Jamie McLeary three shots clear after eventful day in Moscow

McLeary, who opened with a round of 65, picked up where he had left off with three birdies in his opening eight holes at Tseleevo Golf and Polo Club, on the outskirts of the Russian capital. But then disaster struck, as four consecutive bogeys from the ninth hole saw McLeary relinquish the advantage he had so carefully built. The Scot showed commendable mental strength, however, to pick up four shots in his closing five holes, with the highlight a chip in for eagle at the 15th.

McLeary said: "I played really well again today and seemed to be cruising, but then my round took a rather bizarre turn. I hit a bad tee shot on the ninth and made bogey, then on the tenth I got a bit of a bad break with a terrible lie. It was so bad that if I'd tried to hit a full shot, I would've missed the ball completely!

"So I just had to take my medicine and lay up, then on the next two holes I missed short par putts. So from being really comfortable, suddenly everything started coming apart at the seams. But I didn't panic and I'm feeling a lot better than I was about an hour or so ago. At the start of the week I thought eight- under-par might win it, so if I can sneak a couple of 72s over the weekend, hopefully I won't be too far away. But I can't afford to think like that - it'll just be one shot and one hole at a time."

Earlier in the day Jamieson, whose tied runner-up finish at last week's Kazakhstan Open was the best performance of his fledgling Challenge Tour career, carded a round of 69 to move to five-under-par. Jamieson started slowly with bogeys at the second and third holes, but swiftly recovered with birdies at the fourth, fifth and eighth to turn in 35. After seven straight pars he closed with another two birdies to go into the weekend with a good chance of capturing his maiden Challenge Tour title. Jamieson, currently 20th in the rankings, said: "The wind really picked up in places. Maybe that's why there are so many Scots up near the top of the leaderboard, because we're used to playing in the cold and the wind!

"I can't complain about my form, because I'm playing well at the moment. Hopefully I can keep it going for the next couple of days, then enjoy a break in the States with my girlfriend."

Raymond Russell is just four shots off the pace after a second-round 69, with Lloyd Saltman (73) also in contention on 143. But Callum Macaulay, who started the day a shot behind McLeary, is well down the field after he slumped to a 79.