Cold Hard Facts
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The longer South Carolina’s Tommy Gainey guarded his unlikely spot on the first page of the Phoenix leaderboard late Sunday, the harder it was to ignore the symbolism. Gainey wears two golf gloves (see photo left). Morning spectators at the Waste Management Phoenix Open all week long needed two mittens.

In a year where meteorological anomalies have made a hash of starting times all across the global tournament landscape, Phoenix was no exception. Daily frost delays piled up and by Friday the resultant logistical logjam convinced tournament officials that a Monday finish was the best solution.

That triggered a blizzard of conflicting opinions about whether a 54-hole event that ends Sunday is preferable to a 72-hole affair that has to wait until the next day for its conclusion.

The Post’s John Reger was on the scene in Arizona and, inside the pages of this edition, offers a pointed analysis of this controversial dilemma along with the thoughts of the key decision-makers.

Meanwhile, in the Middle East, Denmark’s Thomas Bjorn braved fierce winds in Qatar and dusted a strong Euro field that included Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer, the world’s No. 1 and No. 2 players, respectively. Westwood raised eyebrows with a missed cut.

In Australia, 2010 LPGA Player of the Year Yani Tseng survived torrential rains to win by seven at the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open. Fifteen-year-old Lexi Thompson raised eyebrows by missing the cut there.