Kizzire shank...

Sorry, Patton, but this might do the rounds on Twitter for the next few days. The groan of the crowd tells the story.

Where is the Gold Man? 

NBC's Gold Man has garnered a lot of attention so far this week, and not all of it positive. Some fans described the A.I being as the worst thing they'd ever seen in golf. Perhaps he's taken that criticism to heart as we've not see all that much of him this afternoon. 

I, for one, like the Gold Man. I'd like to go for a beer with him, bet he's got some fantastic stories.

Leaderboard update 

Right, it's probably about time for an update. It's been fairly quiet for the last half an hour, with a handful of players still jostling for position at the top. The lead score is yet to stretch past -8, with Lahiri, Burns and Hoge currently on that score.

Elsewhere, at -7, Casey and Varner III are playing well and the group at -6 includes Cameron Smith, Francesco Molinari, Sebastian Muñoz and Brendan Steele. 

There's still mighty group of players on -5. Names include Henley, Berger, Ghim, Van Rooyen, Mitchell and Fleetwood, who's had a quiet start to his third round. No one has finished their third round yet, with Keegan Bradley's group the farthest into the round on the 13th hole. 

Another hole out

It's been a lot of fun watching the pros tackle TPC Sawgrass today, and Niemann has just provided us with yet another hole out. The Chilean slam dunks his approach for an eagle on the par-5 9th - a thing of beauty. 

Lahiri to -9

We've got our first player to -9. Centre stage is Anirban Lahiri as he rolls in a birdie on the 9th hole. India's finest is -5 for his round today having come into the tournament with no form to speak of. Playing in the same group, Cam Smith follows Lahiri in to take himself to -7. 

Lahiri's lack of form

Anirban Lahiri could hold the outright lead when darkness falls in half an hour or so. Odds in the US has him as a +10,000 outsider coming into this week. In his last five appearances, his average finishing position has been 60th and he's carded an average of +6 over his last five tournaments. If you put any money on him before Thursday, do let us know using #GMlive, we'd like you to pick our lottery numbers for next week...

Light fading

We're now just after 7pm local time in Florida and the shadows are lengthening around TPC Sawgrass

Probably around half an hour or so left as the final group tidies up on the 7th hole.

Redemption for Kizzire

After the rather embarrassing shank on the 17th an hour ago, Patton Kizzire has bounced back with a delightful eagle on the 2nd hole. He'd birdied the 1st too and finds himself at -5 - he'd be one shot back without that dreaded shank. People bounce back, Lynne!

Monday finish confirmed

The Tour will certainly be grateful that we're guaranteed a Monday finish now. With the Valspar starting on Thursday, it'll still be a quick turnaround for the players. At one point this week it felt like the Players was never going to end...

Elsewhere in the world of sport, Tom Brady has just come out of retirement and will play his 23rd NFL season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. One of the shorter retirements in sport...

Bad light stops play

As we expected, bad light has forced a stop to play just after 7:30pm ET. Players will be allowed to finish the hole they started if they want to. The last group out will start on the 10th tee early tomorrow morning.

Harold Varner III hits a lovely approach to round off the day, and the tap in birdie leaves him tied at the top with Lahiri. There are 31 players separated by 4 shots...

Lahiri leads

Lahiri tidies up for the day with a birdie on the 11th. It takes him to -9 and one shot clear of Varner III on -8. Tom Hoge rolls in a nice putt to join Varner III in a tie for second place and the group at -7 remains Casey, Muñoz and Burns. 

Signing off

That'll about do it for the Golf Monthly team covering day four of The Players Championship. What a day it was. Shane Lowry's hole-in-one will be the obvious highlight but there was some excellent golf on display all day and we've got a jam-packed leaderboard to show for it. Round three will resume on Monday at 8am ET (12pm GMT) and we'll be back tomorrow on the Golf Monthly website to do it all over again. 

Thanks to Elliott Heath, Tom Clarke and Andy Wright for their coverage across the day and we hope you can join us again tomorrow as we finally crown the 2022 Players Champion.