Sunday 1 May 2016 23:40, UK
Justin Rose crashed out of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans at the halfway stage as Brian Stuard claimed a one-shot lead before the third round was suspended due to torrential storms.
Rose completed his second-round 72 on Friday evening and faced an anxious wait to see if he would make the final 36 holes when fading light forced the players off.
The defending champion's fate was sealed when the cut fell at two under, leaving the Englishman two shots shy of avoiding an early exit when the second round finally concluded on Saturday morning.
The storm-ravaged tournament suffered a further setback when play was suspended again at 1:15pm local time with 34 players yet to begin their third rounds.
Heavy rain rendered the TPC Louisiana course unplayable, and play was called off for the day over four hours later to effectively guarantee the event will now require a Monday finish.
Jamie Lovemark and Jhonattan Vegas held the lead in the clubhouse overnight on 11 under, but they were surpassed by Stuard when he birdied two of the remaining six holes of his second round to cap a 68 which took him a shot clear of the field.
Stuard has made only three cuts in six starts on the PGA Tour since November and is languishing at 184th in the FedExCup standings, but he not dropped a shot in 36 holes in New Orleans and attributed his good form to using a new putter.
"I had been having a hard time feeling like I was getting lined up right with my putts," the 33-year-old told PGA Tour radio. "I just picked this one up last week and it felt like I could just set it down and it was right where I was looking. It's a nice feeling."
BMW PGA champion Byeong-hun An is among six players tied for fourth place on eight under after the South Korean matched his opening round of 68, while world No 1 Jason Day is a shot further back and is also yet to begin his third round.
Tournament officials confirmed that the third round would resume at 7:30am local time (1:30pm BST) on Sunday, but further rain interruptions have been forecast throughout the day.
