European pair Jose Maria Olazabal and Alex Cejka share second place at the halfway stage of the Masters. Olazabal, the 1994 and 1999 champion, came home in a three-under-par 33 that included an eagle at the 13th.
But the 38-year-old Spaniard bogeyed the last to finish on four under, the same mark as Cejka.
The Czech-born German, who plays most of his golf in the US, posted his second straight 70, but he also bogeyed Augusta's last.
Olazabal, who carded a first-round 71, vaulted up the leaderboard thanks to his eagle at the 13th and successive birdies at the 14th and 15th.
"It must be something to do with this place," the 38-year-old Spaniard told reporters. "Every time I come here, I try to do my best and I seem to feel at peace with myself.
"It was a very quiet round until the 13th, where I hit two lovely shots and gave myself an eagle chance from around 40 feet.
"I made that putt and made another nice putt at 14 and hit a lovely shot on 15 with my third. That was my round."
Ryder Cup plans
Cejka's ability on the greens drew warm praise from playing partner Jack Nicklaus.
"He putted unbelievable," Nicklaus said. "I don't know how many miles of 20-foot putts he made, but it's a lot of them."
The performances of Cejka and Olazabal will have impressed European Ryder Cup team captain Bernhard Langer, who put together a methodical 73 for a 36-hole total of 144, only six shots off the lead.
Alongside the experienced Langer at level par is Sergio Garcia. The 24-year-old Spaniard, who will almost certainly feature in Langer's Ryder Cup plans, carded his second straight 72 and will be hoping his putter heats up to match his fine approach work.
MMIX
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