"What the suspended play really shows is greed."

Michael Bamberger looks past the wet rainsuits and water-logged golf bags to get at the heart of the real issue here: the European Tour's selling of the Ryder Cup to the highest bidder.

This year, the Ryder Cup is at Celtic Manor, outside Cardiff, a beautiful, plush, over-the-top resort with a soggy course that would be right at home in the American Midwest. It was a wasted opportunity to really show the world traditional Welsh golf. Royal Porthcawl, for instance, a seaside links outside Cardiff, on the Bristol Channel.

Porthcawl, where Tiger Woods played in the Walker Cup in 1995, is about 30 miles from Celtic Manor. On Friday, mid-day, with play suspended at Celtic Manor, 50 or 60 golfers, many of them American, were still going at it, through the rain, at Porthcawl.

"The golfers are out there with their little bags," said Nicola Evans, the wife of Peter Evans, the club's longtime head professional. A caddie called into the pro shop, looking for a rain jacket for one of his players. It was wet, but the course was totally playable.

"I wouldn't want to say anything that would jeopardize in any way what's going on at Celtic Manor," said Peter Evans. "But our course is open for play."