Overnight leader Steve Flesch carded a three-under-par 69 to open up a two-stroke advantage at the halfway mark of the Reno-Tahoe Open at Montreux Golf and Country Club.
The 40-year-old started the day with a one-shot lead after firing an opening 63 and sank six birdies against three bogeys to move to 12 under par, two ahead of Charles Warren.
Starting his round on the tenth, Flesch picked up a birdie and a bogey on his first five holes before three more birdies saw him reach the turn three under on his round.
A double-bogey at the second halted Flesch’s progress but he bounced back with birdies at the fourth and eighth to play his back nine in level par.
‘For some reason, I have success on this golf course,’ Flesch said.
‘I was just glad that I hung in there, it was tough out there.
‘The wind was blustery and blowing around. It got a lot tougher, a lot different from the golf course we played Thursday morning.’
Warren jumped from a tie for 54th into second place thanks to seven birdies and an eagle in a stunning nine-under-par effort of 63 to move to ten under and into contention for his first PGA victory.
Tadd Fujikawa, a 16-year-old from Hawaii who became the youngest golfer ever to play in the US Open last year at Winged Foot, improved on Friday but still missed the cut.
Fujikawa opened with a 78 on his professional debut but rebounded with a one-under-par 71.
‘I learned a lot, especially at this level of play,’ he said.
‘It's not like you can make stupid mistakes. You can't just go out there and hit balls in the rough. You're really going to pay for it.
‘I didn't get off to a good start. Three, four, and five weren't very good to m, but I brought it back and got things going. One under’s a decent round, I learned a lot and I'm going to take a lot from it.’
