ASH, England -- Jeev Milkha Singh of India and Michael Lorenzo-Vera of France shot 5-under 69s on Friday to share the second-round lead of the European Open.

Singh missed a 6-foot par putt at No. 18 that would have given him the outright lead at the London Club. He and Lorenzo-Vera were at 8-under 136, one stroke ahead of Anthony Wall of England (69) and Christian Cevaer of France (70).

First-round leader Anders Hansen was two behind after a 73. He is one in front of Peter Hanson, who also had a 73.

A number of big names missed the cut at 1 over, including John Daly (76), who later said he would not play the Wales Open next week.

"No, I'm going to go home," he said.

Others to miss the cut were Masters winner Angel Cabrera (75), defending champion Ross Fisher (73), fifth-ranked Henrik Stenson (80) and Shane Lowry (73), the Irish Open winner two weeks ago who was playing his first pro event.

The 18th has a narrow fairway with water on the left and thick rough on the right. In a stiff crosswind, it didn't yield a birdie all day.

"In this wind, there is not any tougher tee shot than that in the whole world," said Graeme McDowell (73).

Before Singh bogeyed the last, he chipped in on the preceding hole.

"The lie wasn't too bad but out of the rough you don't know how the ball is going to come out," he said. "Honestly, it just came out too hot for me and would have gone at least 10 feet past the hole. Luckily, there was a flag there."

Lowry was resigned to missing the cut after his opening 76, but will play the Wales Open at Celtic Manor, where next year's Ryder Cup will be held.

"For the last 24 or 25 holes of the 36 I played good golf. But my putting let me down," he said.

Cabrera missed the cut for the third time in four events since he won at Augusta in April.

Lee Westwood (75) and European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie (74) both survived.

"I played very poorly. It was disappointing," Montgomerie said.

When Wall beat Paul Casey in the final of the Surrey Amateur Championship 14 years ago, he knew Casey would go on to great things -- and he hoped he would, too.

He was right about Casey, but one victory in 318 starts is not quite how Wall, a taxi driver's son, saw the road ahead for himself.

This weekend, however, Wall has a chance to win and move into the world's top 50 for the first time, seven days after Casey went to No. 3 by capturing the BMW PGA Championship.

"I've been an also-ran for a long time, but I expect to do well this week," said Wall, who turned 34 Friday and whose only Tour victory came in South Africa nine years ago. "I've got better technique and now I'm getting older things don't bother me quite as much.

"But you don't win unless you putt well for four days and to be honest I've only done that once or twice in my life."

Not that Wall could be called a struggling professional by any stretch of the imagination.

He has earned more than $3 million in the last three years and he has loftier ambitions than the European Open. Asked what he hoped to have achieved by the time he turns 40, he replied: "I hope to have won The Open. "It's always been my goal and the first time I played one the atmosphere blew me away."

That was Sandwich in 2003 and he spent the first two rounds with eventual winner Ben Curtis, ranked 396th in the world at the time.

"Just shows you, doesn't it?" commented Wall.

Singh was out in the much windier afternoon and his 69 was a superb effort, although after chipping in at the short 17th he bogeyed the last.

Not that that was a disgrace. With water down the left, there were 6s, 7s and 8s galore -- and one of the 6s was by Sergio Garcia as he went from 2 under to level par.

Defending champion Fisher did the same for 2 over and he had to wait 90 minutes before discovering that meant he missed the cut by one.

At 1 over, Westwood just survived despite also taking 6 on the 18th -- his ninth -- and the wind saved Montgomerie, too. When he finished on level par at lunchtime, the Ryder Cup captain thought he was out, but in the end he made it with one shot to spare.

Lorenzo-Vera won the "second division" Challenge Tour two years ago and was second in the China Open last season, but a small boy in Dubai will remember him for something very different -- he gave him his whole set of irons at the Desert Classic in January.

"Usually I break the clubs when I am angry, so Raphael Jacquelin told me one day 'Instead of breaking it, just give it,'" Lorenzo-Vera explained. "The boy asked for an autograph and I said 'I have better for you'. He was a very happy little boy."

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