Dustin Johnson says The Players Championship should become official fifth major

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Image: Dustin Johnson thinks The Players Championship should be an official major championship

Dustin Johnson believes The Players Championship should become golf's official fifth major.

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The winner at TPC Sawgrass this week will take home $2.25m, the highest-ever winner's cheque in professional tournament golf, and Johnson says the event, which has been moved back to March for the first time since 2006, is already a major championship in many players' minds.

"I think it would fit," he said. "I mean this is our biggest tournament.

Round 1 tee-times at Sawgrass

Tee-times for the opening round of the Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Florida

"It's got one of the best fields of all the tournaments and, yeah, I think all the players look at it as a major."

The world's top players are at TPC Sawgrass for the Players Championship, with all four days of golf's unofficial fifth major live on Sky Sports

World No 1 Johnson is preparing for his 11th appearance at the Players - a tournament where he has never managed to finish in the top 10 - and he admits he struggled both on the greens and with the course setup when the tournament was held in May.

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Image: Webb Simpson pocketed nearly $2m for winning The Players in 2018

"I felt like a few times I played well around here, it's just I couldn't ever get anything going. I feel like it was hard to read the greens.

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"I don't know, I struggle with everything. Just judging the distance, balls going miles and would never stop in the fairways. I feel like good shots weren't always rewarded, just with the way the course was playing.

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Image: The world No 1 has struggled in his 10 years at Sawgrass

"This year it's softer, it's longer, the rough's a little bit deeper but it's still playable. You still need to drive it in the fairway, but I think it's in perfect condition and it definitely sets up better for me like this.

"There are a lot of different lines off the tee and then clubs into the greens are definitely a lot longer, but the greens are receptive and you can hit longer clubs in, and still, if you hit a good shot it's going to end up close to the hole."

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