Kuala Lumpur, February 13: Malaysia's Danny Chia could be forgiven from thinking he was experiencing déjà-vu after his sizzling seven under par 65 at Saujana Golf and Country Club took him into the lead at the Maybank Malaysian Open.

The home favourite sat proudly at the top of the leaderboard of his national Open Championship this time 12 months ago, and he was once again among the dominant figures in the tournament after adding a brilliant second round to his opening 66 to post a 13 under par halfway total.

That was good enough to establish a three stroke lead of Swede Alexander Noren, with Korean teenager Noh Seung-yul a shot further back on nine under and the English duo of Nick Dougherty and Simon Griffiths tied alongside Australia's Adam Blyth on eight under.

Chia actually shared the lead with Dougherty this time 12 months ago, but he is now out on his own and hoping that he can finish the job to create a weekend of history as the first Malaysian to take the title in the tournament's 48th year in existence.

"I am very happy," smiled Chia, who conjured two eagles and four birdies in his outstanding display.

"I kept telling myself to be calm out there. My biggest fear is to not get too emotional. But I played well on the front nine and told myself to be focused."

Chia struggled over the final two rounds last year but he is hoping that this year he can cope with the pressure and create a significant piece of golfing history in his homeland.

"It looks like my game in the last two days is pretty good so I hope to stick to it. It's great to see all of the people out there supporting me. I am nervous and I would be lying if I told you otherwise but I will try my best tomorrow to calm myself and concentrate.

"Even today I was thinking of last year's performance and some of the shots that I did so I took it in and applied it this week. I just have to take some deep breaths and try to walk slower, try to talk to my caddie a little bit more apart from the game and keep myself calm."

Noren, like Chia, is looking for the first big victory of his career this weekend and the Swede is confident that his time is coming: "I think I have the game to win on The European Tour - I just have to take my chances."

Dougherty, twice a European Tour champion will be a major threat to Chia's hopes with the Englishman feeling ready to enter the winner's circle once more.

"I am swinging the club really well - as good as I have ever swung it," said Dougherty. "It's all there, I am just waiting for the results. When you have had a rough roll like I have had over the last year with everything that has gone on, I think the results are the last thing to come back because the confidence goes.

"I have gone from being on the leaderboard almost every time that I teed up to trying to make cuts. But I am in a position where I can allow myself to take my time and let it come to me because I am doing all the right things and I know that everything is in order."

Another Englishman in the hunt is Simon Dyson, who has finished third in the last two Maybank Malaysian Opens. If Dyson can continue to get the lucky breaks that saw him get a hole-in-one on the par three fifth on Friday, he will be in the hunt come Sunday afternoon.

"I was trying to just miss the green but I hit it a lot more right than I wanted, but it took a beautiful kick left and started rolling down the hill," said Dyson of his 15th career ace.

"As soon as I saw it bounce I picked the tee up and started walking, thinking that it was going to be quite close, then I almost bumped into Johan Edfors who was watching the ball and saying 'this is in here'. Then I saw it come to rest against the flag and from where we were it looked like it might have hit the flag and stayed out, but we walked another 20 yards and it dropped in the hole. Beautiful!"

Beautiful was not a word that was being used to describe World Number 11 Anthony Kim's first competitive round in Malaysia. The American Ryder Cup star made a horrible start to his European Tour Race to Dubai campaign with a six over par 78 on Thursday, but, to his credit, he fought magnificently to make the one under par halfway cut mark by producing a battling 65 to ensure he would be around for the weekend.

For more information, please call the Maybank Malaysian Open 2009 Media Centre at +603 78464801. Also visit www.maybankmalaysianopen.com for Live Scoring this week.