Just call him ‘One Under’

It’s easy for Andrew Parr to joke about a name that’s ripe for a moniker from Chris Berman.

“I tell everyone my middle name is ‘Under’ when I’m playing easy courses,” he said. “Like, par’s not going to be good enough this week.”

Par has been good enough to win three of the last four U.S. Opens, and Parr’s play Thursday was strong enough to give him a piece of the lead at one under.

The 26-year-old seemed almost embarrassed by that status, given that he played only three holes, made a pair of 20-foot putts and was “all over the map” on two of his drives.

But even spraying shots in the rain seemed fun to Parr, whose outlook changed after suffering a stroke in October 2007 that left him temporarily paralyzed on his right side.

“It changed my life for the best,” he said. “I was always so focused on my career and took a lot of things for granted -- my family and other relationships.

“Now I play golf for fun. I’m enjoying the ride as I go.”

Parr couldn’t speak immediately after suffering the stroke. He was hospitalized for a week and lost his equilibrium.

But the Toronto-area native reworked his swing, made a few bucks ($44,295) on the Canadian tour last year and qualified for the Open at a sectional in Roslyn, Wash.

Less than two years after fearing for his life, Parr says he feels strong.

“Yeah, [thanks to] the Canadian health care system,” he joked after being egged on by a Canadian reporter. “Don’t be afraid of socialism, America.”

Clouds over Long Island

Rain delays are rare in the U.S. Open unless it happens to be played on Long Island.

Thursday’s suspension of play at Bethpage Black because of heavy rain made it a third straight Open on Long Island to be affected at some point by the weather.

In the 2004 Open, played at Shinnecock Hills, farther east on Long Island, a thunderstorm at 4:43 p.m. caused a 2-hour 12-minute delay during the first round, and when play was resumed, it was called off for the day 45 minutes later because of fog.

That was the last time, until Thursday, a round was not completed the day it started.

The only other time the Open was held at Bethpage, in 2002, play was suspended for 49 minutes late in the final round because of severe weather.

Weather channel

Officials expected the rain tally at Bethpage to measure in excess of an inch by the end of Thursday.

Only once has a U.S. Open stretched past Sunday because of a weather delay.

That was at Oakmont in 1983, when the final round was suspended with five holes remaining because of a thunderstorm.

Rain is in the forecast for the rest of the weekend, though as of Thursday evening there was only a 20% chance of precipitation for today.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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tgreenstein@tribune.com