| Rye,
N.Y. 13th June 1998 -
The US Open preparation plans of Europe's top golfers have been thrown into confusion
as rain continues to plague the Buick Classic in New York. Only
57 players in the starting field have managed to finish their second round at
the Westchester Country Club course. Another
70 remain to complete their round while a further 29, including Scotland's Sandy
Lyle and Ireland's Richard Coughlan, have withdrawn stating a variety of reasons. Five
European Tour players - England's Lee Westwood, North Ireland's Darren Clarke,
Welshman Ian Woosnam, Germany's Bernhard Langer and Spain's Jose Maria Olazabal,
are competing in New York as an intended stop-off point en route to the US Open,
which begins in San Francisco on Thursday. Half
a day's play was lost because of rain on Friday and only three-and-a-half hours
of interrupted play was possible today due to continuous showers sweeping the
area. US PGA
Tour officials were hoping to resume the second round at 5.30pm New York time
but if this was not possible the round would be rescheduled to start early Sunday. But
there is also the real likelihood of play running into Monday if rain further
disrupts the tournament. If
this is the case then Westwood, who is level par following a three-over-par 74,
along with Clarke, at two over, and possibly Olazabal, at three over, will need
to stay on in the Big Apple. US-based
Briton Nick Faldo is another who will be affected. He carded a one-under 70 to
be two over in total but was upset that tour officials allowed play to resume
for a second time mid-morning when the course was in no fit shape after a deluge
brought the first halt at 8.45am. First-round
leader Kevin Sutherland of America continues to head the event, picking up a shot
to move to eight under after seven holes of his second round. Three
players, including former US PGA champion Bob Tway, are in a group one stroke
behind. Sweden's
Jasper Parnevik had picked up two shots in eight holes to move into a share of
seventh place at four under. | 
