Fierce storm blows WGC-Cadillac off course as play is suspended

Graeme McDowell was just about to go to the 10th tee to play the opening round with Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson - and instead watched a tree blow over and a hospitality tent "attempt to fly off".

Strong gusts also destroyed the large manual scoreboard near the 18th green at Doral and toppled a TV tower into a pond behind the ninth green.

Players were removed from the golf course at 11:45 am local time as a storm system approached. Less than an hour later, a squall sent the scoreboard crashing down. US PGA Tour officials surveying the damage said it could not be repaired. Two television towers toppled - one behind the eighth green, the other behind the ninth green - and the top of the tower was submerged in a small pond behind the ninth.

None of the structures would affect play, and the first round was due to resume in mid-afternoon if conditions improved.

Ian Poulter had time only to drive into the left rough down the long first before the siren sounded and, on his return to the clubhouse, posted a video of the storm on his Twitter site. By then the 69-strong field had already been reduced to 66 with Bubba Watson, a semi-finalist at the WGC-Accenture Match Play two weeks ago, pulling out because of illness and both fellow American Ben Crane and South African Tim Clark failing to recover from injuries.

Clark has not played since the Sony Open in Hawaii in January because of tendinitis in his right elbow and Crane suffered a pulled rib muscle at the Match Play.

Watson, the world number 15, had tweeted: "I am going to try and play today, but my head hurts, body aches and got no energy!"

The big-hitter also joked that Poulter, one of his playing partners, would be out-driving him, but then Watson went to the practice range and realised the situation was a bit more serious. "Hit one ball and knew I could not play," he said. "Club felt so heavy. Time to rest and be ready for next week."

Danes Thomas Bjorn and Anders Hansen and Indian SSP Chowrasia led at one under, all after only one hole, while Welshman Rhys Davies had a two-foot putt on the second to remain level par. Australian Geoff Ogilvy was left regretting that he had started. Ogilvy's second shot on the 551-yard 10th found the lake and he was heading towards a double bogey seven.

Officials announced they hoped to resume play at 2.30pm local time. With over two-and-a-half hours lost there seemed little chance of the first round being completed before nightfall - and that was assuming no further hold-ups.