By Kent Gray
Matthieu Pavon has a thing for Al Mouj Golf and hopes it continues on moving day at the new NBO Oman Open.

The Frenchman was due to tee off at 12.17pm on Saturday with a two shot halfway lead over Englishman and third round partner Matthew Southgate.

Pavon roared to the summit of the Muscat leaderboard with a 65 on Friday, including a electrifying front nine of 31, to reach 11 under for the tournament. The 25-year-old is searching for his first European Tour title and Al Mouj seems as good as any place to achieve it after he tied third when he last visited Muscat as a European Challenge Tour player in 2016.

“I’ve got a lot of good memories of this course which helps,” said Pavon.

“When you play bad on a course and then have to go back there you have some bad memories but here it’s just the opposite – I just have so many good memories so I’m just trying to surf them!

 “It’s one of my favourite courses that I’ve played in the last three years so it’s great to have the European Tour here and I think it’s a great thing for Oman.”

Southgate, meanwhile, remains in the hunt for a maiden European Tour title after a second round of 70, which could have been lower had he not found the Gulf of Oman with his tee shot on the 18th, leaving him to walk off with a double bogey.

 “I feel really in control of my game and emotionally I’ve been really good on the course,” said Southgate who admitted to “playing the best golf of my life”.

 “I just switched off a little bit on the 18th tee. I made a poor swing and a poor error and I’m not surprised (what happened). It’s a hot day and it’s taken a lot out of me.

 “These things happen, I didn’t mean to do it and I certainly won’t mean to do it again. There are going to be hundreds of shots that I hit in my career that I’m not happy with and that was just one of them.

 “I think I’m playing the best golf of my life which is the goal because I look to just improve all the time.”

 First round co-leader Paul Waring (70) and fellow Englishman Chris Wood (66) start Saturday in a share of third place at eight under par.

There are scores to be had on moving day at Al Mouj as Thomas Bjorn, Edoardo Molinari and Nico Geyger proved with early 67s to roar 47 spots up the leaderboard.

 Darren Clarke had a 67 on Friday to make his first cut since the 2016 Open Championship. He set off in his third round at 11.41am with Andrew “Beef” Johnston on -5.