Sinfuego repeats as Casas folds up anew

CARMONA — Richard Sinfuego truly knows to handle pressure, which he showed again yesterday.

In a virtual repeat of their duel at The Orchard last week, Sinfuego nipped Casas by one stroke with a closing one-under par 71, winning for the second straight week in the First Gentleman’s Professional Golf Circuit and firming up his lead in the Order of Merit race at the Manila Southwoods here.

But unlike last week where he had to overhaul a six-stroke deficit to beat Casas and rule the 11th leg, the sturdy Sinfuego blew a two-shot lead this time but flashed some of resiliency as he fought back from two shots down in the last eight holes with clutch putts which he said Thursday will eventually win the championship.

They did.

Sinfuego rolled in a couple of pressure-packed 8-foot birdie putts on Nos. 13 and 15 to draw level then watched Casas self-destruct with a three-putt-bogey mishap No. 16 from 30 feet. That enabled Sinfuego to wrest back the lead before securing the victory worth another P100,000 with another delicate uphill, downhill putt from 36 feet out for a tap-in par on the 18th.

Casas finished with a 70, spiked by an eagle-3 on the par-5 No. 8 that gave him the lead. He even went two-up on No. 10th on a Sinfuego bogey, but he three-putted the next from just eight feet, a miscue that somehow portended the coming of another frustrating week for the former RP Open champion.

It did.

For Casas flubbed a 10-foot birdie putt on No. 15 which Sinfuego birdied from eight feet that drew them level again. But the former misread his putt on the next from 30 feet, the ball rolling past the cup some 10 feet away which he muffed.

"Magandang panalo uli ito para next week," said Sinfuego, now the winningest player on this tour bankrolled by First Gentleman Mike Arroyo and presented by San Miguel Beer with three leg victories, including his second round romp in Canlubang.

He was referring to the cash-rich Don Pocholo Razon Memorial Invitational golf tournament at The Country Club in Canlubang, which stakes a juicy P1 million purse to the winner.

Sinfuego finished with a 35-36 and a 72-hole aggregate of 282, raising his earnings to P555,000 and further boosting his confidence going into the P3.5 million championship next week.

The same could not be said of Casas.

For he will go into that event on a losing skid and with a poise so shaken by back-to-back setbacks. He wound up with a 283.

Dan Cruz, who led in the second round, bounced back with a 69 to salvage a share of third place with Rey Pagunsan, shooting a 70, at 284, while Ruben Sasutil shot the day’s best score of 67 to place solo fifth with 286.

Rounding up the top 10 are Benjie Magada (69-288), Elmer Salvador (74-288), Wataru Toshinaga (70-289), Mars Pucay (72-290) and Eddie Bagtas (69-290).