Sahith Theegala leads Brooks Koepka, Xander Schauffele in WM Phoenix Open

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Sahith Theegala made up for a messy finish Friday morning in the suspended first round of the WM Phoenix Open in a hurry — and kept on going.

Making his tournament debut on a sponsor exemption, Theegala shot a 7-under 64 to take a two-stroke lead over defending champion Brooks Koepka and Xander Schauffele at firm, fast and fan-packed TPC Scottsdale.

«Just thankful that I'm here and trying to make the most out of the opportunity,» Theegala said. «No expectations at all, honestly.»

Koepka shot his second straight 66. He's the last player to win the event in his first appearance, doing it in 2015 for his first PGA Tour title.

«Striking it good, maybe lost a little bit of speed there on a few putts,» Koepka said. «But the greens they're getting fast, they're getting firm. It will be interesting to see what they're like tomorrow.»

Schauffele had a bogey-free 65. He tied for second last year.

«Relatively stress-free, which is always nice around the property,» Schauffele said. «There's a lot going on.»

Theegala had the lead Thursday night at 7 under when darkness suspended play. The 24-year-old, ranked 318th in the world, resumed play on the par-4 eighth by missing a par putt.

«I wasn't too upset about the way it started,» Theegala said. «I had a 15-footer to start the day, so I was like, 'OK, just put a good roll on it and see what happens.' I put a good roll, just missed.»

He also bogeyed the par-4 ninth for a 66 to fall a stroke behind K.H. Lee.

«I put it under the lip of the fairway bunker,» Theegala said, «I'm like, 'OK, I can't do much about that, right?' I knew if I kept putting the ball in the fairway, I'm going to have scoring opportunities, so it was nice to reset for the 30 or 40 minutes that I