Richie Ramsay felt confident a first win in six years was not far away after he carded a 65 to be part of a strong Scottish charge heading into the weekend at the 2021 Canary Islands Championship.
Ramsay's second round 65 left him at 12 under alongside countrymen Calum Hill - who matched his score - and Connor Syme, who carded a 64.
The 37-year-old has been one of the European Tour's most consistent performers for a number of years and has claimed three wins but the last of those came at the 2015 Trophée Hassan II.
His best two results of the 2021 Race to Dubai have come in the last two weeks and after staying bogey free and moving two shots off the lead at Golf Costa Adeje, he did not feel his best was far away.
"It does feel close because I feel like I’m playing really well and I believe fully in the process I’m going through, the process of doing the right gym work, the stretching in the morning, making sure I’m getting enough rest, making sure I eat well," he said.
"I’m diligent about what I do when I’m away from the golf course, so I feel I believe in everything I’m doing.
"It’s just a case of staying patient and keep working hard. I’ve always been a hard worker, and sometimes you get frustrated, but you have to stay patient out here because you have chances every week and you’re going to lose more than you win so just try to enjoy the moment.
"My whole thing is just trying to stay in contention on Sunday because I love that. That’s where you get the buzz and the adrenaline, and that’s where you feel like ‘this is my chance to open the door and get number four’."
Syme carded two eagles in his 64 and was glad to see the hard work paying off after an up and down start to the season with two top tens and three missed cuts from six appearances.
"I felt like I played very well today," he said. "Felt like something was going to happen. Disappointed to drop a shot on 16 but on 18 the chip was nice - it was maybe running a little too far past but lovely to see it drop and finish with an eagle.
"I've been working very hard to be honest, ever since Dubai at the start of the season I've been working hard on my game with my dad and doing some different stuff with my putting as well.
My whole thing is just trying to stay in contention on Sunday because I love that. That’s where you get the buzz and the adrenaline
"It seems to be helping so just trying to better my processes and understand these courses a little better."
Hill revealed he had also been working hard on his game after a round that saw him take the solo lead with seven birdies before dropping his only shot of the day.
"I didn't require as much luck today," he said. "Yesterday I had a few fortunate things happen but today I just played really nice golf all day.
"I complete my backswing poorly, so the start of my downswing is a lot on the left side, which in turn makes me slide with my hips and everything would get stuck from there.
"A lot of my work has been on completing the transition and then keeping down on the ball. I used to shift forward, early extension. A few of those things I'm continually working on."
