A late afternoon swim in the surf freshened Sydney golfer John Lyras for his bid to hang tough at the Vic Open at 13th Beach.
Lyras took advantage of a morning tee time for his second round to shoot a six-under 66 to add to his opening 64 to be 14-under, three shots ahead of the field heading into the weekend.
"This is why you play golf. It's where we want to be. You can't get tired of it if you love the game of golf this much," he said.
Lyras, a member at St Michael's Golf Club, has his father and trainer join himself and caddie to enjoy a fun week in the sun and surf.
"We're having a good time, keeping it light. We went down to Barwon Heads for a quick swim (after the opening round on Thursday). Just trying to do the right things, trying to treat it like a major tournament," he said.
"I've played a bunch of really good back-to-back rounds at my home club, but you don't get these conditions.
"In terms of pure golf, this is probably the best two rounds of golf I've played, so I'm just really happy it has come at a good time."
A late-starter in the professional game, he played cricket up to second grade level with the University of New South Wales until he completed high school before switching sports.
The closest chasers to Lyras for Saturday's third round are NSW's Dimi Papadatos at -11 after rounds of 65 and 68, with Victorian Cameron John (66, 68) and Queensland's Jake McLeod (67, 67) a shot further back.
John is rebooting his young career with the assistance of a sports psychologist from Melbourne's eastern suburbs after an eight-month break from the game.
"Since I've had a bit of a breather it was probably the best thing for me. It's great when you're playing well, but it's not always going to go your way It's something I've been working on, just trying to be happy," he said.
Queensland's Aaron Pike and Victorian trio Matthew Griffin, Zach Murray and Josh Younger are tied fifth, five shots back and still right in contention.
Home state favourite Geoff Ogilvy birdied the Beach' courses par-five final hole for a one-under 71 to sit at -2 and safely inside the halfway cut.
