Strong finish gives Saso 67, two-shot edge
Yuka Saso shook off an early slip with a kind of finish that wins big-time championships, birdying four of the last six holes for a superb four-under 67 and a two-stroke lead over Taiwanese pros Chang Ching-Ling and Chen Hsuan at the start of the ICTSI Manila Golf Ladies Classic at the Manila Golf Club inside Forbes Park yesterday.
Bucking jet lag and the scorching heat, Saso quickly recovered from a missed green mishap on the par-3 third with a birdie on the next then broke a run of pars with a sizzling finish in the wind that drove the ace amateur and reigning Asian Games gold medalist past the fancied pros in the $100,000 event hosted by the MGC for the first time in the seventh season of the Ladies Philippine Golf Tour.
“My goal was to have fun and play relaxed which I just did so I’m happy with my game,” said the power-hitting Fil-Japanese, who hardly showed the effects of a long trip following an impressive joint third place finish in the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur in Georgia, USA over the weekend.
Back-to-back birdies from No. 13 from long range sparked that fiery finish with Saso also birdying the water-laced par-3 16th and the closing par-5 hole in a windup reminiscent of her closing 67 in reigning here at MGC last February where she dominated the ranks to retain her Philippine Ladies Amateur Open title with a six-under total.
“The course is in good condition, fairways and greens. But there were some pins placed near the edge of the greens so it’s pretty tough on some holes,” she added.
Chang and Chen looked headed to sharing the day’s spotlight with Saso after churning out a pair of 69s with the former squandering a three-under card with a bogey on the 17th and the latter bouncing back with two birdies in the last four to put themselves in early contention in the 54-hole championship co-sanctioned by the LPGA of Taiwan (TLPGA) and LPGT.
Singapore’s Sock Hwee Koh rebounded from an early pair of bogeys at the back with a three-birdie string from No. 13 but settled for a birdie-bogey game in the last nine holes to shoot a one-under 70.