Hideto Tanihara, who is playing his first full year on the U.S. PGA Tour, overcame the effects of jet lag to take the lead at the midpoint of the Japan PGA Championship after shooting a second-round 67.
Tanihara birdied three of the four par-5s Friday on his way to carding six birdies and a bogey at Tamana Country Club for a 9-under 135 total, one shot clear of defending champion S.K. Ho of South Korea and first-round leader Hiroyuki Fujita.
Tanihara coped well with the difficult conditions with superb approach shots -- long and short -- on a gusty day in Kumamoto Prefecture as he fired the day's low round with just 23 putts, including 10 on the back nine.