Lascuña, Pactolerin seize seniors’ tilt control
SAN PEDRO, Laguna—With tested games that netted titles in a period spanning the last three decades, Antonio Lascuña and Robert Pactolerin took early command and are looking ready to scoot away from pursuers in their respective divisions of the Stronghold Insurance Senior Open.
Draining five birdies in carding a four-under-par 68 at tight and up-and-down Hallow Ridge here, the 54-year-old Lascuña opened a four-shot lead over Rico Depilo, with Rey Pagunsan another two shots back in the centerpiece 50-59 division of the trailblazing event that aims to professionalize how senior tournaments are run and played.
“I had some luck on my approach shots, considering how tough the pins were placed out there,” Lascuña told the Inquirer in Filipino, reflecting on the highlight of his round where he drained three straight birdies in a stretch that bridged the back and front nines. “We all had trouble landing approaches close. So I was very lucky.”
Lascuña, the only five-time Order of Merit champion in the Philippine Golf Tour, will not come into the second round confident despite being the only man to break par to hold a hefty lead.
“This course can punish your mistakes,” he said, pointing out a slightly missed hybrid approach on No. 4 that led to his only bogey. “That wasn’t a big miss, but I paid the price.”
‘Struggled’
Pactolerin, meanwhile, fired a 75 and will take a two-shot lead over Doming Umadhay in the 60-69 bracket, with Mario Manubay, the second former Philippine Open champion in the division, lying another shot back.
“We struggled with the length of the course, since (overnight) rains made it play longer,” the 63-year-old Pactolerin, who won his Open title in 1990, also said in Filipino. “I don’t expect things to get easier in the last two rounds. But I am willing to grind it out.”
Armando Eso fired a 79 to be just four shots behind Pactolerin as the field braces for a grind-out second round with the 36-hole cut to be made on both divisions, with only the top 50 percent of scores and ties advancing for the chance to win the biggest prize money staked in senior pro golf in the country.
The 50-59 champion goes home with P150,000, the 60-69 winner pockets P100,000, while P50,000 awaits the champion in the Legends class, reserved for 70-and-above players who will dispute their championship over 18 holes on Wednesday.
Mars Pucay fired a 75 like Australian Matt Blundell, who stands as the best-placed foreigner. Orlan Sumcad, the long-hitter who up until two years ago was a steady force in the regular men’s tour, fired a 77 and will come into the second round needing to go low to be a factor in the final round.
