Another boost for players as TPC gets even richer

THE richest event in golf the Players Championship starting at Sawgrass in Florida today has just become even richer.

Nineteen Europeans are now competing for total prize money of $8 million after it was decided to up the amount by $500,000 on the eve of the tournament.

The new figure represents a massive 23% increase on the sum competed for last year when Davis Love finished six strokes clear of Padraig Harrington and Jay Haas. First prize is now $1.44m.

Forty-eight of the world's top 50 are present this time, the absent two being world number six Jim Furyk and Rocco Mediate, ranked 49th.

Furyk had wrist surgery in New York on Monday and as well as missing the Masters in two weeks time, his defence of the US Open in June is in question.

The absence of any Europeans from the world's current top 10 obviously decreases the chances of one of them emerging triumphant on Sunday.

Harrington is the leading challenger at 13th, one ahead of Darren Clarke, while the next highest players are Fredrik Jacobson at 17th and Thomas Bjorn at 25th.

Tiger Woods tops the rankings but is under scrutiny just to see how bad or good his game is.

At last week's Bay Hill Invitational, Woods managed only 46th place, his worst finish anywhere for five years. His last three rounds were all over par and he wound up 18 strokes behind winner Chad Campbell.

Paul Casey, Ian Poulter and Brian Davis are all making their debuts in the TPC while Colin Montgomerie hopes his victory in Singapore last Sunday, his first European Tour success since the 2002 Volvo Masters is the start of something big.