Que's joint 16th place nets P1.2 million

MANILA, Philippines - Reigning Philippine Open champion Angelo Que rallied with an eagle-aided six-under par 66 to salvage a joint 16th place finish in the $2 million Malaysian Open topped by former RP Open winner Anthony Kang at the Saujana Golf and Country Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia yesterday.

Que, who started the final round in 38th place, gunned down an eagle on the par-5 13th then added two more birdies on Nos. 14 and 16 en route to a 34-32 card. He made seven birdies in a day of torrid scoring and fumbled with two bogeys to finish with a 278 aggregate in a tie for 16th place with four others. He won $25,960 or P1.2 million.

Juvic Pagunsan, the top RP bet in the first three rounds, also charged home with a three-under 69 to jump from 28th to a share of 21st with eight others at 279 worth $20,000 or P977,600.

Pagunsan, who finished joint third in the Asian Tour International in Thailand two weeks ago, sizzled with a 33 at the front, went four-under with another birdie on No. 13 but sputtered with a bogey on the 17th for a 33-36 card.

Still, it was another good finish for the 30-year-old ace Filipino shotmaker out to improve on his mediocre Asian Tour campaign last season.

Mars Pucay wound up joint 52nd with a 286 after a two-under 70 while Frankie Miñoza struggled with a four-over 76 and slid to a share of 66th at 290.

Kang, in fourth place at the start of the round, made his move with five birdies in the first 13 holes to seize control, reeled back with a bogey on No. 15 but nipped four others with a crucial birdie on the par-5 18th to fire a five-under 67 and clinch the crown.

The 36-year-old Kang, whose first career victory was in the Philippine Open at Southwoods in 1999, finished with a 17-under 271 to edge David Horsey (64), Miles Tunnicliff (68), Jyoti Randhawa (66) and Prayad Marksaeng (68), who all had 272s.