Ryder Cup to resume shortly (Extra)

Oct 1, 2010, 16:10 GMT

Newport, Wales - The 38th Ryder Cup will resume later Friday afternoon at the Celtic Manor Resort in Newport, Wales, the chief referee John Paramor has announced.

Play was suspended early Friday after just two hours of play as heavy rain made the course waterlogged and unplayable.

'We are going to restart at five local time. The forecast for later today is quite good. There is no rain and it should not rain this afternoon, in fact we expect it to clear and it could be quite bright.

'The greenkeepers have assured me that they need about an hour to make the course playable. Hopefully we will then get a good two hours of play before it gets too dark.'

When play was suspended, Europe were looking strong with Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer 2-up after five holes against Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell held a one stroke lead over Stewart Cink and Matt Kuchar through four while Ian Poulter and Ross Fisher were also 1-up after three against Steve Stricker and Tiger Woods.

Only the fourth flight saw the US leading with rookies Bubba Watson and Jeff Overton 2-up against Luke Donald and Padraig Harrington after two.

It seems likely though that play at the competition, which sees 12-man teams from the US and Europe competing against each other, will have to continue to Monday.