Maximilian Kieffer continued to shine on home soil as he fired a second-round 71 to lead by one shot at the halfway stage of the 2023 Porsche European Open.
German Kieffer began the day with a share of the lead after opening with a four-under-par 69, and briefly reached eight under par courtesy of four front-nine birdies on Friday morning.
He then produced a stunning par save to remain there before a late double bogey saw him head into the weekend on six under, one stroke ahead of the chasing pack.
Scot David Law, England's Jordan Smith and Northern Irishman Tom McKibbin were in a tie for second on five under.
Starting from the tenth tee, Law got off to a lightning-quick start, carding an eagle and six birdies on his front nine to turn in 30.
Two more birdies and three bogeys followed on his homeward nine as the 32-year-old signed for a 66 - the lowest round of the week so far.
Smith - who won this event in 2017 - made three birdies and a solitary bogey in his second-round 71, while McKibbin finished his 69 with a birdie after finding the 18th green in two.
Overnight co-leader Kieffer started his second round at the tenth tee and opened with a close-range birdie before making back-to-back gains on the 14th and 15th.
A successful seven-foot birdie effort on the 18th green took Kieffer to the turn in 34 blows and saw him reach eight under.
After missing the green on the short fifth, Kieffer managed to get up and down for par courtesy of a sensational 12-foot putt from the fringe.
Having kept his card clean for 16 holes, Kieffer dunked his tee-shot at the par-three eighth into the water and went on to make a double bogey before closing with a par.
He said: "The first nine holes I played really well. Birdie chances on every hole and it could have been a little bit lower if I holed some puts.
"The back nine played a bit more difficult because the wind was switching.
"I had some not so good iron shots, managed to make some nice up-and-downs and unfortunately on eight, I actually didn’t hit that bad of a shot, the wind just switched and gusted up, so I made a double there.
"But overall, I’m quite happy and it’s a nice position.
"I really enjoyed it. It’s been good fun with a nice group, Yannik (Paul) and Rasmus (Højgaard). A great atmosphere and the crowd has been very supportive, even after bad shots.
"It’s been lots of fun and I’m really looking forward to the weekend."
Courtesy www.europeantour.com