NEWPORT, Wales -- Scott Strange shot a 5-under 66 and extended his lead to four strokes Friday after two rounds of the Celtic Manor Wales Open, advancing without Padraig Harrington who missed the halfway cut.

Strange, a 31-year-old Australian, had a 1-under 34 on the back nine of the Twenty Ten Course, six strokes worse than his first round, when a 63 left him with a one-shot lead.

Harrington struggled with his putting and his 3-over 74 gave him a 36-hole total of 2-over 144, three strokes shy of the cut.

"You never like to miss the cut, especially when you're the supposed star attraction. It hurts the pride," the Dubliner said.

"I made a lot of poor decisions and wasn't making the putts to get anything back," he said. "It just convinced me to be more committed next week in my decisionmaking. To be honest, it has actually been quite a positive week even though I putted abominably."

It was the Irishman's first missed cut in Europe since the 2006 Majorca Classic 19 months ago. Harrington will play the Stanford St. Jude Championship in Memphis next week, his last event before the U.S. Open.

Strange was four shots ahead of Jeev Singh (68), Alvaro Velasco (68), Benn Barham (64) and English rookie Robert Dinwiddie, who eagled the last hole for a 65.

Dinwiddie made headlines at the BMW PGA at Wentworth last week with a course record 9-under 63 in the second round. His other three rounds were a pair 79s and a 78.

Robert Karlsson, third for the last three weeks, was in a group another shot back after his second straight 67 despite two bogeys on the last four holes. Colin Montgomerie shot 68 and was 5 under.

Strange said he liked the new layout, which will stage the 2010 Ryder Cup, because it is generous off the tees.

"I'm hitting the irons nicely and the greens are good so you can shoot good numbers," Strange said. "But it's difficult to close out tournaments so we'll see."

Strange finished second in the Johnnie Walker Classic in India in March, his best result so far.

Dinwiddie capped his round with a 3-wood, 250-yard shot over the lake onto the last green -- six feet from the hole.

"I'm trying to be more consistent," Dinwiddie said. "Right now it's up and down. I'm either top 15 or missing the cut."

Two wins on the Asian Tour have been the highlight of Strange's professional career so far.

"I'd love to win on every tour and to win here would be fantastic," he said. "Playing in Asia is different to here, but I'm adapting quite well."

Asked what his first impressions of this particular course were Strange replied: "I was swimming down the fairways, it was so wet."

Harrington liked what he saw on first view, but come the tournament he was never able to produce anything like the form that brought him his first major title at Carnoustie last July. That remains his last victory, but he is staying upbeat about the U.S. Open the week after next.

A hefty six-figure appearance fee was reported to have been paid for Harrington to make a debut in the event (he preferred the Wales Open to last week's BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth), but when that was mentioned, Harrington just smiled and asked: "How's the weather?"

As the headline attraction, though, the disappointment of his failure was more keenly felt.

"That doesn't help," he said. "I have enough experience of being in that situation that it doesn't get to you, but you are fighting it a little bit harder. It's not like I wasn't trying."

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