K.J. Choi leads rain-delayed RBC Heritage golf tournament

K.J. Choi’s early tee time and quick start moved him to the top of the rain-delayed RBC Heritage at Hilton Head Island, S.C., on Friday.

Choi shot a 67 to get to five-under-par 137, one stroke ahead of Robert Allenby and two in front of a group led by former world No. 1 Luke Donald as the second round was suspended because of heavy storms.

Allenby was among 65 players still on the course when the rain hit Harbour Town Golf Links. Officials delayed the round shortly before 3 p.m. and then sent everyone home until Saturday morning after waiting through about 90 minutes of steady, heavy rain. Allenby has 13 holes to finish when play resumes Saturday morning.

Donald shot a 69 and joined Billy Hurley III (69) and first-round tri-leader Scott Langley (73) in the clubhouse two shots behind Choi. Bo Van Pelt and Ben Martin were also at three under early in their rounds.

Masters contenders Matt Kuchar and 20-year-old Jordan Spieth faltered after their strong starts at Harbour Town.

Kuchar, who tied for fifth last week at the year’s first major, had a pair of double bogeys on his first six holes before the rains came and stood four shots behind Choi.

Spieth, a Masters rookie who tied for second at Augusta National, had a 74 and was at one-over 143 — good enough to make the projected cut of four over, but well off his opening 69.

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Angela Stanford shot a five-under 67 to open a four-stroke lead after three rounds of the LPGA LOTTE Championship in breezy Kapolei, Hawaii. Stanford is 13 under going into the final round Saturday, ahead of Hyo Joo Kim and Michelle Wie at nine under.

Stanford, a five-time LPGA Tour winner, finished the day with six birdies and one bogey, one day after taking the tournament lead with a 64 in the second round. Stanford birdied two holes in a row on the front nine, getting to 10 under with a birdie on the par-5 fifth hole. She moved to 13 under with birdies on Nos. 11, 12 and 13.

Wie shot two under in the third round to move into a tie with the 18-year-old Kim.

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Miguel Angel Jimenez made a dramatic Champions Tour debut, setting a tournament record with a first-round 65 on Friday in the soggy Greater Gwinnett Championship in Duluth, Ga.

Jimenez, coming off a fourth-place finish in the Masters, overcame constant rain and chilly temperatures at TPC Sugarloaf. He shot a six-under 30 on his first nine holes, including an eagle on No. 18. He reached seven under with a birdie on No. 2 and closed with seven straight pars.

Defending champion Bernhard Langer, Steve Pate and Kenny Perry each shot a 68.

Fred Couples shot a 69, including a double bogey on No. 9, his finishing hole. Jeff Sluman also shot a 69. Though light rain began soon after the round began and became more intense in the afternoon, there was no delay.

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Gene Fieger won the Senior PGA Professional National Championship in Port St. Lucie, Fla., on Friday, closing with a three-under 69 for a six-stroke victory.

The 53-year-old Fieger, the PGA director of golf at Hideout Golf Club in Naples, Fla., finished at 13-under 275 at PGA Golf Club and earned $20,000 in the event postponed in October in Virginia because of rain and flooding. The top 35 earned spots in the Senior PGA Championship on May 22-25 at Harbor Shores in Michigan.

Don Berry had a 70 to finish second. The 53-year-old Berry is the PGA head professional at Edinburgh USA in Brooklyn Park, Minn.