Jon Rahm may have come back down to earth after a strong start to the year but he is still the hottest player going into this week's Players Championship where 2022 champion Cameron Smith will be a notable absentee given his decision to join LIV Golf.

Rahm is the first player since Johnny Miller in 1975 to win three times in a calendar year before March and will headline a loaded field at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, which includes 44 of the top 50 players in the world.

The Spaniard, who opened the season with six consecutive top-10 finishes before settling for a share of 39th last week at Bay Hill, has never missed the cut in five starts at The Players and had his best result in 2021 when he finished ninth.