Storm disrupts play at Pebble Beach
First round suspended with 81 not finished
Howling winds greeted players for Thursday’s first round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Flagsticks were nearly bent in half, tents were shaking and club selection was going to be an adventure. The three courses in play — Pebble Beach, Spyglass Hill and the Shore Course at Monterey Peninsula Country Club — were water-logged from previous showers, and the putting surfaces were bumpy as a result. And everyone was anticipating the skies to open up.
It was just going to be one of those days at the former Bing Crosby Clambake.
But it could have been worse. The fearful forecast the players slept on forced tee times to start one hour earlier, but other than the whipping winds, the day started off well and remained playable for hours as the arrival of the worst of the forecast stayed on the horizon. But then temperatures started plunging and dark skies formed and began advancing toward the coast.
When it hit the coast, it hit hard.
The skies opened up and rain suits and squeegees got a workout. Play was suspended at 1:34 p.m. PT and called for the day an hour later. Eighty-one players did not finish and will restart their rounds at 7:30 a.m. PT.
“It was tough,” world No. 1 Jason Day said after shooting 2-under-par 69 at the Shore Course. “The wind was pretty stiff. And then, obviously, the rain. But luckily enough for me today we got to tee off pretty early. Going an hour earlier was nice for us. I think we only had probably four holes in the rain. But I think the hardest part about today was to commit to a shot. ...
“Sometimes playing golf is easy and you can go through, and some weeks are easy, and then weeks like this where you just have to keep grinding.”
Things aren’t going to get any easier Friday. The forecast calls for more high winds, cool temperatures and rain until midday. The sun is scheduled to make an extended appearance Saturday and Sunday.
Rick Lamb, Seung-Yul Noh and Joel Dahmen — all at Spyglass — shared the clubhouse lead at 4under-par 68. Mark Hubbard (69), Nick Watney (through 13) and Tim Wilkinson (through 13) were at 3 under at Pebble.
Jordan Spieth, who a day earlier talked about his desire to get off to a fast start for the first time this year, was at 3 under through 16 holes at the Shore.
Hubbard had one of his best days at Pebble Beach two years ago when he proposed to his wife on the 18th green.
“We were joking coming up that if there was a day like this, would I still have done it? I don’t know. I think it would have been hard to hear anything I had to say over the wind until we got inside to the lodge,” Hubbard said. “It’s hard to get yourself to hit the club that’s in your hand that you know is the right club, because you think you’re just going to hit it in the middle of the Pacific.”
Irishman Shane Lowry is accustomed to playing in windy, cold conditions, but he didn’t welcome Mother Nature’s delivery on the first day.
“If I was at home and the weather was like this outside, I wouldn’t go out and play golf. So it’s just I have to do it today,” Lowry said after his 2-under 70 at Pebble Beach, where the worst of the conditions descended.
“People say, ‘Oh, you must love this weather when you’re over here,’ but I don’t like it at all, but I know how to do it. It’s just something that I’m accustomed to and I don’t particularly enjoy it, but it’s a good challenge. It was particularly enjoyable today because I shot a good score, but some days are tougher than others.”