Home favourite Andrew Johnston and Swede Alex Noren set the clubhouse target on day two of the British Masters supported by Sky Sports.
The pair, who played in the same group on Friday, both posted rounds of 65 to get to ten under par.
But it could have been a different story for Noren, who fired eight birdies in his first 17 holes to establish a healthy advantage at the top of the leaderboard before carding a disappointing double bogey at the ninth - his last - to drop into a tie for the lead.
Both players started the day a single shot off the lead after completing their opening rounds in 67 shots.
And Johnston, beginning his round at the tenth tee, picked up shots at the 11th, 15th and 18th to reach the turn in 33.
The Englishman then rolled in from ten feet at the first to move to eight under.
Johnston's first bogey of the week came at the short fourth but he bounced back in style, reeling off three straight birdies from the fifth to reach ten under.
After dropping another shot at the eighth, Johnston holed his tricky birdie putt at the last to join Noren at the top.
He said: "I'm very happy. I thought I played well yesterday in the wind and managed to make a few more birdies today."
Noren, meanwhile, opened his second round with back-to-back birdies before adding another at the 13th.
The Swede reached the turn in 31 after making further gains at the 17th and 18th, and rolled in from ten feet at the first to get to ten under.
Noren fired another birdie at the fifth before finding himself three shots clear when he holed his 25-foot birdie putt at the eighth and nearest challenger Johnston carded a bogey at the same hole.
But Noren's double bogey at the last, coupled with a birdie from Johnston, saw the pair sit level on ten under at the halfway stage.
Noren was happy with his day's work despite dropping two shots at his last hole. He said: "Sometimes it goes like that. I'm happy about today. I played a lot better than yesterday."
Englishman Tommy Fleetwood and Scotland's Scott Jamieson were a single shot behind the leaders, with Chris Wood and Richard Sterne one stroke further back on eight under.
