Byrum Shoots 65 to Lead Rain-Delayed Tournament in Florida

Tom Byrum, the first man off the tee, made nine birdies for a seven-under-par 65 that gave him the lead Thursday in the storm-disrupted first round of the $800,000 Honda tournament.

None of the afternoon starters--including defending champion Joey Sindelar, Paul Azinger, Mark O’Meara and Bruce Lietzke--had completed 18 holes when the first of a series of thunderstorms swept over the TPC course at Eagle Trace.

The 72 players stranded by the storms marked their positions and are scheduled to return this morning to complete first-round play.

PGA Tour Tournament Director Tom Shea said second-round play will begin at 10 a.m., EST, with a last starting time of about 4 p.m.

“There’s no chance of finishing second-round play tomorrow,” he said. “But we’ll finish the second round on Saturday, make the cut, then play the third round Saturday afternoon and be back on schedule--weather permitting,” he said.

The high humidity and morning fog, which delayed the start of the day’s play for 45 minutes, combined with the rare absence of wind to produce exceptionally good scoring conditions for the early starters.

Three of them, South African Fulton Allem, Fred Couples and Ted Schulz, are tied at 66.