FORT WORTH, Texas — Davis Riley had to wait out a 70-minute weather delay before his last shot in the second round at Colonial.
Riley made a 3-foot par putt right after play resumed Friday wrapping up a bogey-free 6-under 64 to get to 10 under at the Charles Schwab Challenge. He was two strokes ahead of Hayden Buckley and Pierceson Coody after they both shot 65s.
“I was starving, so I got some food, which was nice. Luckily, it was a 3-footer straight up the hill. So wasn’t too much to stress about,” Riley said. “I knocked in about five 3-footers before walking over there to cap off the round. Yeah, hit it center cut and made it.”
After a chip to 3 feet on the 408-yard ninth hole, Riley had to mark his ball and retreat to the nearby clubhouse when the horns went off because of storm cells with lightning that were in the surrounding areas. There were only some brief light raindrops during the delay, and after play resumed.
Buckley was on the green at No. 6, his 15th hole, when the weather delay began. He resumed play with a 6-foot birdie and then parred out to finish a round of 65 at the Colonial course that has been fully restored since last year’s event.
Coody was in one of the final groups to finish after the delay. He birdied the last three holes, making a 30-footer at the par-3 16th before approach shots inside 3 1/2 feet at Nos. 17 and 18. Coody had an quite an up-and-down front nine, with an early at No. 2 before three bogeys and two birdies.
Sungjae Im (64) and Keegan Bradley (66) , who played morning rounds, were tied for fourth at 6 under with Sepp Straka (66).
Scottie Scheffler had four consecutive birdies midway through his round of 65 earlier Friday, a day after the world’s top-ranked player failed to break par in an opening round for the first time this season. At 3 under, he was tied for 15th and a stroke better than Jordan Spieth, another local favorite.
Scheffler’s first birdie Friday was a 15-foot putt at the par-3 13th hole, his fourth of the day after starting on the back side. That was where he had his first triple bogey of the year after a tee shot into the pond fronting that raised green in the opening round.
After driving into the fairway bunker at the 449-yard third hole, Scheffler hit from there to about 3 feet for his fourth consecutive birdie — none of the others were more than 8 feet. That was his last birdie of the day.
Scheffler didn’t speak to reporters at Colonial, a week after his arrest in the morning darkness before his second round of the PGA Championship, when police were investigating a pedestrian fatality and arrested — and briefly jailed — Scheffler for not following traffic directions. He was released and made it back to Valhalla for the second round.
On Thursday, before Scheffler began his first round at Colonial, police in Louisville, Kentucky, released what video they had of his arrest the previous week. He is scheduled to return to Louisville on June 3 to be arraigned on four charges, including second-degree felony assault of a police officer.
Spieth, the 2016 Colonial champion and a runner-up three times there, had a second-round 67 He started Friday with a 24-foot putt at the 403-yard 10th hole, the first of five birdies in his first six holes. He didn’t have any more birdies, but had two bogeys when finishing on the front side.
The 27-year-old Riley’s only PGA Tour win was the Zurich Classic team event with Nick Hardy last year in in New Orleans. Hardy was in his threesome Friday, and made a 14-foot par after the delay to finish a round of 70, keeping him at 2 over for the week to just make the cut.
“Honestly, when I was on the green ... I was more excited to watch Nick’s putt, and pulling for him,” Riley said. “It’s always nice to play with a good buddy, and made for a comfortable first two days.”
As a PGA Tour rookie two years ago, Riley was in contention on the final day at Colonial before finishing tied for fourth. Sam Burns had a seven-stroke comeback before winning that year in a playoff against Scheffler, one of his best friends.
Defending champion Emiliano Grillo also was just on the cut line at 2-over 142. He followed an opening 74 with a 68.
