Justin Harding made a spectacular eagle to light up a "grinding" 68 as he took a two-shot lead into the weekend at the 2022 Slync.io Dubai Desert Classic.
The South African had to return to complete his opening round on day two and birdied the last to take a share of the 18-hole lead before a hole-out from 183 yards on the par-four sixth in round two helped him hit the front at 11 under, two clear of four-time Rolex Series champion Tyrrell Hatton.
South African Erik van Rooyen and Paraguay's Fabrizio Zanotti were then at eight under, one ahead of Ryder Cup team-mates Viktor Hovland and Rory McIlroy, England's Richard Bland, Dane Joachim B. Hansen and Pole Adrian Meronk.
Harding is a two-time winner on the DP World Tour but is yet to star in a Rolex Series event, with last week's tie for 25th at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship matching his best finish.
The 35-year-old has proven he can go low at Emirates Golf Club, carding a 63 en route to a top-ten finish in 2019, and is hoping he can recreate that magic after falling away over the weekend last season.
"I've played this golf course well over the years," he said. "Had a good final round a couple of years back and was in contention last year and played badly on the Sunday.
"The game seems to be close. It's just a matter of, if I can control the putter and make some putts, we are always going to be there and thereabouts, which is nice."
He added: "I made some putts, to be fair. I've driven the ball well - I didn't drive it that great yesterday. I hit it in the sand rather than the rough and that makes it a bit easier.
"I rolled the ball pretty good and, for the most part, kept bogeys off the card. Hit the fairway on the longer, tougher par fours. Ultimately just grinding. It was a grind of a day today, to be fair, just a bonus there on six."
Starting at the tenth, Harding got up and down from the sand at his par-five opener and also took advantage of the 13th before giving shots back on the 15th and 16th.
His excellence on the par fives continued as he then made gains on the 18th and third to get back to nine under and share the lead with Van Rooyen.
The game seems to be close. It's just a matter of, if I can control the putter and make some putts, we are always going to be there and thereabouts, which is nice
The 31-year-old recovered from a poor tee-shot on the tenth to make a birdie and joined Harding in making it a hat-trick of par-five gains on the back nine, also adding a birdie on the 17th with an approach to eight feet.
A putt from the fringe on the fourth was followed by a stunning second to three feet at the next but he found sand twice on the eighth to drop a shot and sign for a 67, with Harding making his spectacular eagle to jump clear.
Hatton started his round with a bogey but he then reeled off four birdies in a row: playing a stunning flop shot on the second, getting up and down from the sand on the next, putting a tee-shot to seven feet at the fourth and an approach to similar range at the fifth.
Another excellent up-and-down from the sand at the tenth was followed by a two-putt birdie at the 13th and when the Englishman pitched in at the next he was the nearest challenger after a 66.
Like Harding, Zanotti had birdied the last as he returned to compete his first round and he put a tee-shot to 12 feet at the 11th and birdied the 18th again after laying up in round two.
A failure to get up and down from the sand at the sixth halted his progress but he picked the shot straight back up with a 39-foot putt on the next for a 70.
Northern Ireland's McIlroy put his approach to six feet on the first and while he missed an opportunity after driving the green at the par-four second, he holed a long putt for birdie from the fringe at the fourth.
The four-time Major Champion then dined out on the par fives on the back nine, getting up and down on the tenth, chipping in for eagle on the 13th and holing an 18-footer for birdie on the last in a 66.
Bland had led alone before he dropped three shots in his final two holes in a 68, while Hansen had also been in top spot early in the day but bogeyed his last two in a 72.
Norway's Hovland raced up the leaderboard as he turned in 33 from the tenth but had to settle for a 69, while Meronk eagled the tenth and added four birdies and two bogeys in a 68.
Defending champion Paul Casey was then in an all-English group at six under alongside Marcus Armitage, Tommy Fleetwood, Sam Horsfield and Lee Westwood.
