BANDO, Ibaraki Pref. (Kyodo) Steven Conran of Australia and South Korea's S.K. Ho shared the lead midway through the Championship by Lexus on Friday, while Ryo Ishikawa failed to advance to the weekend rounds.
Conran, whose only victory on the JGTO circuit came at the 2004 Hisamitsu-KBC Augusta, shot a 5-under-par 66 to get to 8-under 134 in a tie with Ho, a seven-time winner on the tour who had a 68 at Otone Country Club in Ibaraki Prefecture.
First-round leader Brandt Jobe of the United States could only manage an even-par 71 and dropped into a tie for third with Toshinori Muto (69). Daisuke Maruyama fired the low round of the day with a 65 and climbed into fifth on 6-under 136.