Wales' Bradley Dredge held on to his overnight lead in the second round of the Dunhill Championship in Johannesburg today.
Dredge added a second-round 68 to his opening 65 at Houghton for an 11-under-par halfway total of 133 and a one-shot lead over English duo Richard Bland and Mark Roe.
Denmark's Anders Hansen, the 2002 Volvo PGA champion, was a shot further back after a 65 alongside South African Richard Sterne, who carded a 67.
Gary Murphy is the leading Irish contender at 6 under after adding an impressive 67 to yesterday's 71. James Loughnane, however, will be packing his bags after a disastrous 79 moved him to 11 over and a to missed cut while Peter Lawrie finished his second round on one over.
Dredge finished 18th on the Order of Merit last season but is still seeking his first win on the European Tour after being narrowly beaten to the season-ending Volvo Masters in Valderrama by Colin Montgomerie and Bernhard Langer, who shared the title after darkness brought an end to their play-off.
"I'm definitely ready to win," said the 29-year-old Welshman, looking for a good performance to climb back into the top 64 in the world rankings and qualify for the World Matchplay in California next month.
"I've had enough near-misses now so I will not be going out there trying to finish second.
"I learnt a lot from playing with Monty in the final group in Valderrama. It's good to see how he handles himself on the golf course, his demeanour and how he goes about things."
Bland is also seeking a maiden tour title and came close to breaking his duck last year before losing out in a play-off for the Irish Open.
"I'm looking forward to this season after 2002," said the 29-year-old from Southampton, who will have good friend and former England and Southampton footballer Matt Le Tissier as his caddy next week in Singapore.
"Getting into that play-off gave me a taste for this and I definitely want to get back up there with a chance to win. The more times you get in that position the better you can handle it."
Roe birdied all four par fives, after birdies at all the par threes yesterday, to card a flawless 67 and move into contention for a fourth tour victory, nine years after his last.
The 39-year-old always insisted he would retire from competitive golf at 40, but with that landmark to be reached next month, he shows no signs of losing his infectious enthusiasm for the game.
Defending champion Justin Rose gave himself a fighting chance of retaining the first of the four titles he won last year with a second-round 67.
Rose could only manage a 73 on Thursday but hit back with seven birdies today before a double bogey on his penultimate hole, where he found water off the tee, halted his charge. At four under he was seven shots off the lead.
Former European number one Lee Westwood was going well this afternoon with four birdies in his first 12 holes taking him to five under for the tournament.