Padraig Harrington, the defending champion, is six shots off the lead after a fine second round of 65 put Daniel Chopra into the lead on 13 under par as the second day of the Iskandar Johor Open was again disrupted by the Malaysian weather.
Harrington, who carded 64 in the first round, shot two birdies and two bogeys as he played the front nine level par before the weather halted play to be seven under with eight other players.
After Thursday's play was shortened due to thunderstorms, Chopra returned to Horizon Hills and Country Club to complete the final four holes of his first round, a seven-under 64 that featured an eagle, seven birdies – including six on the front nine – and a double-bogey five on the 12th to trail the overnight leader, Joost Luiten, by one stroke.
The 37-year-old Swede followed it up with another impressive effort as seven birdies and one bogey to establish a four-shot cushion over the rest of the field.
However, a two-hour suspension during the afternoon means a clutch of players are still to finish their second rounds after play was eventually halted due to darkness.
The Johor Open has proved a happy hunting ground for Chopra after claiming his first professional win there in 1993 and he felt his short game was the main reason behind his commanding position. "My wedges and putting are fantastic, I just need to sort my irons out little bit," he told the European Tour website. "It is difficult to find your rhythm with your irons out here, because you're always using your driver and wedges.
"It was an early start for me this morning. I had a good feel to finish my first round with a few birdies and I made another good putt for birdie on my first hole this morning, which got my second round off to the perfect start."
Luiten leads the chasing pack at nine under par through six holes as the Dutchman added a birdie at the sixth to five consecutive pars.
Chopra's compatriots Michael Jonzon and Christian Nilsson lie at eight under along with Bangladesh's Mohammad Siddikur. Jonzon also carded a 65 while Nilsson and Siddikur signed for 67s.
