Rain wipes out play at Mayakoba Golf Classic

PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Mexico – Heavy rainfall has saturated the course at the Mayakoba Golf Classic, and after tee times were pushed back five hours and then two hours, play was finally called for the day without a shot being hit at 1 p.m. Thursday.

Players and officials will try again Friday, with the possibility of a Monday finish looming.

“The bottom line is we just don’t have a golf course that’s playable,” said PGA TOUR Senior Vice President of Rules & Competition Slugger White. “We’ve got situations out there where we could lose balls in areas that we have no virtual certainty where it was. There’s so many scenarios out there that just don’t fit making an effort.”

The last time rain canceled an entire round without a shot being hit was the second round of the recent ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP, won by Tiger Woods. The last time it scuttled the opening round without a shot being hit was the 2013 Sentry Tournament of Champions.

This is the sixth year in which rain has delayed play at Mayakoba’s El Camaleon Golf Club, where the tournament began in 2007. The last suspension was in 2017, when Patton Kizzire won after delays of two hours and 15 minutes Friday and five hours and 10 minutes Saturday.

The weather forecast for Friday is not much better, which could make for a jam-packed weekend once the rain clears. “Yes, sir,” White said, when asked if officials would go to Monday if necessary. The course has taken 8.5 inches of rain this week, and was already saturated from rain last week.

“Nothing’s draining,” White said. “Everything always drains to the mangroves here, and there’s no place for it to go with that much rain.”