It got even better for Wilco Nienaber on Friday as he carded a five-under-par 66 in the second round of the DP World Tour’s Portugal Masters at the Dom Pedro Victoria Golf Course in Vilamoura, Portugal.

He made seven birdies and two bogeys to go with his opening three-under-par 68 as he moved into a share of 22^nd on eight-under-par for the weekend. That left him five shots adrift of the lead which was shared by Gavin Green of Malaysia and England’s Jordan Smith. That pair led by one from Tapio Pulkkanen of Finland and Frenchman Benjamin Hebert.

It’s something of a battle that awaits Nienaber over the weekend, as he is projected at this stage to finish the tournament in 136^th on the DP World Tour rankings, which would leave him short of the 117^th which is the mark to retain his playing card for the 2023 season. So it will require a good weekend – something that will vault him into the top 10 for the tournament, perhaps – for him to be assured of a decent set of playing opportunities in Europe next year.

Richard Sterne carded a two-under 69 in the second round to move to five-under and a share of 52^nd. His position in Europe for 2023 seems to be a lost cause as he is projected to finish 159^th.

Daniel van Tonder was on four-under for the tournament as he made the cut on the number after a second-round 69. A strong finish will boost him from his current 127^th on the rankings.

There will be no opportunity to improve for Darren Fichardt and Haydn Porteous, who missed the cut. Fichardt is projected to end up 145^th on the rankings, and Porteous a lowly 243^rd.