Mayfair early leader at BellSouth

Rain-plagued tournament shortened to 54 holes

? Billy Mayfair was 4 under through 13 holes Saturday to take a one-stroke lead in the first round of the rain-delayed BellSouth Classic, shortened to 54 holes after the stormy conditions wiped out the first two days of play.

After originally planning a 36-hole finish Monday to complete 72 holes, PGA Tour official Slugger White said the players would play only a single round Monday. The forecast for today is for temperatures in the 60s with 10-15 mph wind, and it is expected to be in the low 70s Monday with little wind.

Rain has affected eight of the 14 tournaments on tour so far this year. Last week, The Players Championship also finished on a Monday in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.

Mayfair was among 63 players who did not finish the round, which will be completed this morning. J.L. Lewis, Scott McCarron and Ted Purdy were the leaders in the clubhouse at 3-under 69, and Brett Quigley and Ryuji Imada also were 3 under. Quigley completed 16 holes, and Imada played 11.

Phil Mickelson, preparing for his title defense next week in the Masters, was 2 over through 15 holes.

“The hardest part is when it’s cold and you have delays, it’s hard to stay warm,” said Mayfair, who wore a stocking cap that covered his ears.

Mayfair had four birdies in his abbreviated round.

Vijay Singh, Tiger Woods and Ernie Els, the top three players in the world, skipped the BellSouth to focus on the Masters.

Retief Goosen, ranked fifth in the world and the winner here in 2002, shot a 72, and defending champion Zach Johnson had a 75.