Jenny flashes flawless form for 65, trails by 2

After a rather shaky start, Jenny Rosales settled down and put in motion her bid for the crown in the rich ANZ Ladies Masters, firing a bogey-free seven-under par 65 yesterday and moving two strokes off the pace halfway through the $800,000 event at the Royal Pines Golf Club course in Gold Coast, Australia.

A stirring three-string birdie from No. 11 highlighted Rosales’ flawless round that saw her hit all fairways in a spectacular show of driving prowess that most probably made some heads turn. She nearly duplicated that flawless feat on her way to the green but missed just one approach shot on No. 18 which she surprisingly birdied for that 35-30 round.

"Super accurate ang palo ko today at ang ganda ng speed control ko," said Rosales, now closer – more than ever – to proving her point in opting to compete here than making history with a stint in the Philippine Open back home.

"I was invited to play (in the Open) but I’d rather be here. I could’ve made history by playing but there was too much going on, too much…," added Rosales, who had a 137 in a tie with Anne Marie Knight, who shot a 66.

That was two strokes off Karen Stupples of England, whose steady game in the afternoon produced six birdies against a lone bogey for that 67 and a 135.

Rosales, teeing off in the morning batch, actually gained a provisional share of the lead with Stupples still out there playing but settled for second after the Englishwoman came in with that five-under card.

But it was indeed an amazing round for the former five-time RP Ladies Open champion who struggled to salvage an ever-par 72 Thursday but fought back with guns ablazing with those cluster of birdies.

"I hit every fairway, and missed just one green 18th. I hit my longest putt of the day from about 35 feet off the (18th) green for birdie. I adjusted to the speed of the green well and I’m feeling pretty good about how I’m playing," said Rosales, after shooting the tournament-best score which, however, fell short of her personal best of 64 she made in the second round of last year’s Giant Eagle Classic which she nearly won.

Rachel Teske won that one, via a three-hole playoff, and the Aussie bet opened her bid here with a 67 and was on her way to keeping a hold of the lead with an eagle-aided four under after nine holes. But she wavered and bogeyed four of her last nine for a 72, slipping to a tie for fourth with fancied Annika Sorenstam, who had a 70, for a 139.

Karrie Webb, the other fancied player in the fold, fired a 70 to be at 141 for a share of 12th to 15th places, one stroke behind defending champion Laura Davies, who had a 140 after a 71.

"Did you know how I scored, ‘ma?" Jenny excitedly asked her mom Lourdes, whom she called up at Riviera while the elder Rosales was trailing son Gerald in the second round of the RP Open yesterday.

"Ano nga ba, teka muna at baka himatayin ako," her mom shot back, before breaking into a smile upon hearing the good news that came like a whiff of fresh air on a day when Gerald ironically struggled and missed the cut on the tournament he won four years ago. — Dante Navarro