Bell catches Manotoc at helm; RP slips to 2nd

Tommy Manotoc failed to sustain his fine start and stumbled with a three-over par 75 yesterday, dropping to a share of the individual lead with a charging Bill Bell of New Zealand in the second round of the 2007 Asia-Pacific Senior Amateur Golf Championship yesterday at Mt. Malarayat in Lipa City, Batangas.

Manotoc, whose birdie windup netted him a 72 and a two-shot lead at the start of the 54-hole championship Wednesday, never recovered from a three-over card at the front, mixing one birdie with a bogey and a slew of pars at the back for a 39-36 card.

He had a 147 then watched Bell bogey Nos. 16 and 17 to remain on top heading into the final 18 holes of the tournament sponsored by the Philippine Airlines, Pagcor, Dept. of Tourism and Hanjin Heavy Industries.

Bell, four down after 18 holes and four flights ahead of Manotoc’s group, tied the 57-year-old Filipino shotmaker with a birdie on No. 14 then gained a two-shot swing on the par-3 15th on a birdie-bogey exchange. But the Kiwi bet dropped two strokes on the next two holes, enabling Manotoc to regain a share of the lead.

RP Team I, however, blew a three-shot in team competition despite Iggy Clavecilla’s two-over 74 card as Korea sizzled with a 145 on Jun Kee Lee’s 72 and Young Eung Park’s 73 to surge ahead with a 295.

Lee and Park also shared third place in the individual competition with 148s while Iggy Clavecilla carded a 74 to tie last year’s champion Rodney Baltrop (75) of Australia in fifth with a 149.

The hosts slid to second with a 149 for a 296 but remain in the hunt for a sweep of both the individual and team titles in the event conducted by the National Golf Association of the Phils. (NGAP).