Players 2026: Russell Henley almost missed the post-delay restart for an extremely relatable reason
James Gilbert
PONTE VEDRA BEACH — The inclement weather that rolled through TPC Sawgrass on Thursday appeared to be of the biblical variety at first. But the PGA Tour knew it would only be a quick storm, ordering the players out on the course to shelter in place.
Russell Henley did not get the memo.
Henley, who began the Players Championship on the par-4 10th Thursday morning, made the turn in one-under 35, then made par at the first hole. That's when the rain came, and it looked so ominous that the five-time tour winner figured it was the type of weather that would shut down play for awhile. So he bolted for the clubhouse, which is not far from the second hole.
"I didn't stay in place," Henley said after completing his first round. "I was beside the clubhouse, we ran in because I thought it was going to be like a tornado, it was raining really, really hard."
So Henley did what any of us would do if we just played 10 holes and were forced inside due to weather. He began chowing down. It wasn't until a playing competitor informed him he was supposed to be back out there soon that he knew he messed up.
"When I went inside I was hitting the lunch table and Ben Griffin said, 'You have a restart in four minutes,'" said Henley. "I was in the locker room. Just eating some food."
Man's gotta eat.
The delay lasted only 19 minutes, and, thanks to Griffin, Henley made it back to the second hole in the nick of time.
"It was kind of a quick, stressful 10 minutes or whatever it was. But made it on time," he said.
Good thing, as Henley went on to play the back nine in three under, posting an opening-round 68 that has him just one off the lead of Maverick McNealy. That must have been some solid grub.