Hilton Head Island, S.C. – Second-round play in the eGolf Gateway Tour’s $100,000 Palmetto Hall Championship presented by Sonesta HHI was suspended due to darkness at 6:05 PM on Thursday night, with 29 players on the course yet to complete their rounds.

Heavy afternoon rain on Wednesday forced the suspension of the event’s opening round, in turn pushing its completion into Thursday morning. Second-round play began on a one-hour delay as a result of the Wednesday rain, and will pick back up on Friday morning with an 8:00 AM restart. Third-round play is projected to begin at approximately 11:00 AM.

Of the players who finished 36 holes, first-round leader Vaita Guillaume of Tahiti and four-time tour winner Drew Weaver of High Point, N.C. sit tied for the lead at 7-under 137.

Guillaume, who opened his week with a 6-under 66 on Wednesday morning, began his second round on the back nine of Palmetto Hall Plantation’s Cupp Course, recording one bogey and one birdie to turn in even-par 36.

The former Campbell University standout birdied Nos. 3 and 6 to briefly vault to 8-under par for the week before a bogey on the par-4 seventh dropped him to 1-under on the day, where he eventually finished for a second-round 71.

The strong start was a further continuation of good play for Guillaume, who broke through for two wins in 2014 and a runner-up finish at the $300,000 season-ending Tour Championship – contested at Palmetto Hall as well.

The 26-year-old collected nearly $88,000 in earnings between eGolf Tour Florida and the eGolf Tour, winding up in third place on the latter’s final money list.

Weaver, who made a name for himself in the amateur ranks with a win at the 2007 British Amateur and a selection to the 2009 U.S. Walker Cup team, posted rounds of 70-67—137 over Wednesday and Thursday, finishing the 5-under-par effort on day two with birdies on his final three holes.

The Atlanta, Ga. resident turned at 3-under par for the tournament before rallying late in the day with birdies on Nos. 5, 7, 8 and 9 for a closing 32.

“It’s nice to see the ball go in the hole. That’s more of a mindset thing with a finish like that, leading into tomorrow,” said Weaver after his round. “That’s a hard course out there, but I knew if I gave myself some chances, I could make a move towards the end of this round. It was very encouraging to get those few (birdies) coming in.”

Vaita Guillaume

Weaver was the tour’s leading money winner in 2012, posting two wins during a torrid seven-tournament stretch that featured just one finish outside the top two.

After struggling through a tough 2013 campaign, the former Virginia Tech Hokie bounced back admirably last year, picking up career win No. 4 at the Spring Creek Classic – one of five top-10s on the season.

Palmetto Hall, however, served as somewhat of a demon for Weaver in his early years on the eGolf Gateway Tour. Missed cuts in 2010, 2011 and 2012 put a sour taste in his mouth, but an effort to befriend the demanding venue has paid dividends recently, with a T8 at the 2014 Palmetto Hall Championship and a T23 at the Tour Championship in December helping to turn the tides.

“I didn’t like the golf course early on, but I knew this was a place where I was going to come with the tour and try to play well and make a check,” he said. “I’ve played a lot of rounds at Palmetto Hall in the last three months – making an effort to play extra practice rounds – so I generally feel pretty comfortable out here now. I think that’s a big benefit for me.”

Three-time eGolf Gateway Tour winner Bruce Woodall of Yanceyville, N.C. recorded the low 36-hole score for players who played in the weather-cursed late-early waves, notching rounds of 71-69—140 to sit at 4-under par.

Woodall, a former University of Virginia star, burst onto the tour scene in 2013, winning two times on his way to a second-place finish on the season-ending money list.

The 26-year-old competed on PGA TOUR Canada last summer while making four of six cuts in eGolf Gateway Tour events, with a T10 at the Championship at St. James serving as his lone top-10.

Second-round play in the Palmetto Hall Championship will resume at 8:00 AM on Friday, with players in the cart staging area, ready to return to their holes at 7:45 AM.

Following the completion of 36 holes, the field will be cut to the low 35 players and ties for the final two rounds of play, with the third round tentatively scheduled to begin at 11:00 AM.

The tournament is open to the public and free of charge.