Spieth one off pace after rain-hit opener at Pebble Beach
>> PEPBLE BEACH: Former world No.1 Jordan Spieth was one off the pace with two holes to play on Thursday when first-round play was suspended in the weather-whipped Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.
Eighty-one players had yet to complete the opening round when play was halted for the day on the Pebble Beach Golf Links, Spyglass Hill and Monterey Peninsula courses.
The wind was whipping at Pebble Beach and heavy, steady rain had rendered all three courses unplayable.
South Korea’s Noh Seung-Yul and Americans Joel Dahmen and Rick Lamb all made it into the clubhouse on four under.
Noh — seeking a second USPGA Tour title to go with the Zurich Classic of New Orleans crown he captured in 2014 — had the only bogey-free round of the day.
He carded a 68 at Spyglass Hill, as did Lamb and Dahmen.
Spieth was three under through 16 holes at Monterey Peninsula, where had notched five birdies and two bogeys.
When play was suspended, the more sheltered Spyglass had the lowest scoring average at 1.24 strokes over par, followed by Monterey Peninsula (1.84) and Pebble Beach (2.46).
Australia’s world No.1 Jason Day put together a two-under-par 69 at Monterey Peninsula that included four birdies and two bogeys.
With tee times moved up an hour in a bid to avoid the worst of the weather, Day said his group played only four holes in the rain.
Given the weather conditions, Day was thrilled with his opening round.
“I feel pretty good with how things are going, coming out today and shooting a couple under par,” said the 29-year-old, a 10-time winner on the PGA Tour.
“The hardest part about today was actually committing to the shot more so than anything because you had a lot of side winds. I’m looking forward to Spyglass tomorrow.”