Local ace blazes ahead with 62 as Ramos, Go play catch-up in Bangkok

MANILA, Philippines — Local favorite Sarit Suwannarut flashed spectacular form in the afternoon wave, overcoming challenging conditions to fire a sterling 10-under 62 and seize a two-stroke lead at the start of the Bangkok Classic in Thailand on Thursday.

Suwannarut’s masterclass at the Phoenix Gold Golf Bangkok set a blistering pace for the CNY1.5-million championship — a historic co-sanctioned event marking the China Tour’s first venture onto the Asian Development Tour.

The Thai ace tamed the front nine with a stirring five-birdie run before closing out his spectacular round with three more birdies and an eagle on the par-5 18th.

Hong Kong’s Hoho Yue sat in sole second after setting the early benchmark with a flawless, bogey-free 64, highlighted by five front-nine birdies, before Suwannarut’s late-afternoon charge reshaped the leaderboard.

A crowded chasing pack looms just behind, with Nirun Sae-ueng, Roberto Lebrija, Matt Killen and Pukhraj Singh Gill matching 65s, and a group of six players, led by Taiwan’s Su Ching Hung, staying in early contention with identical 66s.

Filipino rising star Sean Ramos holed out with a birdie on the par-5 ninth to rescue a 70, but found himself well adrift of the runaway leader in the 138-man field.

Ramos came into the tournament riding a wave of momentum, following a joint runner-up finish at the ADT Players Championship last month and a stellar performance as the top Filipino finisher at the inaugural Philippine ADT Open at Luisita last week. Hoping for another strong start, he began his round on the back nine and immediately birdied his opening hole. However, a major speed bump arrived on the par-3 No. 14, where a double-bogey threatened to derail his round.

Demonstrating the trademark resilience that has fueled his recent ascent, Ramos quickly recovered with birdies on the 16th and the 18th. He picked up another stroke on the first hole, dropped a shot on the sixth, and capped his day by dominating the ninth to string a pair of 35s.

Despite his under-par effort, the packed leaderboard leaves Ramos tied for 51st place. He will need a massive second-round charge on Friday to comfortably secure his spot for the weekend play.

It was a tougher day for Lloyd Go, the only other Filipino in the field. The Cebuano ace squandered a wild but promising front-half performance, carding a 72 to slip into a tie for 78th and putting himself in danger of missing the cut.

Starting on the back nine, Go endured a roller-coaster ride. After an early miscue on No. 13, he fought back with back-to-back birdies on the 14th and 16th. Despite dropping a stroke on the next, he closed out his opening nine in style, holing out for an eagle to turn in a scrambling 34.

However, just when it seemed he had gained momentum and confidence, Go’s game wavered in the last nine holes. He stumbled with a bogey on the first hole, and after a string of five steady pars, failed to get up-and-down on the seventh to drop another stroke, leaving him with plenty of work to do in round two.