Paarl, 19 December 2008: Ernie Els heads into the weekend of the South African Open two strokes off the lead, and may have uncovered something far greater than his second round 67 suggested at Pearl Valley Golf Estates on Friday.

As Frenchman Michael Lorenzo-Vera signed for a 65 to lead the field on 12 under par, Els overcame some early swing problems to see him challenging for a fifth SA Open crown.

"I had a nice day. I didn’t have great rhythm to my swing at the start of the round and just got through that. Then I found my swing a bit. I missed quite a few putts here and there, but all in all I’ve got to be happy after a couple of weeks off. I can’t complain with being right there after two rounds," Els said after joining Lee Westwood, Charl Schwartzel and Damien McGrane on 10 under par and as Lorenza-Vera’s nearest challengers.

But it was Els’ decision not to force anything that proved his greatest asset on Friday.

"I was just trying to play the shots according to whatever the lie gave me. I tried to just play within myself," he said. "If you can keep the ball in play and get your putter hot you can shoot anything out here. The course is defenceless without wind. It’s only the second round and there’s still a lot of golf to play, but I’m pretty pleased."

On another day of perfect conditions in the winelands, Els’ satisfaction was matched by several other players.

Irishman McGrane posted the joint low round of the day with his 64, including a front nine of 30.

"At that stage I was thinking about a 59, but a few pars on the next nine put an end to those thoughts pretty quickly," he said.

His playing partner Schwartzel was equally impressive with a 65 that started with four consecutive birdies on his first nine and three consecutive birdies on the second.

"That kind of start just gets the whole round going. I hit some fantastic shots. It was great playing with Damien because he was playing so well. It inspired me to play well," said Schwartzel.

And after his 68, Westwood threatened that the weekend could yield something even more spectacular from him.

"I feel like if I keep hitting as I am and have one good putting day, I’ve got sort of a 63 or something like that in me," he said.

For the moment, though, Lorenzo-Vera is still their greatest obstacle. The Frenchman, who finished 2007 as the best player on the European Challenge Tour and came close to a win when he finished second in the China Open on the main tour this year, is in familiar territory in this championship.

After two rounds last year he was lying 12th and well in contention. But when the wind arrived on the weekend, he dropped completely off the leaderboard.

"I really hope the wind doesn’t blow because my putting is good and I can shoot pretty low in these conditions. I don’t have the physique for the wind," he said, also explaining why he gave up rugby at an early age to focus on golf.

A bit of wind would not concern Els too much, although it may make for a few tricky club selections such as the one he faced for his third into the par-five 18th when he overshot the green on his way to a tame par. "For some reason, I thought the distance was 128. It was actually 114. But my maths has never been great," Els said. Although the numbers he’s put together so far make for a pretty impressive report.