ATLANTA — A storm delay at the Tour Championship slowed Brooks Koepka and Justin Thomas, right when they were starting to pull ahead Friday in the chase for the $15 million FedEx Cup.
The final hour showed how quickly it can change.
Koepka didn’t make a birdie on the back nine until the par-5 18th when he hit a 5-iron from 239 yards to 8 feet behind the hole. He had to settle for a two-putt birdie, a 3-under 67 and a one-shot lead. Because he started the tournament at 7-under par as the No. 3 seed, he was at 13 under going to the weekend.
“The lead is always nice so I’ll take that,” Koepka said. “The rain delay kind of killed any momentum I had. I didn’t feel like I had any good golf shots after the rain delay, but that’s part of golf. Everybody’s got to deal with the same thing.”
He was one shot ahead of Thomas, who played his final 10 holes in 1 over for a 68, and Rory McIlroy, who had a birdie-birdie finish for a 67.
Xander Schauffele also made a late surge with a birdie-eagle finish. He was two shots behind.
LPGA: Nicole Broch Larsen shot her second consecutive 6-under 66 for a one-shot lead over top-ranked Jin Young Ko midway through the CP Women’s Open at Aurora, Ontario.
Broch Larsen, who started on the back nine, birdied three of her last four holes to push ahead of Ko and post a 12-under 132. Ko shot a bogey-free 67.
Broch Larsen, of Denmark, is winless in three seasons on the Tour and is 89th in the points standings.
EUROPEAN: Henrik Stenson of Sweden rolled in six straight birdies around the turn in his 8-under 62 in the second round in the Scandinavian Invitation at Gothenburg, Sweden, leaving him two strokes off the lead held by Matthew Fitzpatrick.
Stenson tapped in for the ninth birdie of his round at No. 18, completing an inward 29, to post his lowest score in Sweden. He was tied for second place with Ashun Wu (64) at 9 under par.
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