Weather halts first round at Greater Gwinnett

Weather conditions never surprise Ian Woosnam when he’s competing the TPC Sugarloaf. So he wasn’t shocked when play ceased before the first round of the Greater Gwinnett Championship could be finished Friday because of rain.

“It’s incredible,” Woosnam said. “I’ve been here so many times (for the BellSouth Classic), and it’s rained nearly every time. One year I was here and it snowed.”

More surprising than the weather may have been Woosnam’s performance. Playing on a sponsor’s exemption, he was 4 under through 13 holes and tied for first when play was halted at 3:07 p.m.

Officials had hoped to send players out to finish the round, but the fairways were deemed unplayable because of the amount of standing water, and the round was suspended around 5 p.m. The first round will resume play at 8 a.m. Saturday, with the second round to start at 10:40 a.m. with the same pairings.

Woosnam is tied for first with Joey Sindelar, Tommy Armour III, Olin Browne and Gary Hallberg, who also is playing on a sponsor’s exemption. Eight others are bunched at 3 under, including Mark O’Meara, Tom Pernice Jr., Steve Pate, Steve Jones, Stephen Ames, Kevin Sutherland, Brad Faxon and Tom Byrum.

The start is the best for Woosnam since he arrived in America last month to prepare for the Masters. He failed to get inside the top 50 at the Champions Tour events in Tucson and Mississippi and missed the cut last week at Augusta National.

He looked more like the old Woosie on Friday. His approach shots were sharp, which led to short birdie putts on No. 10, No. 12, No. 13 and No. 15. Woosnam, who started his round on the 10th hole, also made a 50-footer for birdie on No. 4 and was on the fringe of the fifth hole when play stopped.

“In Europe we play a lot in the rain, it’s just that the course is extremely wet on the ground,” Woosnam said. “You have be awfully patient out there. I’ve played extremely well on my first 13 holes. I could have played better, but I’m happy to be 4 under par and looking forward to tomorrow.”

Woosnam has not played very often on the Champions Tour, only three events in 2014 and four in 2013, when he had his last top-10 finish, and has never won. He did win the 2014 Dutch Senior Open, his last victory.

“I’m just trying to building myself into it,” Woosnam said. “I’m still working on my swing a little bit. One minute I get it, one minute I lose it a little bit. (This weather is) not really great for my bad back. I’ll handle that and take what comes. I’m starting to play better. I play my best when I relax and not try too hard.”

The weather for the weekend is dicey, with rain expected at times on both days.

“I’ve got this old golf bag that I’ve been using, and the water just soaks right into it,” Hallberg said. “And I’m not dressed for it. I don’t have rain pants, I left everything at home. Going to Atlanta, it’s going to be nice. That was a mistake.”