As he shuffled himself into position amid the assembled masses from the press corps, Ricardo Gonzalez uttered a hopeful request.

"Espanol por favor?" joked the Argentine with a smile. There was more chance of Gonzalez delivering a word perfect rendition of the 'Wee Cooper O' Fife' as the Scottish scribblers had of conversing in fluent Spanish, to be honest, so we all just hammered on regardless.

One thing that certainly wasn't going to get lost in translation was the simple majesty of the 43-year-old's opening two rounds in the Johnnie Walker Championship over the PGA Centenary course. A second successive seven-under 65 thrust the South American to the top of affairs on a 14-under tally of 130 and set a new record low halfway aggregate for the tournament which had stood since 2002, when Adam Scott raced round 36-holes in 12-under. Gonzalez will still have to go some to beat Scott's 26-under winning score but he's making a good fist of it.

His progress has been purposeful. A profitable haul of 15 birdies, one eagle and just two bogeys during the two days has aided his rise up the leaderboard while the engine room for this robust assault has been stoked by regular servings of good honest slabs of Scottish meat. "Aberdeen Angus is very good," slevered the red meat lover from Rosario. Gonzalez has proved to be a cut above the rest so far and his performance has been one driven by emotion. Over the last 12 months, he has mourned the passing of his father, Antonio, his mother, Olga and his father-in-law, Juan Carlos.

At 109th on the Race to Dubai, the four-time European Tour winner, is hovering in a perilous position but he is well on course for that one big result that will help to safeguard an unbroken run of 15 consecutive years on the main circuit. Steered by Dave Renwick, the East Calder bagman who helped Jose Maria Olazabal, Vijay Singh and Steve Elkington to major success, Gonzalez produced a rousing late burst and birdied his final five holes to vault into a one shot lead over Austria's Bernd Wiesberger.

"It has been very difficult personally this last year," said Gonzalez, whose last tour triumph came in the 2009 Scandinavian Masters. "It's feels strange. I'm a professional golfer and I need competition but I have not played for five weeks and I feel great. That has made me more relaxed and that has been the key. Maybe I'm getting a little help from above. It would be very good [to win here] and dedicate it to my mother and father."

Wiesberger, the joint leader overnight, managed to keep himself clinging to the coat tails of the rampaging Gonzalez with a 66 and almost snared a share of top spot on the last only for his eagle attempt to dribble up short. The 27-year-old, with two European Tour wins to his name, is confident of adding a third. Asked if he would take a 22-under aggregate on Sunday night, as observers tried to predict a winning score, Wiesberger replied: "No, I can go lower than that".

Englishman Mark Foster, who is precariously perched at No.99 on the money list, moved quietly into contention at Gleneagles again with a five-under 67 which left him in a share of third with Tommy Fleetwood, on an 11-under 133. Two years ago, the Worksop man had the Johnnie Walker title in his grasp playing the 72nd hole, only to find the trees with his drive on the 18th, stumble to a bogey and lose out in the five-man play-off.

After a run of four missed cuts in a row, a share of fifth in the Russian Masters during his last outing three weeks ago has lifted the morale. "No one wants to win more than me and, on several occasions, I should've won," reflected this golfing nearly man. "I went to Russia to find my game and it kind of worked. After three weeks off, I was hoping it was still there. And it is."

Stirling's Craig Lee is leading a posse of Scots in the top 20 after an eventful, eight-birdie 67 moved him up into a tie for ninth on an eight-under 136. Having held on to his tour card by the skin of his teeth last season by finishing 115th on the rankings, Lee, who currently sits uncomfortably in that same position on the money list, is bracing himself for a tense run-in as the scramble for survival intensifies over the next few weeks. A strong showing in his own backyard would go a long way to easing the anguish, of course. "After last year, at least I know my nerves can hold up to it," said the former Tartan Tour No.1, who had missed the cut in four of his last five events prior to this week. "Hopefully this can be a wee springboard for the rest of the season."

Paul Lawrie, the defending champion, hoisted himself into a share of 13th with a 67 for 137 and was joined on that mark by Richie Ramsay and the charging Scott Henry, who blasted a sparkling 65. Chris Doak, David Drysdale and Stephen Gallacher will all be around for the weekend, as will Tartan Tour campaigner Neil Fenwick, who qualified on the 141 limit with a spirited 66. Marc Warren, the 2007 Johnnie Walker champion, was one of 17 Scottish casualties, though.