Alex Noren continued his recent excellent form as he fired a 63 to sit in a strong position heading into the weekend at the Omega European Masters.
The Swede has three top tens in his last five events, including a win at the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open and progressing to the final of the Aberdeen Asset Management Paul Lawrie Match Play before being beaten by Anthony Wall.
He made seven birdies in a blemish-free effort on Friday to get within one of the lead at Crans-sur-Sierre Golf Club, and is in an excellent position to once again lift the trophy that was his maiden European Tour title in 2009.
"I'm really happy with today," he said. "I hit it better off the tees and hit a lot more greens than yesterday. You have a lot of chances out here but it is tough if you miss the greens. There are tricky up-and-downs out here. It was a lot easier round today.
"I've been putting really well. I've been holing a lot of five, six-footers for pars when I miss the green. Obviously today I made more birdies.
"I like this type of course where you have to think a little bit off the tees. You get a lot of chances but you need to hit a lot of nice wedges. I think it is very enjoyable for us players."
Scott Hend was also at eight under after making three birdies in his last five holes, using his distance to make gains on the three par fives for the second day running.
You get a lot of chances but you need to hit a lot of nice wedges. I think it is very enjoyable for us players - Alex Noren
"The golf course can grab you pretty quick so you don't want to push it forward," he said. "You just want to hit fairways, greens and hopefully you have a couple of makeable putts.
"It doesn't take much to have a little bit of lapse in concentration here. You hit one in the water, you take a drop or hit one to the back and all of a sudden you are playing ping pong.
"I've been in this position a lot this year and I've learnt a fair bit from it so hopefully we can forge ahead and see what happens."
Andrew Johnston was a shot back at seven under after following his opening 65 with a 68.
The Englishman won his first title at the Real Club Valderrama Open de España, hosted by the Sergio Garcia Foundation and has since proved he is a man for the big occasion, securing top tens at the BMW PGA Championship and The 145th Open Championship.
"I had a good day out there," he said. "I hit some decent putts that didn't quite drop. I thought I'd got a couple of decent breaks early on today. I hit a couple which were a little bit left, a little bit right but they popped through and I had a shot.
It's nice to be in contention, that's what you want to do the first three days and hopefully I'll do it again tomorrow and keep myself up there - Andrew Johnston
"You just want to get through the first few holes on the front nine and then make a few birdies. I didn't hit good wedge shots into five and six but it was all good.
"There are a lot of fiddly holes where you've got to get off the tee in the right way and get your distance right – we're higher up here so the ball is flying miles. It's hard when you're going downhill but into a bit of a breeze. It can be tough to judge the distance, that's the key around here.
"It's nice to be in contention, that's what you want to do the first three days and hopefully I'll do it again tomorrow and keep myself up there."
