Thai wrests control; Tabuena withdraws

Thai Pasavee Lertvilai shook off a par-game with birdie-blitz in the last 10 holes for a three-under 69 in scorching conditions, seizing a one-stroke lead over two locals as Miguel Tabuena withdrew due to injury at the start of the ICTSI Wack Wack Championship at WW East course in Mandaluyong yesterday.

Lertvilai, out to atone for his playoff setback to obscure Rene Menor in the ICTSI Splendido Classic last September, gunned down four birdies in an eighthole stretch from No. 9 that negated his lone bogey on the par-4 No. 12 where Tabuena hit a root beneath the ball and winced in pain in his right wrist.

The winner of the inaugural PGT Asia kickoff leg decided to pull out so as not to aggravate the injury. He had a three-over card with six holes to play.

With Tabuena out, Justin Quiban and Zanieboy Gialon stepped up to provide the early local challenge with identical 70s while Tony Lascuna and Rolando Marabe Jr. stood a shot farther back at 71 and Benjie Magada, Jhonnel Ababa and Dino Villanueva matched par 72s on the tight, demanding par-72 layout.

Quiban, coming off an impressive joint fifth place finish in the Manila Masters at Southwoods last Sunday, sustained his hot form and rammed in three birdies at the front of the tight layout to wrest control. But he stumbled with a double-bogey on the tricky, dog-leg No. 12 and needed to birdied the par-5 13th to tie Gialon at second.

Gialon also fired three birdies in the first 10 holes but missed joining Lertvilai at the helm with a bogey-birdie-par-bogey stint from No. 13. He had a 34-36.

Lertvilai failed to find his rhythm in the early going, settling for pars in the first eight holes before birdying two of the next three and rebounding with birdies on Nos. 13 and 16 from a missedgreen bogey on No. 12 to grab the lead in the $100,000 championship sponsored by ICTSI and organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc.