Pablo Larrazábal set the clubhouse target but could not rein in overnight leader Alexander Levy during a tough second round of the Real Club Valderrama Open de España, Hosted by the Sergio Garcia Foundation.
The home favourite came into day two two shots behind the Frenchman and, while the rest of the field failed to make any impression on the upper echelons of the leaderboard, he got to seven under after ten holes to open up a two-shot lead.
But a bogey on the second and bunker trouble on the third dropped him back to his starting position of three under before he parred his way home for an impressive 71.
Levy then bogeyed his opening hole and England's Andrew Johnston began his round with a birdie to move to the top of the leaderboard at five under, one clear of Levy and two ahead of Larrazábal.
Just Peter Hanson out of the morning starters managed to post an under par round in windier conditions than day one but, with just 15 breaching level yesterday, Valderrama was living up to its fearsome reputation.
As the vast bulk of the field struggled, Larrazábal looked like he was playing a different course in the early stages, making birdies on the 11th, 12th, 17th and first to move two ahead at the top of the leaderboard.
An errant tee-shot on the second led to a bogey that cut his lead to one and when he went a touch right off the tee again on the next, he was to surrender a triple-bogey.
It took the 32 year old two attempts to get out of a bunker and when he took three putts from 15 feet, he was back to three under. But he recovered admirably to par his way home and set the target for the later starters.
Countryman Jordi Garcia Pinto got off to a flying start with birdies on the tenth and 11th but a bogey on the 13th and a double on the 16th - sandwiching another gain - left him at two under after seven holes.
England's Ross Fisher was also at two under after two holes with a birdie on the first, a shot clear of Martin Kaymer, Stuart Manley and Richie Ramsay.
Defending champion Jame Morrison and Alejandro Cañizares were then at level par after a pair of 75s.
Hanson had begun on the tenth and birdied the 16th, 17th and third before bogeys on the fourth and eighth, but his 70 was still the round of the day so far and moved the Swede to three over.
