England’s Robert Rock is feeling more and more comfortable in South Africa and also with his recent positions at the top of leaderboards around the world.

All of which makes his current position atop the Joburg Open leaderboard – on 11-under-par after a second-round 67 – all the more ominous for the rest of the field in the co-sanctioned European Tour/Sunshine Tour event.

Rock had to complete his last three holes of his weather-interrupted first round from 6.45am and promptly birdied 17 and 18 to complete a marvellous 65 on the tougher East Course. After a short break and some breakfast, the 34-year-old began his second round and almost immediately went into the lead with an eagle on the par-five second hole. Three birdies in a row from the 13th then sealed his position at the top, one shot ahead of South Africans Branden Grace and Jbe’ Kruger.

Rock has been coming to South Africa for the co-sanctioned events for the last eight years and has been steadily improving his results.

“When you start to play the same tournaments at the same venues, you can start planning your shots into the greens because you’re familiar with the putts, you start to remember the lines, and it’s a big help.

“They’re always good courses when you play tournaments in South Africa and that’s what interests me, I prefer that to massive prizefunds,” Rock said.

The Belfry-based golfer has also won more than 2.3 million euro in the last three years, winning the Italian Open last year and then finishing eighth in the lucrative, season-ending Dubai World Championship.

“I played some of my best golf in Dubai to finish eighth in a great field and my game started to turn around last year, especially my iron play. I also started putting well – I can be a bit hit-and-miss with the putting.

“So I hoped I would start this year where I left off last year and it was similar. When I saw I was leading, it did not bother me too much, whereas normally I would be thinking ‘what do I do now?’ But I led basically all the way through in Italy and it feels better to be in that position now,” Rock said.

After a 4.30am wake-up call on Friday, Rock at least knows he’ll be going off at a far more civilised hour when he starts his third round.

“I don’t like those 4.30 alarms, the aim is to play your way out of those. But I guess weather delays are part of the scene this time of the year over here …

“I played really well in the Pro-Am, so I was hopeful. I then had a great round on the harder course to shoot seven-under, but I didn’t play as well today, but managed to get a score.

“My whole game is good – I drove every fairway, bar one; I hit most if not all of the greens and I hit some irons to tap-in length. It’s been a stress-free couple of rounds, what more could I wish for?” Rock said.

Now that he knows how, Rock could go all the way and claim his second European Tour title in seven months.