Storms that flashed through South Florida on Wednesday dropped record rainfall, shut down the Honda Classic with a relentless drenching, and gusted with winds as high as 30 mph in West Palm Beach.

Preliminary estimates show the heaviest downpours were in western parts of Palm Beach County with about 2.5 inches measured at a monitoring station near Jog and Woolbright roads. Royal Palm Beach saw up to 2.4 inches. And a station west of Boca Raton near Powerline Road measured 1.78 inches.

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But it was Fort Lauderdale that set an official rainfall record with 1.25 inches, breaking the 1967 record for the day of 1.08 inches, according to the National Weather Service.

The rain gauge at the weather service’s station at Palm Beach International Airport was broken Wednesday. The record for the day at the airport is 2.88 inches set in 1966.

"This will help with the drought — at least make a little bit of a dent," said Chuck Caracozza, a meteorologist with the NWS in Miami. "Any rain is good to help with that, but as far as an official number for the airport, we don’t it yet."

Related: Everything you need to know about the Honda Classic

About 70 percent of Palm Beach County was declared in a moderate drought last week by the U.S. Drought Monitor. A new report will be available Thursday, but it won’t include Wednesday’s rainfall.

The South Florida Water Management District previous to Wednesday’s rain had eastern areas of the county at a 7.50 deficit for the season.

Just before 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, officials at the Honda Classic suspended the pro-am tournament being played at PGA National Resort & Spa in Palm Beach Gardens.

Both the pros and their amateur partners were pointed to a ballroom on the south side of the clubhouse to have lunch and wait out what they hoped would be a brief delay. Soon afterward, at 2:45 p.m., they learned the remainder of the round had been canceled.

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Brad Nelson, Director of Agronomy for PGA National, said as much as 2 inches of rain was predicted to fall by late afternoon but was hopeful the course could be readied for the start of tournament play early Thursday.

The rain was expected to taper off overnight but with a 30 percent chance still in the forecast through 1 p.m.

Wade Stettner, a meteorologist working for the PGA Tour to forecast for the Honda Classic, said players will usually play in light rain, but not if there is standing water on the course.

The first round is scheduled to begin this morning at 7 a.m.

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