Shin takes four-shot lead over Tabuena
STA. Rosa, Laguna—Micah Shin continued to have back-nine success and on Thursday, when the country’s hottest player was hot on his heels, the American Korean held fort and will take a four-shot lead over Miguel Tabuena into the final round of the rich The Country Club Invitational here.
Shooting a three-under 33 in his last nine holes to rescue a level 72 for 214 over the wind-buffeted layout, Shin is another 18 holes of survival away from winning this event for the second time, but it will have to come at the expense of Tabuena and another great finisher in Clyde Mondilla.
Tabuena, who triumphed over a much tougher field in the International Series Philippines leg at Sta. Elena, last October, returned a second straight 73 for 218, while Mondilla scrambled for a 75 to be another two shots behind as no player broke par for the first time this week, with only Shin left with a sub-par tally.
“I wasn’t hitting it as good as the first two rounds, but I tried not to lose shots,” said Shin, who has played the back nine at seven-under in the first three rounds. “I still need to play well tomorrow. Miguel is just four shots back.”
Tougher front nine
Tabuena has also had some back-nine success, with seven of his 10 birdies in the first 54 holes coming from there. But 10 of his 12 bogeys have come at the front, which is why he is staring at the deficit that he will start with on Friday.
“They always set it up to play very, very difficult and to score just around level par is good already,” Tabuena, the 2017 champion, said as he tries to win coming from behind yet again.
Interestingly, it was Shin who denied Tabuena of back-to-back wins when he won in 2018.
Young Carl Corpus still has an outside chance after firing a 74 to be seven strokes off, like Guido van der Valk, the Dutchman who led in the first round after a 67. Van der Valk assembled a third round of 76.
