BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — The second round of the Australian PGA championship was washed out Friday due to rain and an unplayable course and the tournament has been shortened to 54 holes.
Officials for the Australasian PGA Tour and European Tour event made the announcement more than five hours after the first group was scheduled to tee off at Royal Queensland.
There had been about 25 millimeters (one inch) of rain overnight Thursday, adding to the 200 millimeters (eight inches) that had hit the course earlier in the week. Rain began falling heavily again on the course as the decision was made to abandon Friday's play and reduce the tournament to three rounds.
Organizers were hampered by the fact that Queensland state, where the tournament is being played, does not operate on daylight time, meaning play beyond 6 p.m. or 6:30 p.m. was not possible.
The weather forecast for the weekend was for improved conditions.
Australian 22-year-old Elvis Smylie, son of former tennis pro Liz Smylie, led after the first round with a 6-under 65. He had a one-stroke lead over French player Victor Perez, Australian Matias Sanchez, Switzerland's Joel Girrbach and Chile’s Cristobal Del Solar, who birdied four of his last five holes on a soggy course on Thursday afternoon.
Local drawcards and major winners Cameron Smith and Jason Day, in his first Australian event in seven years, were two shots behind Smylie after 67s.
Min Woo Lee, who won last year's tournament at Royal Queensland, shot 68 and was three strokes off the lead. Lee, Day and Smith were in the same group Thursday.
The Australian PGA is the first event of the 2025 European Tour season.
Many of the same players will travel to Melbourne next week for the Australian Open, also on the European Tour, which is being played concurrently with the Women's Australian Open at famed sandbelt courses Kingston Heath and Victoria.
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Min Woo Lee of Australia, left, Justin Rose of England, centre, and Nicolai Hojgaard of Denmark prepare to plays their second shot at the 3rd hole during the second round of Abu Dhabi Golf Championship in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Friday, Nov. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House was tinted green on Thursday, when President Joe Biden — Secret Service code name: Celtic — welcomed “Coach Joe” Mazzulla and the Boston Celtics to the South Lawn to celebrate the franchise’s unprecedented 18th NBA championship.
In a tradition believed to have begun when Bill Russell’s 1963 Celtics met with President John F. Kennedy, Biden welcomed the NBA’s 2024 champions and gave them a tour of the Oval Office. In all, the league’s most-decorated franchise has won at least one title in eight of the last 13 presidential administrations.
“The Celtics aren’t just a basketball team. They’re a way of life,” Biden told the crowd, quoting Celtics patriarch Red Auerbach before receiving a No. 46 jersey from All-Star Jayson Tatum and guard Derrick White.
Biden noted that his Secret Service code name is “Celtic.”
“For real. Because I'm Irish,” the president said. “Everybody behind me is Irish in their heart. I feel a special pride in this trophy. From this old Irish Celtic, to all you Celtics, congratulations.”
Biden, who was once one of the youngest senators in U.S. history and is now the country’s oldest president ever, said he felt a kinship with Mazzulla, who was 35 when he led the Celtics to the title in his second season.
“Joe’s the youngest head coach to win a title since the great Bill Russell,” Biden said. “I told him I used to be the youngest and now I’m the oldest. I liked being the youngest better.”
The Celtics were greeted with a band playing “Shipping up to Boston,” before Biden and team owner Wyc Grousbeck joined them on the risers facing the Washington Monument; green lights shined from from the eaves of the White House behind them. Among those in attendance were Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and most of the state’s congressional delegation.
“I didn’t really know what to expect. I walked in, I was like 'I’m more excited than I thought I was going be,” White told reporters afterward. “To be in the White House, to be where all the decisions — all the cool things — are happening, that was the best part.”
Celtics co-owner Steve Pagliuca said Biden's 4-year-old grandson, Beau Jr., tried on his championship ring. (Oshae Brissett, a member of the 2024 team who is not with the Celtics this year, was at the ceremony and received his championship ring on Thursday.)
Biden also received a commemorative basketball, which he passed to Celtics center Al Horford. And then threw back and forth with a member of the crowd.
“I wasn’t expecting a pump fake,” White told reporters. “It’s harder to make a pass in a suit, so I was impressed.”
Biden was well-briefed on the Celtics history and their success last year, when they cruised to 64 wins in the regular season – their most since winning the 2008 title, and the fourth-best in franchise history. They went 16-3 in the playoffs, eliminating the Dallas Mavericks in five games.
Biden even noted that the ’24 Celtics had the highest ratio of points per possession in NBA history – one of the wonkier stats, but one that had team vice president and stats guru Mike Zarren beaming.
“The basketball stats community has come a long way: the President of the United States is talking about points per possession!” Zarren posted on X after speaking to reporters at the ceremony.
Members of the Celtics organization went back into the White House after the festivities to meet with administration officials on pet issues, including “Raise the Age,” which seeks to have 18- to 20-year-olds treated as juveniles in the criminal justice system, and “Curbside Care,” which provides medical aid to new mothers in underserved communities.
“This was a very exciting and moving day,” Grousbeck told reporters in a video call afterwards. “We had not been focused on this. We got through the banner and opening night, and then it was all business. Joe (Mazzulla) doesn’t want us to dwell too much on the past, he wants everyone to focus on moving forward. Having said that, everyone here, including Joe, seemed to have a great time.”
Zarren said he spoke to a Secret Service agent who was a Celtics fan and had to bear with the Golden State Warriors’ visit two years ago.
“He told them it was a bittersweet moment because he wished his Celtics were here. And they said to him, ‘Don’t worry, they’ll be here soon,’” Zarren said. “So for him, it was a good moment to see us show up inside there.”
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
Hunter Biden, second from right, talks with Boston Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck, left, following an welcoming the Boston Celtics to celebrate their victory in the 2024 National Basketball Association Championship, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
President Joe Biden holds a basketball he received from the Boston Celtics at an event to celebrate their victory in the 2024 National Basketball Association Championship, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
Boston Celtics Jaylen Brown talk with people following an event with President Joe Biden to celebrate the Celtics victory in the 2024 National Basketball Association Championship, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
President Joe Biden, center, speaks during an event to welcome the Boston Celtics and celebrate their victory in the 2024 National Basketball Association Championship, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
President Joe Biden, left, and Boston Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck, right, arrive for an event celebrating the Boston Celtics' victory in the 2024 National Basketball Association Championship, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Boston Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck, from left, and President Joe Biden hold up the Boston Celtics' trophy as they pose for a team photo to celebrate the Celtics victory in the 2024 National Basketball Association Championship during an event on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Boston Celtics Al Horford, center, poses with guests during an event with President Joe Biden to celebrate the Celtics victory in the 2024 National Basketball Association Championship, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Boston Celtics player Jaylen Brown holds the Boston Celtics championship trophy following an event with President Joe Biden to celebrate the Celtics victory in the 2024 National Basketball Association Championship, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
President Joe Biden, center, speaks during an event to welcome the Boston Celtics and celebrate their victory in the 2024 National Basketball Association Championship, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
President Joe Biden throws a basketball he received from the Boston Celtics at an event to celebrate the team's victory in the 2024 National Basketball Association Championship, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
