PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- The Players Championship turned into a race against time on Sunday when thunderstorms halted play right after Rory McIlroy surged into a one-shot lead on the back nine.
The PGA Tour stopped play for four hours. The final group had not completed the 11th hole before play was suspended, meaning a little more than two hours would be required to finish. Sunset was projected at 7:34 p.m. ET.
McIlroy, already a winner this year and going for a second title at The Players, began the final round four shots behind and started birdie-eagle to immediately get into the fray. His birdie on the par-5 11th hole put him at 12 under.
J.J. Spaun, who had a one-shot lead going into the final day, was 1 over for his round and one shot behind McIlroy.
Akshay Bhatia and Tom Hoge were two shots behind.
Hoge was 6 under for his round and through all the problems on a windy day. He hit his approach to just outside 15 feet on the 18th hole when the horn sounded to stop play. His hope was to post a target and see if it would stand.
If storms stayed in the area and there wasn't enough daylight to finish, players would have to return Monday morning to see who captures the $4.5 million prize from golf's richest tournament.
Two-time defending champion Scottie Scheffler was seven shots behind playing the 16th hole. Scheffler went 15 consecutive holes without a birdie, from the 13th hole on Saturday until the 11th hole on Sunday.
The last time The Players had to finish on Monday was in 2022, when Cameron Smith won. Weather was so disruptive that week that the third round was not completed until Monday morning.