CANADA’S NICK TAYLOR matched the course record in his rain-disrupted first round and then battled to a one-under 71 in the second Friday to share the Phoenix Open lead with Andrew Novak.
Shane Lowry only managed to get one hole completed in his second round before darkness suspended play after the action was delayed in Scottdale. Lowry parred his opening hole after he had fired a first round of four-under 67. He is currently in a tie for 28th.
Seamus Power is in a tie for 47th after a marathon day, he finished his first round with a level par 71 and then had a two-under 69 in his second round.
Taylor grabbed eight birdies in the delayed last 12 holes of his first round on Friday on the way to an 11-under par 60, then needed 10 more shots in his second round on the way to a 36-hole total of 130.
Novak, who also put in a marathon day, played the last nine holes of a first-round 65 in the morning, then had six birdies in another six-under 65 for his share of the lead.
Their closest rival in the clubhouse when darkness halted play was Maverick McNealy, who had six birdies in his second-round 67 for a 10-under total of 132.
Taylor, a three-time winner on the PGA Tour, admitted to feeling a bit of whiplash after matching the TPC Scottsdale course record in the first round.
“It’s weird feeling disappointed after a 70, but this morning was pretty hard to follow up,” he said. “Didn’t hit it great off the tee this afternoon, so I was grinding a little bit early on, but held it together, made some kind of key up-and-downs early on, and it was nice to finish the round under par.
“But this morning was obviously pretty special to make all those putts and shoot 60.”
Taylor opened his day with a nine-foot birdie on the 16th, his seventh hole, and made another on 18 before reaching the turn.
Doug Ghim was nine-under through 16 holes when play was halted. World number one Scottie Scheffler, seeking a third-straight Phoenix Open title, had five birdies in his five-under second-round 66 to headline a group on eight-under.
Justin Thomas and Cameron Young were also in the clubhouse on eight-under 134 while Ryan Fox was eight-under with three to play.
