Players Championship start delayed amid law enforcement manhunt for murder suspect

A man shot and killed two people in a drug store parking lot near the TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, and then escaped by going onto TPC Sawgrass, leading The Players Championship to delay opening gates as a precaution before the third round Saturday morning, authorities said.

Swedish golfer Ludvig Åberg currently leads the PGA tournament, which carries a winning purse of $25,000,000.

St. Johns County Sheriff Rob Hardwick said the suspect, whom he identified as Christian Barrios, 32, shot two people multiple times at about 10:30 p.m. Friday in the parking lot of Walgreens in what he called a domestic violence situation. The store is located about a mile from the course. 

Hardwick said at a news conference it had been “a long night” for his deputies. 

Authorities say he was captured at about 8 a.m. Saturday in Nassau County, the far northeastern county in Florida located an hour north of the TPC Sawgrass.

The PGA cited “operational considerations” in deciding not to open the gates until 9 a.m. The first round began on schedule at 8:15 a.m. Hospitality areas were delayed opening until 11 a.m.

Hardwick said canine units pursued Barrios onto the TPC Sawgrass after the shooting. He said Barrios, who turned 32 on Saturday, at one point picked up a PGA Tour radio and later dropped it. Hardwick said the suspect’s mother had called the police with his name. He then stole a black BMW, and Nassau County authorities pursued the car and forced a crash into the woods.

The suspect fled on foot before being found and taken into custody.

Hardwick said Barrios had a long criminal history and knew the victims, both of whom were shot multiple times and taken to a hospital, where they died