Not out of the woods yet

Adam Candee

Friday, April 8, 2005 | 10:51 a.m.

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- On a pace of two steps forward and one step back at Augusta National, Ryan Moore can keep believing in his chances at the waterlogged Masters.

Moore resumed his first round at No. 12 this morning at 6:45 a.m. PDT and mixed in two birdies with a bogey to card a 1-under 71, which made him one of just 15 in the field under par as players scrambled to finish their opening rounds and begin their second.

At 12:40 p.m. local time, officials again pulled players off the course because of bad weather, with no indication as to when play would restart.

Golf's version of hide-and-seek with the rain forced players to race out into soggy conditions after a six-hour rain delay Thursday. Play was halted for darkness and almost three-quarters of the field returned early this morning. First-round play was completed this morning before the second stoppage of the tournament.

Chris DiMarco led the Masters after one round at 5-under, although David Howell caught DiMarco eight holes into his second round with birdies on five of his first seven holes. Luke Donald also joined the lead group at 5-under with a birdie on his only second-round hole. Vijay Singh trailed by a stroke.

The Masters could be in catch-up mode into Saturday morning if play could not be resumed in quick fashion.

Neither the halting play, the pairing with contenders Phil Mickelson (2-under) and Stuart Appleby (3-under) or the muddy, clammy conditions affected Moore, though, as he battled through a couple of tough holes to remain in contention.

"I don't mind it at all," Moore said of the weather and course conditions as he completed his first round.

A native of the Seattle area, Moore prides himself on his ability to play in the worst of weather conditions. The storms that tore through Augusta National and halted play Thursday gave Georgia the look of the Pacific Northwest, down to the ominous fog that lingered into this morning.

"I'm just playing," Moore said Thursday. "Simple as that. I'm just playing golf like any other day for me. I didn't hit the ball as well as I would like to today, but I made some great par savers, and some good up-and-downs early from awkward spots so I was happy with it."

In his final seven holes this morning, Moore carded three pars before narrowly missing an eagle at the par-5 15th, tapping in a short putt for birdie. He followed that by hitting to within about 6 feet of the cup at the par-3 16th and dropping the putt to go to 2-under.

At the par-4 17th, Moore sailed his second shot over the green, especially troublesome with the challenging back pin placement atop a ridge. Moore had little room to work with on his chip up the hill, sent it 12 feet past the cup and two-putted for bogey.

"It was just one of those that just got away from me a little bit," Moore said.

A UNLV senior, Moore opened his second Masters in impressive fashion, blistering a drive into the uphill fairway at No. 1 after Mickelson spilled his drive to the left. Moore had plenty of opportunities to fade Thursday and this morning, but managed some strong saves.

Particularly remarkable was Moore's work at the par-4 ninth, a 460-yard monster with a roller coaster dip to the fairway. Moore flew his second shot past the green onto a little ridge, leaving him with tough work coming back with the green sloping away from him.

His mind's eye at work, Moore stopped right before taking his chip to walk down to the fringe, sweeping out his left arm to envision the break. He nearly holed his third shot, and saved his par with a slick 8-foot putt.

The 71 was Moore's first under par in five rounds in the Masters. In 2003, he shot 73-74-75-79 to finish tied for 45th.

Summerlin resident Chris Riley needed to finish just three holes this morning, completing a solid round of 1-under 71 that included four birdies. He was at even-par through five holes of his second round.

Former UNLV standout Chad Campbell began to salvage a rough Thursday with two quick morning birdies to finish at 1-over 73.