SSP Chawrasia made an early birdie in his second round at the UBS Hong Kong Open to maintain his one-shot lead in the opening event of the 2018 Race to Dubai.
The Indian had mastered the gusting winds on day one and none of the early starters on Friday could get past him with Swede Alexander Björk and Thai Poom Saksansin setting the clubhouse target at five under.
Chawrasia - a four-time European Tour winner - made a single birdie in his first six holes at Hong Kong Golf Club.
Belgian Thomas Detry, Welshman Jamie Donaldson, Swede Marcus Kinhult, Australian Wade Ormsby, South African Keith Horne and American Micah Lauren Shin were in the clubhouse at four under.
Chawrasia remained alone at the top of the leaderboard for the early part of the day with birdies hard to come by for the first wave.
Shubhankar Sharma was in the penultimate group of the early starters and while he bogeyed the first, birdies on the second and fifth had him alongside his countryman.
He bogeyed the next but a birdie would follow on the seventh and at that point there was a four-way tie at the top.
Ormsby finished fifth at the Andalucia Valderrama Masters hosted by the Sergio Garcia Foundation last month to comfortably keep his card and birdies on the 13th, 14th and 17th moved him to five under.
Horne was level par after 12 holes of his second round but birdies on the 13th and 14th meant that for the first time in a while, Chawrasia's lead was in doubt.
Back-to-back bogeys from Sharma saw him turn in 35 and fall back and a Horne dropped shot on the 17th took him out of the leading group as he signed for a 69.
Ormsby bogeyed the first but bounced straight back on the second and there was soon another four-way tie at five under.
Björk birdied the seventh to add to gains on the the 15th, 17th and second, while Saksansin made back-to-back gains on the second - courtesy of a beautiful tee-shot - and third with a lengthy putt.
The Swede then bogeyed the ninth but a closing birdie on the tenth handed him the clubhouse lead after a 66, although he would not lead for long as Saksansin birdied the seventh from six feet to get to six under.
All this jostling had been happening before Chawrasia teed off but he soon found his groove again, birdieing the third to tie the lead.
A Saksansin bogey on the ninth then left Chawrasia back where he had started the day - alone at the top of the leaderboard.
Saksansin parred the last to sign for a 68 but was joined in the group at five under by Swede Joakim Lagergren who made a flying start to his second round, birdieing the first, third, fourth and seventh.
Detry had briefly held the lead after birdies on the 13th and eighth but dropped a shot on the ninth in his 69.
Donaldson made four birdies and three bogeys in his round of 69 while Kinhult birdied four of his last six holes as he recovered from a double-bogey on the third to post the same score.
A bogey on the sixth saw Ormsby sign for a 68 while Shin had three birdies and two bogeys in his 69.
Lagergren bogeyed the ninth to turn in 31 with Thomas Aiken and Julian Suri both four under after eight holes.
Playing partners Li Haotong and Justin Rose both signed for rounds of 69 to sit at three under alongside Sharma.
