David Ravetto birdied the final hole of his second round to take the halfway lead at the D+D Royal Czech Masters at 13 under.
The Frenchman emerged from a foursome with Richie Ramsay, Jesper Svensson and Andrew Johnston and quickly equalled the course record of 63 set by Andrew Johnston with a strong final performance on Friday at PGA National OAKS Prague.
Espen Kofstad and Brandon Robinson Thompson had two days of impressive scores on the course in their DP World Tour debut but finished one shot behind at 11 under.
South Africa's Pieter Moolman was the overnight leader after a 64 on Thursday but dropped to T17 at eight under after a 72.
Lavitto’s bogey-free round began on the back nine with a birdie putt from 12 feet on the 11th, a birdie putt from close range on the 13th and an eagle putt right next to the green on the 16th.
Turning to the front nine, he began to catch birdies in succession and caught two more birdies on the fourth and sixth holes, including a 28-foot putt on the sixth hole and a powerful 7-foot putt on the ninth hole.
“I felt really good,” he said. “I've been playing really good the last few weeks in practice and today was a perfect round. Holed the putt and I couldn't ask for anything more.
“My main goal this week is to enjoy myself and obviously being in the lead after two days, I'm enjoying it and feeling comfortable. I'm just going to try to enjoy myself and we'll see.”
Johnston birdied three of the first four holes, starting with the 10th, and after giving up a chance on the 14th, repeated his initial scoring momentum on the 16th, 17th and 1st holes.
Four strokes in five holes starting at No. 4 put him in a tie for first place until Ravetto finished strongly.
“I mean, it was a weird game, wasn’t it?” Johnston said. “We had a little break, but I had been playing really well the last couple of weeks and not scoring any goals.
“Obviously today everything is settled and the golf tournament is done.”
Swenson continued his impressive performance on Thursday, holed out from 21 feet on the first hole for birdie.
He holed short birdie putts on the 5th, 9th, 12th and 13th holes, though the last one came after he missed an eagle opportunity from within 4 feet.
The Swede easily took the lead with a 7-foot putt on the 16th hole, but lost the next hole with a shot.
“The first two days have been great and I’ve been in a couple of matches now where I’ve been fighting for the cut, so it feels a lot better to be fighting for the win now,” he said.
Ramsey shot a 31 on the front nine that included five birdies, including three straight birdies starting on the fifth hole, to take the lead.
After playing even par on the back nine with two birdies and two bogeys, he said: “I'm very happy with my performance, it went really well. It's great to be on top but I have to try to do my best tomorrow.”
Robinson Thompson, who went bogey-free on the first day until an overhit on the 18th hole found a bunker, quickly got back on track after making par on the 10th hole Friday with three straight birdies, including a 42-foot putt on the 12th.
He dropped a shot on the first hole, but attacks on the fourth and seventh holes gave him a chance to match his Challenge Tour title at last week's Farmfoods Scottish Challenge supported by the R&A, and another win on the DP World Tour.
“It’s great to play in any tournament, let alone the DP Championship,” he said. “It’s easy to say, but it’s just another golf course. I’m the same guy who played well last week, so why not come and do the same thing? But of course it’s easier said than done.”
Kofstad birdied four of his final six holes to end his first-round 68 with an impressive 65, while Ross Fisher, Connor Sim and Bernd Weisberg were one shot behind as seven players finished at nine under.
– Editorial report from DP World Tour website
Photograph: Octavio Passos/Getty Images
