BILLY HURLEY AND Peter Malnati posted rounds of 63 and 67 to grab a one stroke lead at the weather-plagued Zurich Classic, where play was suspended for the second straight day.
Malnati and Hurley reached a total of 14-under par and were among the many PGA Tour players in the field of 80 teams that played 36 holes on Friday.
The extra holes were because Thursday’s opening round was delayed after the TPC of Louisiana course was battered with 6.4 centimetres (2 1/2 inches) of rain.
When the second round was suspended because of darkness, 40 groups had completed play. Play will resume at 7:00 am (12:00 GMT) Saturday.
Tournament officials hope the rest of the field can complete the second round by 11 am, when the field will be cut to the low 35 teams including ties.
“I know Billy and I both are into our conditioning and it’s important, but you’re not prepared to be on your feet walking for what we were today, 10 hours or more,” Malnati said.
It’s a long day. Playing 36 holes, the greens definitely got kind of scruffy a little bit and harder to make putts, so we’re super thrilled with pretty much every shot I think we hit today.”
Shane Lowry and Padraig Harrington, meanwhile, struggled with the conditions on day two, tumbling down the leaderboard after a second round 75 left them 10 strokes off the pace.
Three birdies, a bogey and a double bogey saw them finish out their opening nine holes on level par. As weather conditions wreaked havoc, the pair then struggled on the back nine, carding bogeys on the 10th, 16th and 17th holes.
Waterford’s Seamus Power, who last week secured a season’s best finish in South Carolina, continued his good form alongside Canadian David Hearn.
The pair notched an eagle, three birdies and a single bogey during Friday’s Foursomes to card a second-round 68.
They sit on eight under-par, six shots off the clubhouse lead.
Graeme McDowell is the only other Irish competitor in the field in Orlando and is well positioned heading into the weekend.
The 2010 US Open winner, alongside Sweden’s Henrik Stenson, closed out their round with an impressive 67 to leave them two shots and in the chasing pack on 12 under-par.
Playing their opening nine holes on one under-par, the pair went on to birdie four of their final nine holes and finished out their round without a blemish down the final stretch.
The two-player team event includes Four-ball (best ball) rounds on Thursday/Saturday and Foursomes (alternate shot) on Friday/Sunday.
You can find the full leaderboard right here.
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