Del Rosario rallies at Binitin; Jahns solo men’s leader
Playing without expectations, generally, because of a swing that she has yet to perfect, Pauline del Rosario on Thursday completed a comeback like no other in the Ladies PGT to win on home soil for the first time in two years and give a glimpse of how good she really is.
Del Rosario closed out with a four-under-par 66, and coupled with a cold performance by two-day South Korean leader Kim Seo-yun, completed a final round rally from six shots down to rule the ICTSI Bacolod Golf Challenge by a shot at the tree-lined layout formerly known as Binitin.
“I was struggling with my game a lot,” Del Rosario said after tallying a 54-hole 206 as Kim returned a birdie-less 73 to yield the biggest final round lead ever and finish second for the seventh time. “It feels good to win again, but I don’t think it has fully sunk in yet.”
The win was a big boost to Del Rosario’s comeback bid, especially as it came from not-so-impressive performances on the Epson Tour in the United States and from being under the weather the week before.
“I didn’t expect to be near the top (of the leaderboard) this week,” said Del Rosario, who won four events in her rookie year in 2017 before winning the Order of Merit title.
Del Rosario birdied the 15th and 16th, and coupled with a Kim bogey on the 17th, erased what looked like an insurmountable lead to start the final round.
A two-putt from 45 feet for par on the par-3 18th and Kim’s miss for birdie from 30 feet sealed the win for Del Rosario, who will now try to hold it again together for three rounds next week when the circuit travels to nearby Marapara where a totally different challenge awaits.
Daniella Uy carded a 69 to grab solo third at 209, while Florence Bisera and Sarah Ababa shared fourth place at 211 after matching 71s, and Mafy Singson surged with a 69 to tie for sixth at 212 alongside Lois Kaye Go (71).
Meanwhile, Keanu Jahns inched closer to a second straight title after shooting six birdies in a 65 to open up a two-shot lead over Fidel Concepcion heading into the final round of play in the men’s P2-million event.
Jahns, who won over Angelo Que at Pradera Verde last month, takes a 197 aggregate into the final 18 holes as he tries to hold off Concepcion and Korean Tae Won-ha, who started the day tied with Jahns but struggled to shoot a 69 to now be four shots back.
“I putted very well–that was the main difference compared to my first two rounds,” said Jahns. “I read the greens really well, so I was able to sink a lot of putts.”
Aidric Chan also cooled down with a 69 and is now five back with Que seven shots off after a 67.
Reymon Jaraula kept his title-retention bid alive somehow after carding a 67 to be within six shots of Jahns. Russell Bautista also has a 204 aggregate like Jaraula after shooting a 66.
