Rookie Sahith Theegala laps up the atmosphere as rowdy crowd returns to Phoenix Open

Los Angeles, United States - Sahith Theegala fired a seven-under par 64 on Friday to lead the Phoenix Open, with former World No 1 Brooks Koepka and Xander Schauffele on his heels.

Theegala, a tour rookie from California, had a rollercoaster day that saw him surrender the first-round lead only to climb back to the top with eight birdies in his second round at TPC Scottsdale.

His 12-under par total of 130 put him two strokes in front of Koepka and Schauffele, Koepka firing six birdies in his five-under 66 and Schauffele carding a bogey-free six-under 65 to get to 132.

"I haven't had time to let it set in and hopefully I don't think too much about it because obviously what I've been doing has been working the first couple days," Theegala, ranked 318th in the world, said.

Theegala had held a one-shot lead when darkness halted play on Thursday. He returned Friday morning and bogeyed his last two holes to fall a shot behind South Korean Lee Kyoung-hoon.

But Theegala gathered himself during a short break and opened his second round with three straight birdies, rolling in a five-footer at the first and a four-footer at the second before reaching the green in two at the par-five third.

Two of the wildest holes on TOUR.@Dylan_Frittelli mic'd up for the 16th and 17th at @WMPhoenixOpen ... plus some @Oakley surprises for the fans. pic.twitter.com/pr3K86NQOn

"I wasn't too upset about the way it started," he said of his day, which opened with him facing a 16-foot par putt at his penultimate first-round hole, the eighth. "I knew if I kept putting the ball in the fairway I'm going to have scoring opportunities."

Theegala, who was a standout amateur player at Pepperdine University, added another birdie at the fifth before he bogeyed the