Incessant rain brought the second round of the French Open to a soggy halt today with Englishmen Daren Lee and Warren Bennett keeping their heads above water to share the overnight lead.
The unseasonal rain forced a four-hour delay in the opening round yesterday and the deluge caused more chaos today as half the players trudged their way back to the clubhouse after the hooter sounded ending play prematurely for the day.
At that stage Lee, the overnight leader, was six-under-par through 10 holes and Bennett was on the same mark through seven.
The leaders in the clubhouse were Desvonde Botes of South Africa, and Englishmen Roger Winchester and Paul Eales, all of whom were 135, five-under par.
The par for the course has been cut from 72 to 70 because of the rain, the par-five fifth becoming a par three to make it playable and players have been authorised to pick and place their balls.
Of the seven Irish players competing in the soggy conditions, Paddy Gribben is making the most headway. The former Walker Cup player reached the 12th hole in three-under before the hooter sounded.
Paul McGinley, Gary Murphy and Philip Walton all managed to complete their second rounds and share a tie for 41st on one-under par. McGinley shot a three-under 67, Murphy carded a 69 while Walton slipped back with a one-over par 71.
David Higgins and Ronan Rafferty are two shots further back on one-over. Rafferty was able to finish his round in 71 but Higgins still has eight holes of his second round to complete.
Damien Mooney only managed to complete three holes of his second round and the Challenge Tour player is currently two-over par.