The PGA Tour is in Louisiana this week for the 2019 Zurich Classic, where lightning suspended play for much of the day. Only eight teams managed to finish their opening rounds, and the entire afternoon wave of tee times have to wait until Friday morning to begin their first rounds.
Here’s everything you missed from Thursday’s four-ball (best-ball) action in New Orleans.
New Orleans has a reputation for wet weather this time of year, and this year’s opening round appears to be maintaining the unfortunate precedent. At 9:42 a.m. local time, play was suspended due to lightning in the area, and players were not permitted back on the course until 5:14 p.m. local time — a lengthy delay, to say the least.
R1 of @Zurich_Classic resumed at 5:14pm, following a delay of 7 hours, 33 minutes. @PGATOUR
— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) April 25, 2019
As one of the eight teams who managed to finish the first round today, Stallings and Mullinax may have a huge portion of the day off on Friday, but at 11 under par, they currently lead the charge by one shot over a two-team tie at 10 under par.
But one of those teams tied for second — Brian Gay and Rory Sabbatini — have four holes remaining in their round.
At the time of the re-start on Thursday, the 10 groups in the afternoon wave had yet to tee off, and a significant portion of the morning wave will have to complete their first rounds on Friday morning before the afternoon wave begins.
And Thursday’s afternoon wave will have a quick turnaround on Friday, because they’re the ones with the first tee times in the second round. If the weather cooperates, there’s a chance the second round can get at least partially played by the end of the day on Friday.
R1 @Zurich_Classic suspended due to darkness at 7:35 p.m. CT and will resume at 7 a.m. Friday. Second wave of R1 scheduled to begin at 7:15 a.m. Friday.
— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) April 26, 2019
The Zurich Classic became a team-format event in 2017, and it’s always fun to see which pros pair up and how they navigate the course together. Here’s a roundup of how the biggest names are faring so far this week:
Jason Day & Adam Scott: -7
Bubba Watson & J.B. Holmes: -7
Brooks Koepka & Chase Kopeka: -5
David Duval & Jim Furyk: -4
Sergio Garcia & Tommy Fleetwood: -4
Ernie Els & Trevor Immelman: +1
Jason Dufner & Pat Perez: N/A
Defending champs Scott Piercy & Billy Horschel: N/A
Henrik Stenson & Graeme McDowell: N/A
Patrick Reed & Patrick Cantlay: N/A
Louis Oosthuizen & Charl Schwartzel: N/A
Cameron Champ & Sam Burns: N/A
Keegan Bradley & Jon Curran: N/A
Davis Love III & Dru Love: N/A
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