Weather, tree limb force delay
Vegas joins Saunders at 7 under, but wind, rain stop round cold
Wind, rain and the snap of a large tree limb were enough to stop play Friday in the second round of the Genesis Open.
Sam Saunders remained atop the leader board without ever hitting a shot Friday at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles.
Jhonattan Vegas joined him at 7-under par and was happy to wait until Saturday morning — maybe — to complete his second round. The wind made it difficult to pick the right club. The rain made it difficult to gauge the speed on the greens.
But it was the crack of a eucalyptus tree that made PGA Tour officials sound the horn to get players — and spectators — off the course.
“We could have played a little bit more, but why? It’s going to get nothing but worse,” said Mark Russell, the PGA Tour’s vice president of competition. “We wanted to get them out of there when the trees started snapping.”
No one was hurt, although Russell said he heard some spectators had to scramble to safety when the eucalyptus limb fell some 30 yards behind the third green.
It was tough on a few players, too, at least between the ears.
Hideki Matsuyama, who had a mathematical chance to reach No. 1 in the world with a victory, returned Friday morning to complete the first round and made three straight birdies for a 68. He likely will have to finish with three straight birdies Saturday just to make the cut. Matsuyama was 6 over through 15 holes in his second round and 3 over for the tournament.
Defending champion Bubba Watson hasn’t had much go his way this week, even when they do.
He couldn’t decide on a club at No. 5 and came up well short of the green, only to chip in for a birdie. Standing on the tee at the par-3 sixth, with a bunker in the middle of the green and the pin left and to the back, Watson jokingly lamented, “The one time I don’t want to hit first.”
He still had two holes to play and was 8 over, virtually assured of missing the cut.
Cameron Percy of Australia was among 24 players who finished his second round. He shot a 71 and was at 5-under 137. Zac Blair and Martin Laird each shot 68 and were finished at 4-under 138.
Graeme McDowell birdied three of his last eight holes for a 70 and was at 3 under, along with Daniel Summerhays (73) and Keegan Bradley (70).
LPGA: Sarah Jane Smith shot a 6-under 67 in tough, windy afternoon conditions at Royal Adelaide to take a one-stroke lead in the Women’s Australian Open. The Australian had a 36-hole total of 9-under 137.
Champions Tour: Miguel Angel Jimenez had a late eagle and closed with a birdie for a 7-under 65 and a share of the lead in the PGA Tour Champions’ ChubbClassic.