Ryan Palmer parred his final hole at dusk for a 7-under 64 and the lead Thursday in the suspended first round of the Phoenix Open.
The start of the round was delayed an hour because of frost, and play was suspended because of darkness at 6:05 p.m. with 42 players unable to finish. Last year, frost and frozen greens delayed play nine hours during the week, forcing a Monday finish.
Webb Simpson was a stroke back on the Stadium Course at TPC Scottsdale.
“It’s one of those courses that just fits your eye well,” said Simpson, the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 6.
Jarrod Lyle, Harrison Frazar, Derek Lamely, Kevin Na and Chez Reavie were two strokes behind at 66. Bubba Watson, Jason Dufner and Spencer Levin also were 5 under, but Watson and Levin had three holes remaining, and Dufner, a playoff loser last year, had five holes to go.
Kyle Stanley opened with a 69, four days after a devastating loss in the Farmers Insurance Open. On Sunday at Torrey Pines, he made a triple-bogey 8 on the final hole of regulation and lost to Brandt Snedeker in a playoff.
“It was just good to be out there,” Stanley said. “It was almost therapeutic.”
Stanley was 4 under with three holes left, but bogeyed Nos. 7 and 9.
Palmer was unfazed by the dealy
“I knew I was going to be here in the morning for the second round, so I wasn’t worried about it if we had to come back and restart,” he said.
Palmer had 27 putts and hit 16 of 18 greens in regulation. He birdied the par-5 15th after his drive landed in the middle of the fairway and bounced into the water. He also saved par on the short par-4 17th after driving into the water.
MICKELSON ANGRY
Phil Mickelson filed a lawsuit against a Canadian-based Internet service provider seeking the identity of someone he said has been defaming him, saying his wife had an affair and the four-time major champion fathered an illegitimate child.
“I’m all for freedom of speech, but I won’t tolerate defamation,” Mickelson said.
DALY GOES LOW
Spain’s Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano finished with three straight birdies for a 6-under 66 at the Qatar Masters, overcoming blowing sand for a one shot lead over John Daly after the first round. K.J. Choi and Jason Day (68) were tied for third.
U.S. TEEN THIRD
Lee Bo-mee of South Korea shot a 7-under 65 to take a one-shot lead in the Australian Ladies Masters in Gold Coast, Australia. One stroke back was U.S. Open champion So Yeon Ryu and two others. U.S. teenager Lexi Thompson had five birdies in an error-free round to sit two shots back.
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