Sutton Ahead by 3 When Rain Comes

Hal Sutton got the challenge he wanted and played the way he expected. The only thing that stopped him from winning his showdown against Tiger Woods in the Players Championship Sunday at Ponte Verdra Beach, Fla., was the weather.

Sutton was nearly flawless for 11 holes in building a three-stroke lead over Woods when thunderstorms drenched the TPC at Sawgrass and suspended the final round until today. NBC will televise the conclusion. It will be shown live in the East but delayed until 9 a.m. in the West.

Sutton didn’t miss any fairways and only one green, and that followed a bunker shot that he ranks among the best of his career to save par.

When play resumes, Woods will have a 40-foot birdie putt on the 12th, while Sutton has 82 yards left for his second shot from the fairway.

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After being sidelined because of a rib injury, Gil Morgan stormed back onto the Senior PGA Tour to win the Emerald Coast Classic at Milton, Fla.

He shot a three-under 67 to finished the 54-hole event at 13-under 197, four shots ahead of runner-up Larry Nelson.

Rain delayed the start of the final round by 2 hours 15 minutes . The golfers played through the rain on the back.

Notes

Sergio Garcia and his caddie, Fanny Sunesson, have parted company after only eight events together. The split came at the Players Championship, where the 20-year-old Spaniard missed the cut.