At 3 a.m. Saturday, TPC Louisiana superintendent Robb Arnold arrived at his bruised golf course. His crew was scheduled to begin work an hour later. He knew it was going to be another long day.
About 14 hours earlier, a shrill horn had sounded. Players and fans were ordered toward the clubhouse because of an approaching thunderstorm and possible lightning. Under gray skies, digital scoreboards placed throughout the 250-acre facility displayed a menacing message: “Dangerous weather. Clear the course immediately!!!”
At about 5 p.m. Friday, PGA Tour officials considered a suspension of play. They asked for Arnold’s opinion. They wondered how long it would take his 36-40-person crew to make the course playable. Two and a half inches of rain had fallen on TPC Louisiana in a little less than three hours. Forty-seven of 151 players had completed their second round.
“You have to give me an hour, an hour and a half,” Arnold said.
Throughout Friday and Saturday, Arnold and his crew worked to make TPC Louisiana competition-ready for the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. They withstood a suspended second day, three inches of rain and a mid-afternoon round change Saturday to try to salvage a Sunday finish.
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