ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- British Open officials found themselves in the perfect storm amid the storms that hit the Old Course at St. Andrews.
In anticipation of heavy rain that inundated the course Friday, delaying play more than three hours, officials had put pins on high locations of greens so that play would not be affected even more.
But when wind gusting to 45 mph hit early Saturday morning, those locations were so exposed that players could not keep their balls from moving on the holes near the sea.
The result was a delay of 10 hours and 46 minutes that forced officials to move back the final day of the Open to Monday, the first time that's happened since 1988.
"It was always going to be a difficult day, we knew that," R&A rules director David Rickman said. "But we were keen to give it a go."
Reed's retreat
Many players retreated to their rooms at the plush Old Course Hotel, located beside the 17th fairway at St. Andrews, while play was suspended for 10 hours at the British Open on Saturday because of raging wind.
All Patrick Reed had was a couch in a dining hall.
Reed is staying with friends and family in a place 25 miles from the Old Course, so he didn't fancy making the trip back while the R&A deliberated when to resume play.
"They had two couches by a table, and we stayed there the entire time," Reed said after his 2-under 70 in his second round. "Whenever they say, 'OK, we'll update you in an hour,' it's just not enough time for us to be able to go all the way back to where we're staying and back, so we just had to hunker down here."
Reed is 2 under for the tournament, eight shots off the lead.
Duval makes cut
Former Open champion David Duval needed to birdie the last hole to do it, but he made the cut for the first time since 2008.
Duval, who won in 2001 at Lytham, needed only a short putt on the 18th hole to make the cut on the number at even par.
The 43-year-old Duval, once the No. 1 player in the world, has cut back on his schedule in recent years and plays only sporadically. He also serves as an analyst for the Golf Channel.
He shot two rounds of 72 and is 10 shots off the lead.
First ace
Daniel Brooks missed the cut in his first British Open but will take a special memory home from St. Andrews.
The Englishman made a hole in one at the 174-yard 11th hole shortly after play resumed Saturday.
When Brooks saw the ball disappear into the cup, he threw up his arms and slapped hands with his caddie.
Despite making the first hole in one at the home of golf this week, Brooks missed the cut by five shots after finishing with a 5-over 149. He was one of the last players to get into the Open, qualifying with a seventh-place finish last weekend at the Scottish Open.
Successful debut
Scott Arnold didn't mind the weather delay and was excited to get back on the course.
Once he got there, four consecutive birdies gave the mini-tour player from Australia a chance to keep playing in his first major championship.
"I can't really put into words how good I feel at the moment," said Arnold, who went through a qualifier to get into the Open.
Arnold made the cut on the number after his string of birdies that began at the 12th hole. A bogey on 17 left him at even par, and he managed to make a final par on 18 despite nearly topping his ball off the tee.
"I think it's probably one of the best two-putts of my life," Arnold said of the 18th hole.
Arnold, 29, plays on the European Challenge Tour and the PGA Tour of Australasia, but has yet to have a breakthrough since turning pro in 2009.
Now the son of a professional golfer is in the final two rounds, with a guaranteed paycheck and no worries.
"I think a bit of pressure is off now, really," he said. "I've got nothing to lose."
Sports on 07/19/2015