Mike Weir shot a bogey-free 6-under 65 on Thursday for a share of the lead with Anthony Kim and Eric Axley at the Canadian Open in a first round that was only half completed because of rain.
The round was suspended for darkness after it had been delayed earlier for 5 hours, 42 minutes.
“You want to take advantage of today because it’s only going to get a little firmer and faster,” said Weir, his words punctuated by a clap of thunder that drew a smile and forced him to reconsider his answer. “Maybe not with what’s coming. Maybe not.”
PHOTO: AP
Richard Johnson, J.P. Hayes, Nicholas Thompson, Ryan Armour and Jason Allred shot 67s on the course saturated by 20cm of rain in six days. John Senden and Charley Hoffman also were 4 under. Senden played nine holes, and Hoffman completed eight.
Because of the wet conditions, players were allowed to use preferred lies.
“We’re playing lift, clean and place and, if you hit fairways, you’re going to have great opportunities to go at flags,” Kim said.
“The course isn’t overly long. But if you can hit some 7-irons 15 feet and shake some of those in, you’ll be in good shape. I hit every fairway and that gave me a lot of opportunities to go at some pins.”
Two-time defending champion Jim Furyk, a few minutes away from teeing off when play was suspended because of lightning a little before 1pm, was 1 under at the turn.
A brief storm hit at about 1:30pm and waves of showers followed, flooding bunkers and fairways on the course that many players thought would be unplayable after heavy rain on Wednesday. Play resumed at about 6:30pm and was suspended because of darkness at 8:49pm, leaving the course once again to the weary maintenance crew.
“I heard in the locker room somebody said they were here until 3 in the morning,” Weir said. “I’m sure they got a couple hours of sleep and were right back at it first thing. They’ve had their work cut out and they’ve done a great job. It exceeded my expectations what I thought I was going to see out there.”
Trying to become the first Canadian winner since Pat Fletcher in 1954, Weir is back at Glen Abbey for the first time since a playoff loss to Vijay Singh in 2004. The 2003 Masters champion is making his 18th appearance in the event. He missed the cut in his first nine starts — eight at Glen Abbey and one at Royal Montreal.
“I did need to get over the struggles I had around here,” Weir said. “Finally shooting some good rounds in 2004 helped me get over the mental hurdle that I can shoot better than 70 out here.”
Kim, the Wachovia Championship and AT&T National winner, is coming off a seventh-place tie in the British Open. The 23-year-old American was back in form on Thursday after adjusting his swing to cope with the strong wind at Royal Birkdale.
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