Staring down a Monday finish at The Honda Classic
Read this like you would a car commercial: The Honda Classic, extended! For one. More. Day!
The Honda Classic resumes its third round on Sunday at 10 a.m. after play was called on Saturday following a two-hour weather delay. When play was called just before 3 p.m. on Saturday, PGA Tour officials expected to restart play at 7 a.m. However, over 5 inches of rain fell on PGA National on Saturday, knocking down scoreboards and signage, creating air bubbles on greens and damaging bunkers. Grounds crews needed more time to prepare the golf course.
“There’s no way we can hit a 7 a.m. (start),” said Slugger White, the PGA Tour’s vice-president of rules and competition, according to Golfweek.
A total of 71 players made the 36-hole cut, with the second round completed on Saturday morning. That forced a split-tee start for Round 3 in groups of three. However, just four tee times got started on the first and 10th holes before play was halted for the day.
All that means there’s no way The Honda Classic will finish on Sunday.
A Monday finish always leads to eye-rolling from everyone involved, but this isn’t the first time The Honda Classic will extend beyond Sunday. In 2007, the first year the event was held at PGA National, Mark Wilson went on to win the tournament on Monday.
However, the Monday after Honda isn’t your typical travel day. For a good number of players in the field, Monday is the legendary pro-member tournament at Seminole Golf Club, 20 minutes toward the Atlantic from PGA National. In 2014, the pro-member had six of the world’s top 10 in the field.
Don’t be surprised, then, for a rash of players withdrawing from the tournament after Round 3 is finished.
Ryan Ballengee is a Yahoo Sports contributor. Find him on Facebook and Twitter.
