Superal ends LPGT slump
PRINCESS SUPERAL broke a near two-year spell on the Ladies Philippine Golf Tour in smashing fashion, ruling the P1 million ICTSI Tagaytay Highlands Ladies Challenge via a record 16-stroke victory over Cyna Rodriguez in Tagaytay on Friday.
that won her a number of pro tournaments as an amateur and as a newly-minted pro, Superal tamed the wind-raked Highlands layout with solid driving and superb iron play, netting four birdies that negated a lone bogey on No. 4 for a closing three-under included a slew of Thai aces with a 54-hole total of three-under 207 worth P250,000.
That was whopping 16 shots over Rodriguez, who hardly recovered from two bogeys in the sixth and limped with a closing 40 and a 75 for 223. She took home P120,000.
,” said Superal, who has had a winning last in late 2016 via a onestroke victory over then amateur Pauline del Rosario at Eastridge.
Superal’s feat likewise erased the previous largest winning margin of 15 which Thai and now-LPGA campaigner Meechai Wichanee posted at Splendido in 2015 over compatriot Walailak Satarak and former leg winner Sarah Ababa.
The runaway victory should also make Superal the player to beat in next week’s LPGT leg at before kicking off her 2018 campaign in the Symetra Tour in the IOA Championship in Beaumont, California on April 6-8.
Like Rodriguez, Chihiro Ikeda, despite playing with a slight wrist injury, failed to rebound from a poor start marred by a triple bogey a horrible 40-43 (83) and ending up third at 228 worth P85,000.
Thai winner in the circuit organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc. in 2014 at Splendido, bogeyed the last two holes for a among the aces from Thailand at Princess Superal relishes her first victory in a long, long while. fourth at 231.
She nipped Tiranan Yoopan, a 72 while Kristine Torralba closed out with back-to-back pars to edge Korean Bang Choeun by two in their spirited battle for low ama circuit sponsored by ICTSI.
Torralba closed out with a 77 bogeyed the last four holes for a 76 and ended up eighth at 235 behind Thai Saruttaya Ngamusawan, who had a 234 after a 73.
tied for ninth at 237 with Sarinee Thitiratanakorn, also of Thailand, who fumbled with an 83 in the event backed by Custom Clubmakers, BDO, Meralco, Sharp, KZGm PLDT, Champion, Summit Mineral Water and K&G Golf.
Five ahead of Ikeda after 36 holes, Superal played pressurefree all day, coming through with back-to-back birdies from No. 2 and bouncing back from a bogey on the par-5 fourth hole with birdies on Nos. 11 and 14 to turn in the tournament-best 67 card and post the circuit’s biggest winning margin in six years.
With Ikeda bowing out early, Rodriguez tried to press her bid but fumbled with bogeys in her desperate hunt for birdies. While Superal mastered the backside with a solid 34, the former threetime LPGT Order of Merit winner reeled farther back with three straight bogeys from No. 12 and aided Superal’s record winning margin with another bogey on the 17th.