Zhang Lianwei two-stroke lead in Guangzhou(2)

　　Chan had led by three strokes after the opening round and by one from Hsu at the halfway stage, creating talk of the possibility of the Omega China Tour’s first non-mainland winner.

　　However, the pair both felt the full force of Zhang’s power and class, as China’s most famous player found the form he had only hinted at in his even-par opening rounds.

　　“From the first hole, Zhang attacked non-stop and it wasn’t easy to handle that,” admitted Chan, a two-time winner on his domestic circuit last year.

　　“It was like he was biting us hole after hole,” added the stocky 30-year-old to big laughs from the large media contingent. “We hung in and are still in with a chance, although we know he’ll attack again on Sunday.”

　　Hsu, who finished third in last year’s Mercuries Taiwan Masters on the Asian Tour, also shared in the jovial atmosphere after the round, but admitted he was disappointed with his own score.

　　“Today, things didn’t go my way and I was especially annoyed to miss a four-foot putt for par on the 18th,” said Hsu, 34, who had also missed a makeable par-putt on the same green the previous day.

　　Li Chao, Omega Order of Merit winner in 2005 and 2007, continued his remarkable recovery with a 68, despite two bogeys in the last four holes.

　　His score was a full 10 strokes better than his opening-day effort and put him in joint-fourth place at two-over-par, six strokes off the pace.