Over two sudden death holes, Singson validates potential
Exactly a year ago on Wednesday, Mafy Singson started a professional journey that saw shifts in a three-day span ranging from promising to something like “she may have turned pro way too early at 20 years old.”
In Davao last year, over a bending, tree-lined Apo Golf course she knows like the back of her hand, Singson blew a six-shot final-round lead to finish second, the golden chance to win on her debut going down the drain after an uncharacteristic final round play.
She never came close to winning another tournament in the nine LPGT legs that followed.
At the Faldo course this week, Singson took a three-shot lead into the last 18 holes of the ICTSI Eagle Ridge Championship and again threw it all away just entering the final nine after a quadruple-bogey 8 on No. 10 where she incurred no penalties.
A case of lightning striking the same player twice?
“Certainly looked like it,” Singson told the Inquirer with a chuckle after needing two sudden-death holes to nip Florence Bisera and earn that breakthrough victory that validated her potential. And if there’s anything that was confirmed after the win, she was quick to put it in the right perspective.
“I guess it showed that I learned my lessons from that,” the Bong Lopez ward said. “It was a tough lesson to learn, because I really struggled [the rest of the year] after that. So this one is very sweet.”
Singson, who remembers that day well because Lopez was celebrating his birthday, closed out with a 78 and Bisera an eagle-spiked 72 to tie at 232 for the P750,000 ladies event, and proof that the eventual champ wouldn’t crumble this time was a great par save on their first trip back to the 18th hole.
Hitting the green in regulation and a two-putt for par in the second playoff hole did the trick as Bisera overshot the green and failed in her up-and-down.
“I was really so nervous in the playoff because it was the first time I was in that situation,” she said. “I felt so relieved when it was all over because all of the hard work was rewarded.”
“And coach [Lopez] can have a better celebration [on Friday],” she said with a laugh.
Tiffany Lee finished third at 234 after a 73, while Chanelle Avaricio and Sarah Ababa shared fourth at 235.
Meanwhile, Guido van der Valk of The Netherlands clung on to a one-shot lead over Sean Ramos in the P2 million men’s event after shooting a third-round 75. Ramos also returned a 75.
LJ Go and Angelo Que are within two of the pace after firing a 76 and 72, respectively, with South Korean Jung Jae-hyun shooting a 73 to be five shots behind.
