England’s Eddie Pepperell carded a superb 5-under 67 to take a one-shot lead at the Dubai Desert Classic on Friday.
Pepperell moved to a shot clear of defending champion Bryson DeChambeau, who is tied in second place, after the Englishman made seven second-round birdies to lead at 8 under for the tournament.
World No. 136 Pepperell has missed his previous two cuts as he looks to pick up his third European Tour victory after winning both the Qatar Masters and British Masters in 2018.
American DeChambeau took advantage of a fast start, making biridie on the opening three holes on the way to carding 67.
Overnight leader Belgium’s Thomas Pieters had a day to forget, carding a second-round 5-over 77 to make the cut by two strokes and drop to a packed group tied in 32nd place.