Wellington professional Gareth Paddison has shot consecutive 68s at the China Open on the European Tour to climb to a share of fifth at the halfway stage at the Binhai Lake Golf Club in Tianjin.
Paddison, who represented New Zealand at the World Cup of Golf last year, made six birdies and two bogeys as he closed within three shots of the leaders Gary Boyd (England) and Jean-Baptiste Gonnet (France) on an 11 under par total.
The left hander, who has played previously on the European Tour, qualified for the event with his status on the OneAsia Tour as this event is co-sanctioned.
Paddison has shown good form already in 2012 when he won the Victorian PGA Championship by one shot on the PGA Tour of Australasia.
North Harbour professional Michael Hendry, who is playing in his first event since winning the New Zealand PGA Pro-Am at The Hills, carded rounds of 70 and 73 to miss the cut by one shot. He finished in a share of 71st place after an eventful second round that included four birdies, three bogeys and a double bogey.
