Tournament host Sergio Garcia was delighted to enter the weekend relatively unscathed as Real Club Valderrama bared its teeth on day two of the Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters.
The Spaniard has three wins and ten other top tens from 14 appearances in Sotogrande but the 1997 Ryder Cup venue is not regarded as one of the Race to Dubai's toughest layouts for nothing, and he carded a one over par 72 in round two.
That left him at four under alongside fellow home favourites Adri Arnaus and Alvaro Quiros, and Welshman Bradley Dredge - four shots adrift of leader Christiaan Bezuidenhout.
But after facing the firm greens and high winds of the tougher afternoon conditions, Garcia was pleased with his day's work.
“I wouldn’t say it’s a bad round," he said. "Obviously it was very difficult this afternoon, the greens were very firm and it got quite windy, more than yesterday afternoon.
I felt like I played really well under the conditions and the difficulty of the course - Sergio Garcia
"I just didn’t make any putts but I felt like I played really well under the conditions and the difficulty of the course.
"As the week is going on, the course is going to get tougher with a bit of breeze and the greens getting firm like they did today. You could see it, you had to be so precise to be able to go for the flags and then after that the putts were quite tricky. Some of the pins were tucked in nicely and with a good amount of break - it was good."
Arnaus was over par for his round when he reached the 17th green but he holed a monster putt for an eagle that rocketed him up the leaderboard.
"It wasn't playing easy," he said. "In the afternoon the greens were firmer and it was kind of a grind for most of the round until I made that eagle putt on 17 which was my highlight.
"You have to pick when you are going to be aggressive, not all the time, definitely. Today, I was probably aggressive five times, the rest it was keep it in play, keep it in the middle of the green and try and lag some putts. If some drop then that is going to be a bonus."
Quiros played in the easier morning conditions and while he was glad to take advantage, he believes Valderrama strips him of one of his most potent weapons.
"Valderrama is one of those few courses where you can sometimes do better if you don’t know it too well," he said. "I am starting to know every single corner for good or for bad.
"This is not a hitter’s golf course. Most of the time we are looking to place the ball off the tee and we are not allowed to hit the driver every single time - that’s not an advantage for long hitters.
"I don’t consider myself at a disadvantage here but, really, my length doesn’t help a lot.”
