Shaun Norris and Bernd Wiesberger will share the lead heading into the weekend at the Volvo China Open but will have a pair of home heroes chasing them down at Enhance Anting Golf Club.
While very low scoring was the order of the day in round one after recent rain, day two proved a much tougher test as sunshine and breeze firmed up the layout in Shanghai.
South African Norris was bogey-free and on track to take the solo lead into the last 36 holes but a first bogey of the week on the last dropped him back to 12 under as he signed for a 67.
That left him alongside Austrian Wiesberger, who rode the momentum of a birdie-birdie-birdie start to a 66 as he goes in search of a second win in China.
Teenage star Yanhan Zhou thrilled the home crowds on day one with a 61 and he followed that with a 69 to sit one back alongside fellow Chinese Bowen Chai, who carded a 66.
First-round leader Alejandro del Rey was then at ten under after a second round 71, one shot clear of Australian Kuangyu Chen, Frenchman Tom Vaillant and Dutchman Darius van Driel.
Norris is teeing it up for the first time since the Joburg Open but showing no signs of rust as he looks to recover from missing four of his last five cuts.
He began the season with back-to-back top fives on home soil and was delighted to rediscover that form on his first start of the Asian Swing.
“It’s been pretty solid all day long bar a little blunder on the last hole,” he said.
“I can’t be more pleased with the way I’m playing the game at the moment and managing my game at the moment.
“I’m sort of hitting the ball in the right spots, missing it in the right spots and giving myself a lot of good chances so I’m happy with where I’m at at the moment, especially after a long break.
“Looking forward to the rest of the weekend.”
The 43-year-old made birdies on the fifth, sixth, eighth and 13th and a long putt on the 16th had him in the solo lead before that only blemish of the week on the last.
Wiesberger – a winner in China at the 2017 Shenzhen International – spoke after round one of his mission to rediscover the form that brought him eight DP World Tour titles between 2012 and 2021, including two Rolex Series triumphs.
And while he admitted he did not play as well as on Thursday, he was happy to grind out a score.
“I didn’t play as well as I did yesterday with my long game so it was nice to actually get a round in that low because I didn’t feel quite as good as I did yesterday,” he said.
“But sometimes you get over those days and get a good score out of it and I did today.”
After making that three-birdie start, the 40-year-old sandwiched another gain on the 14th with a pair of bogeys before also picking up a shot on the 17th.
He then added birdies on the third and eighth to hit the top of the leaderboard.
Zhao, who only turned 18 earlier this month, could not quite repeat his heroics from round one as he registered four birdies and two bogeys as he looks for an incredible 12th win in a professional event on home soil.
Chai is making just his third DP World Tour start this week and paired six birdies with a single bogey, the highlight being a long putt on the fifth.
Spaniard Del Rey made two birdies and two bogeys in his level par effort, while Vaillant and Van Driel both carded rounds of 65 and Chen signed for a 67.
Australian Anthony Quayle matched the low round of the day with a 64 to sit at eight under alongside Chinese Zihao Jin, Japan’s Kota Kaneko and Portuguese Daniel Rodrigues.
We also saw the seventh and eighth holes-in-one of the season, with Scotland'ds Daniel Young and American Jake Vincent needing just a single blow on the second and 12th respectively.
