Camilo Villegas had 8 birdies in his round of 65.

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ST. LOUIS — Camilo Villegas and Steve Stricker were excited to be playing golf Friday for different reasons — and it showed during a soggy start to the BMW Championship.

Villegas, coming off a tie for third last week that allowed him to advance in the PGA Tour Playoffs, continued his good form with eight birdies on long, soft Bellerive Country Club for a 5-under 65 that gave him a one-shot lead.

The 26-year-old Colombian said he believes winning is a process, and it appears to be accelerating with each round.

"Sometimes you really want to be on the golf course and it's going great, and sometimes it's a grind," Villegas said. "You've got to be ready for both. I'm excited right now. I feel really good about my golf."

Stricker made a 35-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole for a 4-under 66, tying him with Kenny Perry, Tim Herron, Stuart Appleby and Andres Romero.

Stricker's stomach has been churning the last month during what he felt was an audition for the Ryder Cup. Stricker, who was bumped out of automatic qualifying at the PGA Championship, began sweating over every poor shot, every missed putt, and he only exhaled Monday night when U.S. captain Paul Azinger told him he was on the team.

"It was a lot different than the last two weeks," Stricker said. "I did feel a little more at ease. I didn't feel as much pressure on every shot."

The first round Thursday was postponed because of 3 inches of rain that just about turned Bellerive into a water park.

The forecast called for the storm to pass in the afternoon, but it stubbornly stayed through Friday morning.

The plan is for 36 holes today.

CRANS-SUR-SIERRE, Switzerland — Rory McIlroy shot an even-par 71 for a share of the lead with defending champion Brett Rumford after the second round of the European Masters.

McIlroy, a 19-year-old Northern Irishman, could not reproduce his opening 63, and Rumford caught him with a second straight 67 to finish the day at 8-under 134.

HELSINGOER, Denmark — In her final tournament in Europe, former Arizona Wildcat Annika Sorenstam shot a 2-under 71 to trail leader Martina Eberl by five strokes after the first round of the Nykredit Masters.

Sorenstam, 37, will retire at the end of the season.

Eberl had a 66 for a one-stroke lead over Melissa Reid.

Facing anger from lawmakers and bewilderment from sponsors, the LPGA Tour backed off plans to suspend players who cannot speak English well enough to be understood at pro-ams, in interviews or in making acceptance speeches at tournaments in the United States.

The policy has generated a storm of bad publicity since it was announced last month.

LPGA Tour commissioner Carolyn Bivens said she would have a revised plan by the end of the year that would not include suspensions, although fining non-English speakers remains an option.

"We have decided to rescind those penalty provisions," Bivens said in a statement. "After hearing the concerns, we believe there are other ways to achieve our shared objective of supporting and enhancing the business opportunities for every tour player."

Bivens disclosed the tour's original plan in a meeting with South Korean players two weeks ago at the Safeway Classic in Portland, Ore., Golfweek magazine reported. The policy, which had not been written, was widely criticized as discriminatory, particularly against Asians.

The LPGA membership includes 121 international players from 26 countries, including 45 from South Korea. Asians won three of the four majors this year.

The reversal was quickly hailed by two California lawmakers who challenged the policy.

State Sen. Leland Yee, a Democrat from San Francisco, had asked the Legislature's legal office to determine whether the English policy violated state or federal anti-discrimination laws. If it was deemed legal, Yee said he would have pushed for legislation banning such policies in California.

The LPGA Tour plays three events in California, including its first major championship.

"I'm very pleased that the LPGA saw the wisdom of the concerns that we raised," Yee said. "It's a no-brainer for those of us who have been the recipient of these kinds of discriminatory acts."

State Assemblyman Ted Lieu, a Democrat from the Los Angeles area, said he would target corporate sponsors if the LPGA Tour persisted with its English requirement.

"I'm pleased they have come to their senses," he said.

Bivens' announcement came two hours before the Asian Pacific American Legal Center planned a news conference in Los Angeles to demand the LPGA overturn its policy.

"Until they completely retract it, issue an apology to the players and the fans, I think we'll remain very concerned and interested in what happens," said Gerald D. Kim, a senior staff attorney for the center. "The LPGA has gone about this totally the wrong way."

● In Sandy, Utah, Peter Tomasulo, Chris Stroud, Brian Stuard and Jonathan Fricke had holes-in-one Thursday in the first round of the Utah Championship, the first time in Nationwide Tour history that there have been four aces in a round.

The last time there were three aces on the same day in a Nationwide Tour event was last year during the first round of Boise Open. Four aces were made on the same day — and the same hole — in the 1989 U.S. Open at Oak Hill.

Tomasulo and Stroud finished with 67s. Fricke had a 68. Stuard carded a 69.