Shin leads after brutal day at TCC
STA. ROSA, LAGUNA—As the winds blew hard and made the second round of the rich The Country Club (TCC) Invitational all about survival, Micah Shin made three birdies in a demanding four-hole stretch in the back nine, which made the difference on a turbulent Wednesday.
“To be honest, I didn’t expect to lead,” Shin, a former champion here, said after shooting a second straight one-under-par 71 that made him the new leader at 142 as those who were ahead of him at the start of the day each had their sad stories to tell.
After five players cracked par on Tuesday when conditions were ideal, only Shin was left with a sub-par total after the American Korean, who was born in Davao and learned the game at Apo Golf, there picked up shots on the 12th, 14th and 15th.
He enters the third round holding a three-shot lead over a formidable four-man group that includes Miguel Tabuena, the champion of the International Series Philippines leg held at Sta. Elena last October.
Tabuena had five bogeys in shooting a 73, and the other three players with 145 aggregates who all fired sub-par cards on Tuesday—Guido van der Valk, Clyde Mondilla and South Korea’s Jung Jae-hyun—were a combined 13-over-par in the second round.
Van der Valk, who opened with a 67 to lead after the first round, had a double bogey and six bogeys in submitting a 78, while Mondilla shot a 77 and Jung a 74.
