For Stacy Lewis, the decision was easy. She goes to college about 20 minutes away.

"I actually didn't even come up here until about 3 o'clock," said Lewis, a senior at Arkansas. "Just stayed at home, hung out with my friends. It was nice to have people to hang out with."

Lewis was in the right frame of mind when she started her round, making birdies on four of her first five holes Friday to move quickly up the leaderboard. Her round was suspended by darkness after a par on No. 15, which was her sixth hole. By then, she was already within two strokes of the lead.

Kristy McPherson, Katherine Hull and Teresa Lu were tied for the lead at 6-under 66. They were among the lucky ones who finished the first round after heavy rain postponed the start of the 54-hole event for 4› hours.

Sherri Turner was one stroke back after a 67, and Maria Hjorth shot a 68. Lewis, this year's NCAA individual champion, was even with Hjorth at 4 under — with 12 first-round holes left at Pinnacle Country Club.

"We've got a long ways to go," Lewis said, trying not to get too excited about her impressive start.

U.S. Women's Open champion Cristie Kerr was in contention after a 69. Several other finishers were also at 3 under, including Dorothy Delasin, Alena Sharp, Pat Hurst and Julieta Granada.

Juli Inkster was at 3 under through nine holes. Some of the tournament's top draws started so late they had little hope of finishing. Natalie Gulbis started around 4:40 p.m. and managed to play nine holes in 1 under.

The top three money earners this year on the LPGA Tour — Lorena Ochoa, Suzann Pettersen and Paula Creamer — are absent from this event, and No. 4 Mi Hyun Kim withdrew.

Lewis, an amateur playing on a sponsor exemption, could become a crowd favorite if she stays in contention — although she didn't have much of a gallery Friday playing late in the afternoon with daylight fading.

She'll sleep in her own bed this week and is familiar with the course. Kerr said earlier this week she didn't know much about the 6,238-yard layout. How many times has Lewis played Pinnacle?

"I couldn't count," she said with a laugh. "A ton."

Lewis has acquitted herself well at LPGA events before. She finished two strokes behind winner Morgan Pressel at this year's Kraft Nabisco Championship.

McPherson, a rookie, could have had sole possession of the lead, but she missed a short par putt on No. 17.

When McPherson was 11, she was horsing around with her brothers when one of them tackled her, hurting her back.

"Long story short, I was in and out of the hospital for the next five or six months," McPherson said. "Ended up being in the bed and through therapy for 11› months and diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis."

Looking back, McPherson says that accident might have helped her.

"I was a big softball and basketball player and probably would have never played golf without getting sick back when I was 11," she said.

Lu, of Taiwan, said the rain softened the course. Even after play finally started, players had to contend with an occasional drizzle.

"The fairways are pretty wet and the greens are holding pretty good because it's wet," she said. "The green speed is pretty good."

Hull, of Australia, eagled No. 13, her fourth hole. She hit a 3-wood from 230 yards to around 12 feet on the 460-yard par 5.

"The greens are soft," she said. "You can be a bit more aggressive with your approach shots when it's playing that way, which is nice."