Players Championship 2016: Leaderboard Scores and Highlights from Friday

The Players Championship is annually renowned for boasting one of the deepest fields on the PGA Tour, and Friday's second round didn't do anything to dispel that notion before it was suspended because of darkness following a two-hour weather delay.

Second-round play will resume at 9:15 a.m. ET on Saturday morning. 

After Jason Day tied a course record at TPC Sawgrass with a 63 on Thursday, 30-year-old Colt Knost—who has never won a PGA Tour event—rebounded from an opening-round 72 to tie Day's mark and snatched a share of the course record Friday.

Rory McIlory also bounced back in a big way. The four-time major winner shot eight under to enter contention with Round 3 on the horizon, and he fell just a stroke shy of joining Knost and Day as a shareholder of the course record in the process.

But with 32 holes in the bag, Day continues to own the lead thanks to a bogey-free effort at 14 under par.

Here's a look at the top of the leaderboard as moving day approaches: 

Highlights aplenty filtered out of Friday's early groupings, with Jonas Blixt (10 under), Alex Cejka (10 under) and Boo Weekley (nine under) all thriving.

However, Knost and McIlroy stood out among a talented pack at the top. 

Knost, who has zero top-10 finishes this season and just six in his career, had a shot at carding a course-record 62 and finishing 10 under for the day, but he three-putted for a bogey on No. 18, according to Golf Channel:

During his superlative round, Knost hit all 18 greens in regulation, marking just the fifth time a player has done so at TPC Sawgrass, according to Golf Channel's Justin Ray.

McIlroy also thrived in the morning, and as a result, he's able to boast some record-tying credentials. Like Knost, McIlroy shot an even-par round of 72 on Thursday but moved up the leaderboard and finished six shots off the pace Friday.

Following a start on the 10th tee, McIlroy opened his day with a 29 on the back nine—which tied the mark Shane Lowry set Thursday, per ESPN.com's Bob Harig. The Irishman carded five birdies on the back to go with an outrageous long-range eagle on No. 16, as the PGA Tour documented on Twitter: 

According to Golf Channel, McIlroy is now 44 under on the back nine at TPC Sawgrass over the past four years—25 shots better than any other player during that stretch.

McIlroy's scoring pace slowed just a bit on the front nine, but he rattled in a birdie on the par-five second and another on the par-four seventh before capping his round off with a bogey on the par-five ninth to finish at eight under.

While he's still within striking distance, McIlroy can't afford to keep playing mundane front nines if he wants to have a shot at capturing The Players Championship title. According to the Golf Channel broadcast, McIlroy is a combined 12 over on the front nine at Sawgrass since 2013. 

On the contrary, Day's front nine started off in rocking fashion following a birdie on No. 2 and a stellar approach on No. 3, as the PGA Tour's official Twitter account showed: 

Day moved back into sole possession of first place at 11 under after pouring in a long birdie putt on No. 4, and he went on to finish the front nine at 12 under overall before draining a lengthy downhill birdie putt at No. 13. 

Although weather prevented Day from finishing his round Friday, he'll have a chance to add to his lead and jolt to the top of a prestigious list when play resumes Saturday on No. 15, per Ray:

The course wasn't as kind to defending champion Rickie Fowler. Although Fowler climbed into red numbers by shooting one under a day after notching an opening-round score of 72, a double bogey on No. 14 coupled with bogeys on Nos. 1 and 5 capped his scoring potential. 

As a result, with the projected cut line at two under, Fowler is in line to miss the cut for the third time this season. Should he fail to qualify for the weekend, it will be the seventh straight year in which the tournament's defending champion has failed to finish inside the top 40, according to ESPN Stats & Info. 

Jordan Spieth is also flirting with the cut line after failing to seize momentum following back-to-back birdies on No. 10 and No. 11. While it appeared as though Spieth was headed for a strong move up the leaderboard on the back nine, a bogey on No. 12 set him back. 

The two-time major champion is now hovering at one under with four holes left to complete Saturday morning. Phil Mickelson is in the same boat and will need a birdie on either No. 17 or No. 18 in the morning to reach two under.

Finally, shot of the day honors belong to Will Wilcox—who recorded the first hole-in-one at TPC Sawgrass' famed 17th hole since 2002, per Mike McAllister of the PGA Tour's official website. 

According to PGA Tour Media, Wilcox's unlikely ace broke a string of 6,300 tee shots at No. 17 without a hole-in-one. 

Those numbers would suggest the action on No. 17 will be more subdued Saturday, but things should heat up even if there isn't an ace.

Post-Round Reaction

While McIlroy and Knost were both sensational Friday, both players lamented late bogeys that cost them shots at history.

According to Golf Channel's Will Gray, McIlroy told reporters he was "disappointed and frustrated" after closing his round with a bogey on the par-five ninth.

"This course really does play so much differently from morning to afternoon," McIlroy said, per Sean Martin of the PGA Tour's official website. "I felt the greens getting a little firmer, the wind gets up a little bit, so you have to take advantage of your tee time in the morning. Thankfully, I was able to do that today with a low one."

Knost, meanwhile, acknowledged that he was in his own head with a shot at a second-round score of 62, per Golf Digest's Alex Myers.

"I was nervous over the last putt just because—you know, so many great players have played this golf course and all that, and to be the first one and only one to shoot 10 under would have been really cool," he said. "But I hit a pretty good putt, honestly, just kind of misread it a little bit and it hit the left lip."

Looking ahead, Knost admitted he'll need to keep his composure—since he seems to slip up on a weekly basis.

"It's just that one slow round a week that gets me, just that—I'm hoping that round was yesterday," Knost said, per Myers. "But you know, to win out here and to compete, you have to play four good ones, and it's just something I haven't done yet this year, but it's getting close. I've got to stay patient with everything."

Fowler, meanwhile, could be headed home following two subpar rounds on the greens. 

"Putts just weren’t going in," the defending champion said, according to Gray. "I’m swinging well. I hit a lot of good shots. Just couldn’t make anything the last two days. I had a lot that were in the 10- to 15-foot range. They took peeks but just didn’t go in."