SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Danny Lee knew there was a huge crowd Saturday at the Waste Management Phoenix Open. He still was amazed when told just how many people packed TPC Scottsdale’s Stadium Course.

“Two-hundred thousand?” Lee asked, making sure he heard right.

Actually, an estimated 201,003 – the largest crowd in golf history.

“Wow! This is crazy,” Lee said.

Lee had some pretty good numbers of his own on a sunny, warm afternoon at golf’s biggest party, shooting a 4-under 67 to move three strokes ahead of friend Rickie Fowler and Hideki Matsuyama with one round left.

“Taking slow breath out there really helps,” Lee said about the wild atmosphere.

The previous largest crowd at the Stadium Course was 189,722 in 2014. The event also set a day record Friday at 160,415, and has drawn 535,035 for the first six days – close to the weekly mark of 564,368 set last year.

“I’m just trying to enjoy myself and I am,” Lee said. “It’s so much fun out there, so many people just cheering for Rickie instead of me, unfortunately. But I’m having fun.”

Lee had six birdies and two bogeys to reach 13-under 200. The 25-year-old South Korean-born New Zealander won the Greenbrier Classic last year for his first PGA Tour title.

“Winning at the Greenbrier Classic gave me a lot of confidence,” Lee said. “It kind of taught me how to be on the top and what I need to work on and what it takes to win a golf tournament.”

He’s making his fourth appearance in the event after missing the cuts the last three years.

“I always struggled with my tee-shot game out here,” Lee said. “This week, I have been driving it really nicely.”

Fowler parred the final five holes for a 70. Matsuyama had a 68.

“I just didn’t get much out of the round,” said Fowler, at No. 4 the top-ranked player in the field. “Just kind of managed it well and played with what I had to get around.”

Second-round leader James Hahn had a 74 to fall into a tie for seventh at 7 under. Tied with Lee for the lead at 12 under after the 11th hole, he dropped five strokes on the next three holes.

Hahn bogeyed the par-3 12th and made double bogeys on par-5 13th and par-4 14th. He drove left into the desert on 13, then hit his tee shot out-of-bounds to the right on the long, uphill 14th after a fan distracted him at the top of his swing.

Lee birdied Nos. 2-4, making a 21-footer on the par-4 fourth, and holed a 40-foot birdie putt on the par-4 eighth.

After a three-putt bogey on the par-4 11th left him tied with Hahn, Lee got up-and-down for par from the greenside bunker on 12 to pull ahead. Hahn and Fowler bogeyed the hole from the same bunker.

Lee birdied 13, but gave back the stroke with a bogey on the par-5 15th after driving left into the water. The 2008 U.S. Amateur champion got back to 13 under with a 9-foot birdie putt on the short par-4 17th.

Fowler got a break on the 15th when his hybrid from the right rough ballooned short and right and stopped a foot short of the water.

“It came out soft and floated on me,” Fowler said. “Got a little lucky there.”

He won two weeks ago in Abu Dhabi for his fourth worldwide victory in nine months.

Matsuyama chipped in for birdie on the par-4 14th and two-putted for birdie on 15. The 23-year-old Japanese player tied for second last year, a stroke behind Brooks Koepka.

“I didn’t putt very well today,” Matsuyama said through a translator. “I didn’t drive the ball very well, but I did get it around. I’m happy with that.”

Bryce Molder and Boo Weekley were 9 under. Molder closed with an 18-foot putt on the par-4 ninth for a 64, the best round of the week. Weekley birdied three of the last four holes for a 65.

Phil Mickelson was 8 under after 65. The 45-year-old former Arizona State player made an unlikely birdie on 15 when his hybrid from 255 yards went so far right that it crossed the lake and ended up in the 11th fairway. He hit a wedge to 15 feet and made the putt.

“It was the worst shot of the year and I ended up making a birdie,” said Mickelson, the tournament winner in 1996, 2005 and 2013.

Bubba Watson had his first over-par round ever at TPC Scottsdale, shooting a 73 to drop to 2 under. He shot par or better in his first 36 rounds in the tournament.

BOCA RATON, Fla. – Corey Pavin birdied his last hole Saturday to shoot a 4-under 68 and take a one-shot lead over Tom Lehman into the final round of the Allianz Championship.

Pavin’s only win in 111 starts on the PGA Tour Champions came at the 2012 Allianz. He is at 10-under 134 after two trips around The Old Course at Broken Sound Club.

Lehman also birdied the par-5 closing hole for a 68. He won the 2011 Allianz Championship.

Joe Durant shot a bogey-free 66 and is tied for third with Jeff Sluman at 8-under 136.

Doug Garwood, who started on the back nine, made a run at a 59 but finished bogey-double, bogey for a 65. He was 10-under through 14 holes.

Garwood went to college at Fresno State with Kevin Sutherland, the only player to shoot 59 on the Champions tour.

After a 68 today, Canada’s Stephen Ames sits T18 at 5-under 139 heading to Sunday’s final round. Compatriot Rod Spittle had a 70 and is T39 (143).

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Danny Willett shot a second successive round of seven-under par 65 to enjoy a one-shot advantage on top of the Dubai Desert Classic leaderboard after the third round Saturday.

The Englishman, who made a gallant attempt to win the European Tour number one crown but eventually finished second to Rory McIlroy in the Race to Dubai, moved to 16-under par for the tournament, with 2012 champion Rafael Cabrera-Bello in second place at 15-under with his third consecutive round of 67.

Defending champion McIlroy saved his round with another blistering back nine performance, but will begin the final day eight shots behind Willett at 208 after a four-under par 68 round.

England’s Andy Sullivan (66), who finished runner-up to McIlroy in November’s DP World Tour Championship, was third at 202, Netherland’s Joost Luiten (67) fourth at 203 and recent Joburg Open winner, Hadyn Porteus of South Africa, fifth at 204.

Four-time major champion Ernie Els, who started the day just one shot behind the leader, struggled to a two-over par 74 round and fell back to a tie for 28th place at seven-under par.

Willett’s only bogey of the day came on the par-4 12th hole, one of the toughest on the course. But he made amends in stunning fashion when he made a 40-feet eagle putt on the next hole, the par-5 13th, and jumped out of the logjam as a sole leader.

Another birdie on the 17th gave him further cushion, and Willett said after the round: “Back-to-back 65s don’t happen that often. Just some great golf yesterday and today. Kept the ball under fantastic control with some crosswinds, hit it in there close. Did everything right really.

“A couple hiccups in there today where it could have been a little different but kept the head on and kept moving forward.

“I think if anyone says they don’t think about it (how the round will play when leading), they are lying. You think about it, you get into your head, you kind of go through scenarios, bad and good and try to even them out so that when you come out.”

Cabrera-Bello, who was fast off the blocks with an eagle on the third, where he holed his bunker shot, and a long, 30-feet birdie putt on the fourth, wasn’t getting carried away about the possibility of winning a second Desert Classic.

“That really would be amazing, but there’s still a lot to play for. I need to play aggressive, keep playing as good as I have been to give myself a chance,” Cabrera-Bello said.

“Lots of players are not far off the lead and all of them are going to have a chance tomorrow and they are definitely as hungry as I am, if not more. So I just have to play my best, stay positive, and try to make lots of birdies.”

McIlroy, who played the back nine in six-under par, did not rule out his chances on Sunday, but admitted it would be a tough task.

“I would have to play the front nine much better than I have the last two days. I’ve played it in five-over and that’s just not good enough,” said the world number two, who could also slip to third in the world ranking if he did not finish inside the top-eight.

“It’s going to be a long shot. I came back from seven shots behind at Wentworth (2014 PGA Championship), so it’s not out of the realms of possibility, but this is a great field and I’ll need the wind to blow this afternoon.”

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – James Hahn has settled down a lot since his wild days – and nights – at the University of California led to the end of his college career. He still knows how to have a good time.

That was on display again Friday at the golf party known as the Waste Management Phoenix Open, where Hahn took the lead with a bogey-free 6-under 65 in breezy conditions.

“I’m having fun out there,” Hahn said.

He wasn’t alone at TPC Scottsdale.

An estimated 160,415 fans, not counting a large bobcat that sauntered between the first and second holes in the afternoon, packed the grounds. The crowd broke the Friday record of 123,674 set in 2014 and was the 10th-largest figure for any day in tournament history.

Hawn became an internet sensation in 2013 when he celebrated a birdie on the rowdy par-3 16th with a “Gangnam Style” dance.

“It’s the one week out of the year where you’re allowed to do anything you want and not get fined,” Hahn said. “It’s good for golf, good for the game, good for the fans that come out here. They support the golf tournament, so might as well give them a show.”

On Friday, he did 10 pushups after teeing off on the stadium 16th.

“They came out to watch the gun show, so I popped them out right there on the tee box,” Hahn said.

Hahn had a 10-under 132 total on the Stadium Course to enter the weekend a stroke ahead of Rickie Fowler and Danny Lee. Fowler birdied his final hole for a 68, and Lee had a 66.

Hahn opened with a chip-in birdie on the par-4 10th and birdied the two back-nine par 5s, making a 30-footer on the 13th and hitting a wedge to 7 feet on the 15th. On his final nine, he hit a wedge to 3 feet to set up a birdie on the par-4 second, chipped to 3 feet for another birdie on the par-5 third, and took the outright lead with a 10-footer on the par-4 sixth.

“Sleeping in my own bed this week, live about 10 minutes away,” Hahn said. “I have played this course a hundred times. The only thing different about the course today, as any other day, is the greens are better.”

Fowler rebounded from a three-putt bogey on the par-4 17th with the birdie on the par-4 18th. A day after driving into the left-side water, he hammered a fairway wood down the middle and – with music thumping in the background – hit his approach to 4 feet.

“It wasn’t playing easy,” Fowler said. “The wind was kind of blowing from an awkward position. … Just tried to stay patient, fight through it.”

The top-ranked player in the field at No. 4, Fowler has four worldwide victories in the last nine months. He missed the cut last week at Torrey Pines after winning in Abu Dhabi the previous week.

Lee birdied five of his first eight holes, highlighted by a 20-footer on 16. The South Korean-born New Zealander won the Greenbrier Classic last year for his first tour title.

“Wind was definitely in play today,” Lee said. “The greens being so firm, you’re kind of forced to hit driver. You want to hit a shorter club on the second shot.”

Harris English (67), Shane Lowry (70) and Hideki Matsuyama (70) were 7 under.

Keegan Bradley, penalized two strokes Thursday for having too many clubs in his bag, was 5 under after a 69. Bradley and caddie Steve Hale didn’t notice the extra club until after the first hole in the first round.

Bubba Watson shot his second straight 69. Two days after criticizing the renovated course and saying he was only playing the tournament out of loyalty to his sponsors, he apologized.

“I didn’t explain myself well,” Watson said. “My wife says that, too, when I go home. I don’t communicate very well.”

The two-time Masters champion tied for second the last two years and has shot par or better in all 36 of his rounds in the event, playing to a cumulative 97 under.

Phil Mickelson was 2 under after a 71. The 45-year-old former Arizona State player bogeyed Nos. 14 and 15, hitting a hybrid approach into the water on 15.

“That kind of let the round get away,” said Mickelson, the tournament winner in 1996, 2005 and 2013. “I’m looking forward to having another shot at this golf course tomorrow.”

In Canadian action, Adam Hadwin carded a 68 Friday to sit 1-under. Nick Taylor squeezed by the cutline at even par after a 69.

Graham DeLaet (+4) and David Hearn (+7) both failed to make it to weekend action.

OCALA, Fla. – Lydia Ko hit the ball only 22 times in a span of 11 hours Friday in the Coates Golf Championship and finished where she started – with a share of the lead, and still a long way from the finish line.

Ko three-putted from 15 feet for bogey in 39-degree weather to finish the rain-delayed second round in the morning. In the afternoon, she made one birdie in six holes to get back to 7-under par and share the lead with Ha Na Jang, who played 24 holes on Friday.

None of the 75 players who made the cut finished the third round, which was to resume Saturday morning.

Jang played her entire second round Friday morning, when temperatures eventually climbed into the 50s. She made 15 pars, two birdies and a double bogey for an even-par 72 and the 36-hole lead. Jang was even par through six holes of the third round when play was halted by darkness.

Lexi Thompson was among five players who were one shot out of the lead.

Rain that soaked Golden Ocala on Thursday gave way to a cold front that chilled central Florida. Ko had a 15-foot birdie putt on her last hole of the second round when she returned Friday morning, only to ram the putt about 4 feet by, miss the next one for par and have to make a 3 1/2-foot bogey putt to limit the damage. That gave her a 69.

“I did some 15-footer practice on the putting green before I went, but when I hit it on the course, the green was a touch faster than what I thought it would be,” Ko said. “Obviously, it’s not the best start of the day, but I had a nap and of got over it, and it definitely got much better. Who knows? It might have happened yesterday. But because it happened right first thing in the morning, it might feel worse.”

Ko, the No. 1 player in women’s golf who is making her 2016 debut, at least headed off to sleep confident about her game _ and her score. She summoned a rules official to discuss whether her ball moved on the sixth green.

“I wasn’t sure because it’s obviously getting a little dark and with the steepness of the greens, you never know if it does move or not,” she said. “I kind of was hovering over it, going back and forth, so I don’t know if that action was making it look like it moved or not.

“We cleared everything, so now I can just go to bed and have a good dinner and come out here early.”

Players had to wear extra layers of clothing to combat the cold weather, and Jang soldiered on beautifully with a steady diet of pars to offset her lone mistake in the morning. She started the third round with a birdie, only to drop a shot on the next hole with follow with four pars.

“Very confident right now,” Jang said.

The tournament is still hopeful of ending on Saturday.

Kim Kaufman made four birdies on the front nine before her lone bogey. She was 3 under for the third round and 6 under for the tournament through 12 holes, tied with Thompson, Sei Young Kim, Jessica Korda and Haru Nomura.

U.S. Women’s Open champion In Gee Chun and Candie Kung were two shots behind at 5 under. Michelle Wie was even through 12 holes and four shots back.

Canadian Brooke Henderson was even through nine holes before her third round came to an end. The Smiths Falls, Ont., native is 4 under for the tournament.

Jang played more golf. Players like Ko, Thompson and Suzann Pettersen (4 under) felt like the day was even longer. They played no more than two holes in the morning, and then didn’t play again for at least six hours.

“It was an early wake-up call to play two holes and then wait around until 3 to warm back up,” Thompson said. “You can’t control the weather. I went back and slept for an hour. I wasted some time. And then I went through my whole warm-up stretching routine in the hotel room to get ready and come out here mentally prepared.”

BOCA RATON, Fla. – In conditions that more resembled a British Open than South Florida, former major champions Corey Pavin and Todd Hamilton shot 6-under 66s Friday to tie for the first-round lead in the Allianz Championship.

Pavin won the 1995 U.S. Open among his 15 PGA Tour titles. He made four birdies in a five-hole stretch on The Old Course despite 20-mph winds and temperatures in the 50s at the start of the PGA Tour Champions event.

“It played tough today,” Pavin said. “The only thing that made the course a little easier was the greens were receptive. If they were firm, it would have been really difficult.”

Hamilton, the 2004 British Open champion, reeled off four consecutive birdies on his back nine.

Pavin has won just once in 111 starts on the PGA Tour Champions circuit – he took the 2012 Allianz Championship, thanks to a left-handed chip with an 8-iron that saved par.

“Never before and never after,” Pavin said of that recovery shot. “It’s been hard for me to win out here, I’ll tell you what. I’ve played some good golf and not won. On this tour all these guys have won a lot of tournaments. It’s not like you’re playing against guys who have never won. They know how to win.”

This was Hamilton’s fourth start in the 50-and-older competition.

“The wind conditions were similar (to the British Open), but the ground conditions weren’t because they’ve had some rain here lately,” Hamilton said. “I knew I was climbing the leader board a little bit. I knew whoever shot 6-under would be pleased.”

Another major champion, 1996 British Open winner Tom Lehman, birdied his last hole to share third place with Billy Andrade after 67s. Lehman made three birdies in a row on the front nine.

“In these conditions, you have to hit it solid,” said Lehman, who won here in 2011. “If you don’t hit it solid, you’re really going to get eaten up by the conditions.”

John Huston, Guy Boros, Kirk Triplett and Esteban Toledo are tied for fifth place at 68.

Defending champion Paul Goydos was tied for 13th with a 70.

Canada’s Stephen Ames shot 1-under and was tied for 23rd place, while compatriot Rod Spittle was 45th at 1-over.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Ernie Els surged into contention Friday at the Dubai Desert Classic, while Rory McIlroy struggled just to make the cut.

The 46-year-old Els, who has dropped to 205th in the world after struggling with yips over the past year, shot a 5-under 67 to move to within one shot of the lead at the halfway stage of a tournament he has won three times.

Spain’s Rafael Cabrera-Bello, winner here in 2012, shot his second consecutive 67 to grab a one-stroke lead heading into the weekend.

Els, who was tied with compatriot Trevor Fisher Jr. and England’s Danny Willett at 9-under, made several crucial par putts to keep a bogey-free round.

“It’s an exact turnaround from a couple weeks ago where I was dreading to get on the greens,” he said. “I’m actually enjoying it on the greens. The surfaces are just unbelievable and I’ve got a lot more confidence in the stroke and in the setup and all of that stuff. It has almost got a smile out of me right now.”

Defending champion McIlroy shot a 72 to finish at 4-under 140 after two rounds, six shots off the lead. He had three birdies in his last three holes.

“I struggled in the wind a little bit and didn’t get off to the best of starts again,” McIlroy said. “Being 2-over through four on this golf course when you have a couple of good birdie chances wasn’t great.”

“The middle of the round was tough,” he added. “There were a few holes that were playing really tough, and I struggled on those, but I bounced back well and persevered and got something out of the round in the end. I just need to make sure I get off to a fast start tomorrow.”

Cabrera-Bello, who had just one bogey in his first 36 holes, credited his putter for his strong showing Friday.

“I mean, today has been a little bit of a different round to yesterday,” the Spaniard said. “Yesterday, I really felt I played great until the green. I gave myself lots of chances.

“And today was the exact opposite. I didn’t play as good, as sharp. It was windy. I didn’t quite find my tempo but the putting was extremely hot today. I rolled one of the best putting rounds of my life today, so that made up for everything else.”

Henrik Stenson shot a 68 to stay in contention at 137, but Louis Oosthuizen was among those who missed the cut. Also missing the cut were Germany’s Martin Kaymer, European Ryder Cup captain Darren Clarke, Graeme McDowell, two-time Dubai champion Stephen Gallacher and Thailand’s Thongchai Jaidee.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Bubba Watson repeated that he doesn’t like TPC Scottsdale’s Stadium Course. He also said he loves everything else about the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

“I will have to say, I have to apologize,” Watson said Friday, two days after criticizing the renovated course and saying he was only playing the tournament out of loyalty to his sponsors.

“I used the wrong words. I have nothing against the fans and the tournament. The fans have been great. I love coming here. I’ve lived here every winter for eight years. This is a beautiful place. And the reason why I’m here is because of the excitement around this golf tournament. The fans have been great.

“I used words that I shouldn’t have used. I didn’t explain myself well. My wife says that, too, when I go home. I don’t communicate very well. … It was about the golf course. I’m not a fan of the golf course.”

Two days earlier, Watson was blunt when asked about the course.

“I don’t like it,” Watson said Wednesday. “I’m not going to PC it. I don’t like it at all. … Obviously, I’m here because of my sponsors and everything. … I’ve got three beautiful sponsors that love it here.”

The long-hitting Watson has had a lot success on the desert layout that Tom Weiskopf renovated in 2014. The two-time Masters champion tied for second the last two years and has shot par or better in all 36 of his career rounds in the event, playing to a cumulative 97 under.

“I have played well because we all made the tournament bomb and gouge,” Watson said Friday after his second 2-under 69. “If you notice, the big hitters are hitting it hard and hopefully get the right breaks. … Over the last couple of years, I have made some putts. So far these two days, I just haven’t made putts.”

Watson threw socks – from sponsor Stance Socks – to some fans on the par-3 16th hole, the tournament’s signature stadium hole. He three-putted for bogey on the rowdy hole, missing a 4-footer.

“They love me again,” Watson said. “That’s why I bring the stuff, so they all love me no matter how I hit it.”

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Rickie Fowler overcame some bad shots for a share of the lead Thursday in the Waste Management Phoenix Open. Phil Mickelson compounded his mistakes and fell back.

After an hour-long frost delay at chilly TPC Scottsdale, Fowler played the first six holes in 5 under. A group behind, Mickelson took the lead at 5 under with a birdie on his eighth hole.

While Fowler finished with a 6-under 65 to tie Shane Lowry and Hideki Matsuyama for the lead in the suspended first round, Mickelson had a 69 after dropping four strokes in a two-hole stretch.

“I made some good putts to start,” Fowler said. “Just kind of got everything going. Made a couple of bad swings. Cost me a little bit, but other than that, nice way to get off to a good start.”

Mickelson bogeyed the par-3 fourth after hitting short and right and failing to reach the green with his second, and unraveled with a triple bogey on the par-4 fifth. He drove out of bounds to the right, hit his second tee shot into the right bunker and three-putted from 50 feet.

“I hit a bad shot at the wrong time,” Mickelson said. “It’s the tightest hole out there. You miss the fairway 5 yards left, you’re in the wash, in the hazard. You miss it right of the bunker, you’re out of bounds. … I’m not going to dwell on the one bad one because there were really a lot of good ones.”

The best one was on the par-5 13th – his fourth hole of the day – when he hit a 252-yard hybrid approach to 2 1/2 feet to set up an eagle.

Winless in 48 events since the 2013 British Open, the 45-year-old former Arizona State player is working with swing coach Andrew Getson after splitting with Butch Harmon. Lefty tied for third two weeks ago at La Quinta in his season debut and missed the cut last week at Torrey Pines.

“When you don’t score as low as you feel like you’re playing, it can be frustrating, but for me, I find it to be more encouraging that I’m making a lot of birdies,” said Mickelson, the tournament winner in 1996, 2005 and 2013.

Fowler also missed the cut at Torrey Pines after winning the European Tour event in Abu Dhabi the previous week. He has four worldwide victories in the last nine months.

“I know I have been swinging well and playing well,” Fowler said. “I just didn’t make anything last week.”

Fowler opened with a birdie on the par-4 10th as the temperature crawled into the 40s, holing a 16-foot putt. He made a 35-footer on the 12th, two-putted for birdie on the 13th and made a 28-foot eagle putt on the par-5 15th after hitting a 258-yard shot over the water.

“I had a good number in there,” Fowler said. “Actually, put a 5-wood in play last week, a new one.”

The top-ranked player in the field at No. 4, Fowler bogeyed the par-3 16th after drawing an awkward lie in the right bunker. He birdied the short par-4 17th, and bogeyed the par-4 18th after driving left into the water. On his back nine, he got up-and-down for birdie from a greenside bunker on the par-5 third and closed with a 12-foot birdie putt on the par-4 ninth.

Lowry birdied seven of his first 13 holes, then bogeyed the next two.

“I got to 7 under and just became a little bit tense there,” the Irishman said. “That’s something that I need to work on. … It’s a bad mistake if you don’t learn from it.”

Matsuyama was in one of the last groups to finish before play was stopped because of darkness.

India’s Anirban Lahiri was a stroke back at 66, and Bryce Molder also was 5 under with two holes left. He was one of 33 players who failed to finish.

Bubba Watson opened with a 69, finishing in fading light a day after saying he doesn’t like the renovated course and is only playing the tournament out of loyalty to his sponsors. The two-time Masters champion tied for second the last two seasons.

The crowd was estimated at 101,021. The first-round record of 118,461 was set last year with Tiger Woods in the field.

Graham DeLeat leads the Canadians in the field. The Weyburn, Sask., native is 1-over after a 72, which included a near ace at the infamous par-3 16th.

OCALA, Fla. – Lydia Ko played enough golf Thursday to catch up to the lead. She just didn’t play enough to finish the rain-delayed second round of the Coates Golf Championship.

Ko, the No. 1 player in golf making her 2016 debut, was 4-under par for her round and had a 15-foot birdie putt on her final hole at the par-4 ninth hole at Golden Ocala when the horn sounded to stop play because of thunderstorms in the area.

Ko was 7 under for the tournament, tied with Ha Na Jang.

Jang, who opened with a 65, didn’t hit a shot Thursday. She was to tee off in the afternoon, but within an hour of play being stopped, several greens already were flooded. Play was suspended for the rest of the day and will resume on Friday.

The 72-hole tournament is scheduled to end Saturday.

Haru Nomura made seven birdies for a 66 and finished two rounds at 6-under 136.

Canada’s Brooke Henderson was in a large group at 4 under that included Michelle Wie, Suzann Pettersen, U.S. Women’s Open champion In Gee Chun, Lexi Thompson and Juli Inkster, who birdied her opening hole of the second round before the storms arrived.

Henderson has three holes to play in her second round.

Ko started quickly Thursday by opening with two birdies. But she birdied only one of the par 5s, though she never missed a fairway.

“I felt more comfortable today. I was pretty pleased to see all my balls finish in the fairway,” Ko said.

Ko played with Morgan Pressel, who was 3 under, and Paula Creamer, who was even. They could tell storm clouds approaching and Creamer jokingly said that play would be stopped right before they finished. All they could do was laugh when they reached the ninth green to mark their golf balls.

“At least we don’t have to go back to the range,” Pressel said.

Ko, the 18-year-old from New Zealand, is coming off a five-victory season that included her first major (Evian Championship in France) and LPGA player of the year. She conceded to having some rust during her start on Wednesday, though she was dialed in for much of her second round until the rain arrived.

“Last year was an awesome year, so much better than I ever expected,” Ko said. “Things I only dreamt of happened. But you have to forget about it. It’s a whole new year. Obviously, you come into the year with a bit of confidence, but you never know what’s going to happen.”

Pettersen started with a 73. After making the turn, she birdied five of the next six holes – the exception was the par-5 fifth hole – to get within range. Pettersen played with Stacy Lewis (1 over) and Alison Lee, with whom Pettersen was involved in a bitter rules controversy at the Solheim Cup last year over a putt that Pettersen said was never conceded. Pettersen said there was no drama with the group and the media “want to make it another story.”

“Alison and I are pretty good friends,” she said. “I’m very happy with the way I’m playing.”