CRANS-MONTANA (Switzerland), Sept 7: Sweden’s Robert Karlsson increased his European Masters lead to four strokes with a five-under-par 66 second round Friday.

By moving to 11-under-par 131, four better than compatriot Klas Eriksson and Scot Andrew Coltart, Karlsson stayed on course for his immediate goal to make the end of season Volvo Masters.

Currently he lies 79th on the European rankings, with only the top 66 assured of a place at Valderrama, and has five events after this one to make it.

But Karlsson’s chief goal is to get into the world’s top 50.

His blemish-free card of five birdies, in which he picked up three straight birdies to start his round, kept him well on target to achieve both targets.

After his first round 65 Karlsson called the Crans greens, revamped by Severiano Ballesteros in 1998 and 1999, “unfair” and was no less critical this time.

Karlsson lies seven strokes ahead of six-time major champion Nick Faldo, who ran into trouble at the long 14th, hitting his third shot into undergrowth to make double-bogey.

The four players sharing fourth place, five strokes off the lead, are Germany’s Alex Cejka, Italian Emanuele Canonica, Carlos Rodiles of Spain, and 1999 British Open Champion Paul Lawrie.

Ryder Cup Welshman Phillip Price was in a group six strokes off the pace after a 68, but his playing partner and Belfry team mate Lee Westwood slumped to a 74 to miss the cut by two strokes on 145.

The Englishman said he was more concerned about getting his game right than his Belfry appearance in less than four weeks’ time.

Europe’s other Ryder Cup man Thomas Bjorn also shot 74 but finished right on the cut off at 143.

Crans’s star attraction Ernie Els reckons he needs two 65s at the weekend to make any impression on the lead after the world number one and British Open champion’s 71 left him 10 strokes off the pace.

Els took three to get out of a bunker on the short 13th to run up double-bogey.

American Craig Stadler, the 1985 Swiss champion, qualified for the weekend on 143 but son Kevin, after a better first round than his father, missed out by five shots on his European Tour debut, his second appearance as a professional, carding a 78.

Leading second round scores (Britain unless stated):

131 — Robert Karlsson (Sweden) 65, 66.

135 — Andrew Coltart 70, 65; Klas Eriksson (Sweden) 68, 67.

136 — Carlos Rodiles (Spain) 70, 66; Paul Lawrie 66, 70; Alex Cejka (Germany) 67, 69; Emanuele Canonica (Italy) 68, 68.

137 — Paul Casey 68, 69; Phillip Price 69, 68; Carl Pettersson (Sweden) 67, 70; Trevor Immelman (South Africa) 70, 67; Matthew Cort 72, 65.

138 — Henrik Nystrom (Sweden) 71, 67; Barry Lane 70, 68; Stephen Leaney (Australia) 68, 70; Henrik Bjornstad (Norway) 69, 69; Marcel Siem (Germany) 71, 67; Sam Walker 73, 65; Olle Karlsson (Sweden) 69, 69; Nick Faldo 66, 72; Fredrik Andersson (Sweden) 68, 70.

139 — Mark Roe 73, 66; David Park 67, 72; Gary Orr 68, 71; Simon Dyson 69, 70; Bradley Dredge 73, 66; Mark Foster 68, 71.

140 — Brian Davis 68, 72; Jamie Donaldson 69, 71; Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spain) 67, 73; Jarrod Moseley (Australia) 72, 68; Fredrik Jacobson (Sweden) 72, 68; Brett Rumford (Australia) 67, 73; Christopher Hanell (Sweden) 72, 68; Thomas Levet (France) 69, 71; Patrick Sjoland (Sweden) 69, 71; Michael Campbell (New Zealand) 71, 69; Robert Coles 72, 68; Andrew Marshall 72, 68.

HALFWAY TIE

MARKHAM (Ontario): Neal Lancaster and Billy Andrade played at opposite ends of the draw Friday at the $4 million Canadian Open, but both came away holding the second-round lead at 11-under-par.

Lancaster and Andrade each posted five-under-par 67 scores and share a one-shot lead over New Zealand’s Grant Waite (70) and Canada’s Ian Leggatt (65) at 10-under-par.

Paraguay’s Carlos Franco (68) and former US Open winner Corey Pavin (66) are at nine-under-par.

As well as heading the field, Lancaster and Andrade are also leading a charge on the Canadian Open scoring record, halfway to Tiger Woods’ 21-under-par record set in 2000.

Lancaster opened his round with a bogey, went out in one-under 35 and then finished with a four-birdie back nine.

Meanwhile, Andrade did his damage on the front nine, stringing three consecutive birdies together from the second through the fourth and going out in three-under 33.

Leading second round scores (US unless stated):

133 — Neal Lancaster 66, 67; Billy Andrade 66, 67.

134 — Grant Waite (New Zealand) 64, 70; Ian Leggatt (Canada) 69, 65.

135 — Carlos Franco (Paraguay) 67, 68; Corey Pavin 69, 66.

137 — Justin Leonard 69, 68; Greg Chalmers (Australia) 66, 71; Frank Nobilo (New Zealand) 67, 70; Per-Ulrik Johansson (Sweden) 66, 71; Charles Howell III 69, 68; Vijay Singh (Fiji) 67, 70.

138 — Rod Pampling (Australia) 68, 70; Steve Flesch 71, 67; Woody Austin 70, 68; Jerry Smith 71, 67.

139 — Paul Stankowski 69, 70; Paul Gow (Australia) 71, 68; Mike Weir (Canada) 69, 70; Gene Sauers 70, 69; Jeff Sluman 71, 68; Luke Donald (Britain) 72, 67; Richard Zokol (Canada) 72, 67; Robert Gamez 70, 69; Pat Perez 70, 69; Hidemichi Tanaka (Japan) 71, 68; Bob Estes 68, 71; Jonathan Byrd 71, 68.—Reuters