Ernie Els posted a second-round 69 to reach an 11-under-par mark of 133 and stretch his lead to three in the second round of the Heineken Classic at Royal Melbourne today.
He refused to be upstaged by Greg Norman, who set the clubhouse target by adding a 67 to his opening 69.
Little-known New Zealander Richard Lee then broke the course record with a 62, and young Welshman Mark Pilkington joined Norman on eight under par.
But four birdies in five holes around the turn were an ominous warning that Els is happy as a front-runner and although he did then three-putt the comparatively easy 17th, he came back with an 18-footer on the last.
Pilkington finished the day joint second with Norman and two more Australians - Peter O'Malley and Stephen Leaney.
Nick Faldo, joint third overnight, managed only a 73 and admitted he struggled with a swing that has had a fault "for 27 years".
John Daly eagled his last hole to survive the cut, but Justin Rose failed to make the rest of the tournament.
PA