By Tony Jimenez
VIRGINIA WATER, England (Reuters) - Miguel Angel Jimenez produced a finishing flourish worthy of a Spanish matador to snatch the lead midway through the second round of the PGA Championship on Friday.
The 45-year-old, bidding to win the European Tour's flagship event for the second year in a row, hit a stunning five-wood second shot from an 18th-hole bunker before rolling in a 25-foot putt for an eagle three and a two-under-par 70.
With a fresh breeze and unusually hard ground on Wentworth's West Course making scoring difficult, Jimenez posted a six-under total of 138.
That was one stroke better than South African Thomas Aiken (67), who defied the tough conditions to produce a rare sub-70 score.
Spain's Alvaro Quiros (71) was in third spot on 140, one in front of Frenchman Thomas Levet (71).
Jimenez squandered a couple of gilt-edged chances to establish a clear lead before snapping up his late eagle.
"I missed a birdie putt from eight feet at the 14th and another from three feet at the 17th," the Spaniard told reporters.
"Overall, two-under is the right score for the way I played today. The golf course is in great condition and you need to hit the ball very well from the tee and sensibly."
Jimenez said his game was in much the same shape as it was a year ago when he beat Briton Oliver Wilson in a playoff here.
"It is very similar," he said. "I'm hitting the ball well, playing well and the most important thing now is my head.
"I have to keep concentrating, keep doing the same thing, just focus."
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Jimenez has been a regular title contender throughout his 23 years on the tour, winning 15 times and playing in three Ryder Cups.
Asked how he retained his desire and motivation after earning all the money he would ever need, he replied: "I love the competition. I still feel those butterflies in my stomach.
"This is what I do and what I want to keep doing. When I see all these 24 and 25-year-olds around I want to get in there and kick the behinds of all the top players.
"(At my age) I feel them kicking my behind, trying to put me away, but I am still solid like a bull."
The fun-loving Spaniard, who likes nothing more after a round than to light up a cigar and sip a glass of his favourite Rioja, said he still had golfing targets to achieve.
"I enjoy myself every single time I am out there," he said. "It's nice to still be competitive."
Aiken, yet to win on the European Tour, burst into life with a blistering back-nine charge.
The 25-year-old South African came home in 31, six under, with six birdies in the last eight holes.
Quiros, up to 28th in the world rankings after winning in Qatar in January and Portugal in October, profited from some outrageous good fortune to birdie the 18th.
The Spaniard's wayward approach hit the grandstand to the left of the green before the ball ricochet on to the putting surface. He missed his eagle attempt but a birdie was good enough to keep him right in the title hunt.
U.S. Masters champion Angel Cabrera and former European number one Lee Westwood look like missing the cut.
Cabrera struggled to a 75 for 149 while Westwood carded his second successive 77 for a 10-over tally of 154.
(Editing by John Mehaffey)