Gerina Piller has made herself at home at the LPGA Tour's Texas Shootout, shooting a six-under-par 65 to take the lead in the suspended second round, while Australian golfer Minjee Lee is struggling at two over.
Lee recovered to some degree on Friday with a two-under 69, after her opening-round 75, for a total of 144.
Piller birdied three of the final five holes in her bogey-free round to reach 10-under 132. The long-hitting US Solheim Cup player lives in Plano, about 30km from Las Colinas Country Club.
Play was suspended because of rain just after 4pm (local time) and called for the day because of lightning a little after 6pm. None of the afternoon starters was able to finish. The field will be cut to the low 70s and ties after the completion of the round on Saturday morning, then trimmed again to the low 50s and ties after the third round.
Winless on the LPGA Tour, Piller tied for third last week in California in the Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic for her third straight top-six finish. She hit her approach to two feet on the par-5 18th to set up her final birdie.
"The course is actually in soft conditions so that always helps to get the ball to stop," Piller said. "These greens are pretty tricky. So getting it close is definitely huge out here because the greens, some of them are pretty big, and some of the breaks you can get pretty fast putts going downhill down grain, and you can also get really slow putts going the opposite way. It definitely helps to be hitting it really well."
South Korea's Eun-Hee Ji was a stroke back at nine under after a 66.
"I feel pretty good with my swing," Ji said. "That's why I made a lot of putts because so close to the pin. I just keep working on my swing."
First-round leader Mi Jung Hur was eight under with six holes left. Thailand's Ariya Jutanugarn was seven under after a 66, and South Korea's Amy Yang was seven under with seven holes to play.
Fifth-ranked Brooke Henderson topped the group at five under after a 68. The 18-year-old Canadian has eight straight top-10 finishes.
Fourth-ranked Stacy Lewis was a stroke over the cut line at two over with seven holes left. The 2014 winner in her home-state event, Lewis is winless in 47 events.
Third-ranked Lexi Thompson was four over with eight to play.
Michelle Wie will miss the cut, following her opening 76 with a 72, while second-ranked Inbee Park, the 2013 and 2015 champion, is sidelined by a left thumb injury.
Share
