Phil Mickelson disappeared Friday afternoon after weather suspended play at the Masters.

But his footprints could be found all over the course.

Spike marks left by Mickelson's shoes damaged the greens enough that rival Vijay Singh complained to tournament officials. Mickelson confronted Singh in the champions' locker room, conveying his wish that the matter would have been resolved after the round.

"Given the wet and slippery conditions, more than a third of the field is using steel spikes," Mickelson said in a statement. "And again, I will make every effort to tap down whatever spike marks I may leave."

Mickelson's canned comments were all the game's top players had to say Friday. Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, Tiger Woods, Mickelson and Singh were harder to find than a dry hole and a satisfied fan.

What is known is that Mickel- son got a chance to begin his second round but didn't finish his first hole. His 2-under-par 70 after his first 18 holes placed him in a two-way tie for seventh place.

He's two shots better than his first-round total in 2004, when he won the Masters for his only major championship.

Dominant amateur Ryan Moore was able to share his perspective of Mickelson's play across two soggy and delayed days.

"He's hit some real good shots and he's putting the ball really well," Moore said. "Every putt he has hit seems to have had a really good chance of going in. That's probably what has stood out to me so far. He's controlling it and keeping it in play."

Mickelson carded three bogeys along his first round on hole Nos. 1, 5 and 14. His pained expression on No. 5 on Thursday came after missing an 8-footer, one of the few unlucky putts for the defending champion.

"He's maybe not hitting the ball as close as he wants, but he's making 25- and 30-footers, so he's not too worried about it," Moore said.

Three of the five birdies in Mickelson's round came on the front nine.

Two of the three bogeys he carded were also on the front, which typifies the up-and-down flavor of his first round.

Reach Jeff Sentell at (706) 823-3425 or jeff.sentell@augustachronicle.com