Eddie Pepperell will be hoping to make it third time lucky at Dom Pedro Victoria Golf Course after firing a second round 66 at the Portugal Masters.
The Englishman went bogey free to get to nine under and put himself right in contention for the third year in a row, but it is a far cry from his experiences in 2016.
Entering the week at 110th on the Race to Dubai Rankings Presented by Rolex with the top 111 keeping their cards, he made a double bogey on his 36th hole to fall from the cut-line and found himself heading to Qualifying School.
Since regaining his playing privileges at the first time of asking, he has claimed two European victories, and finished third here in 2017 before coming second last season.
The 28-year-old is now in good position to go one better and was happy with his day's work on the Algarve.
"It was pretty good," he said. "It got quite hard out there. It was just very difficult to make putts, at least I found it difficult to make putts, there's lots of slope around the hole.
"I felt like I played well around the back nine which is probably the most pleasing thing today in the tougher conditions. I felt a little more comfortable with my swing so it's a solid round, to be honest, and I'm continuing a nice run of form at this place.
"It's challenging to get close to those pins the way it is. You've got to hit the fairway. I played with Foxy (Ryan Fox) and he's bombing drivers on some holes where most of us can't even see it but it's not stupid. The course is playing pretty well."
