Hurricane Irene Cuts Barclay Down to 54 Holes

As Hurricane Irene nears the PGA Tour decided on Friday to reduce its first playoff event down to 54 holes. New Jersey came under Hurricane warning, and tournament officials feared up to 10 inches of rain could fall on Sunday.

That type of downpour would make it impossible for the Barclays to be a 72-hole tournament, and the potential aftermath of the storm could keep Plainfield Country Club from being ready to play on, even into early next week.

Slugger White, the tour’s vice president of competition, said the plan was to finish 36 hole Friday and start the third round first thing Saturday morning, with hopes of getting in a 54-hole event before the rain arrives.

If they can’t finish Saturday, he said it would revert to a 36-hole tournament. Points would be distributed as if it were a full event, meaning the top 100 players after The Barclays would advance to the second playoff event next week outside Boston. Left unclear was whether a 36-hole tournament—if that were the case— would count as an official win.

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