Luke Donald was just two shots behind early leader Jason Dufner when the first round of the WGC-Cadillac Championship was suspended due to high winds.
US PGA Champion Dufner was five under through ten holes at the redesigned Blue Monster when increasingly gusty winds and the threat of a tornado forced the players off the course for over two hours, with play set to resume at 4:45pm local time.
That was one ahead of compatriot Russell Henley, the man who denied Rory McIlroy in a four-way play-off for the Honda Classic last week.
Former World Number One Donald shared third with another American, Patrick Reed, after birdies at the tenth – his first – 17th and second over his first 11 holes.
“I was playing pretty good, making some putts, hitting a lot of greens,” said Donald during the suspension. “I'm struggling on three; I have a 25 footer for bogey unfortunately, but happy with my start. I made some putts, I hit some good swings.
“I’m feeling a lot more confident with my long game, and last week my short game really kicked in again. It all seems to be coming together and rounding off nicely.”
Italian Ryder Cup star Francesco Molinari was a shot further back in a tie for fifth, and a further six European Tour Members were inside the top ten.
Joost Luiten, Louis Oosthuizen, Miguel Angel Jiménez, Victor Dubuisson, Sergio Garcia and Rory McIlroy were all one under during the early stages.
However, Northern Ireland’s McIlroy could have been even better placed having reached three under after just four holes before bogeys at the 14th, 17th and 18th saw him turn in 35.
“Four birdies in the first nine holes is pretty good and I'm in a good position going into the first green,” said McIlroy. “I've only got 190 yards to the front of the par five, so I have a good chance for birdie there.
“You can sort of regroup and get back out and play nine holes and then you can start fresh for the next nine holes, so it's not so bad.”
