Matthew Fitzpatrick fired a stunning 65 to set the clubhouse target on day two of the Nordea Masters at Bro Hof Slott Golf Club.
The Englishman came into the second round a shot behind a leading group of six players but his unblemished effort catapulted him to 11 under par and gave him a three-shot lead over Belgium's Nicolas Colsaerts.
French Rookie Thomas Linard was a further shot back with two-time winner Mikko Ilonen and Germany's Florian Fritsch at six under.
Fitzpatrick enjoyed a stunning maiden European Tour campaign in 2015, winning the British Masters supported by Sky Sports along with securing nine further top ten finishes.
He only has one top ten so far this season but that was at the Masters Tournament where he finished seventh and the 21 year old is currently on course to make his Ryder Cup debut at Hazeltine in the autumn.
Joint overnight leader Marc Warren had set the early pace on Friday as he birdied four of his first six holes but Fitzpatrick had gains on the tenth, 12th, 15th and 18th to stay within one shot.
A poor drive and third shot over the green resulted in a double-bogey on the 18th for the Scot and when Fitzpatrick birdied the first, he held a two-shot lead.
A brilliant tee-shot to eight feet led to another birdie on the fourth and when Fitzpatrick spun his ball from the back of the green to within tap-in distance for another gain on the seventh, he was in control.
Colsaerts needed a late surge last season to keep hold of his playing privileges and he has carried that momentum into 2016, making his last five cuts including a third-placed finish at the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open.
An eagle on the first was sandwiched by birdies on the 12th, 15th, third and fifth as he flew up the leaderboard, with a bounce-back birdie on the ninth following a bogey on the eighth.
Linard made the turn in 36 after two birdies and two bogeys but further gains on the tenth, 12th, 13th and 16th moved him into third place.
Finn Ilonen won this event in 2007 and 2013 and a 70 kept him very much in the mix, while joint overnight leader Fritsch recovered from three bogeys in his first eight holes to post a 71.
Andrew Johnston, another in that group that started the day at five under, birdied the first to join Ilonen and Fritsch, a shot ahead of defending champion Alex Noren, England's David Dixon, Italian Matteo Manassero and France's Romain Wattel.
Warren signed for a 73 to join Tyrrell Hatton at four under.
