Iggy nears 4-peat with 8-shot lead

MANILA, Philippines - Iggy Clavecilla took a step closer to scoring a rare four-peat in the rain-delayed Philippine Senior Amateur Open Championship as he shot a second straight 79 and surged ahead by eight strokes over Dave Hernandez at Riviera’s Langer course in Silang, Cavite yesterday.

Clavecilla kept his poise against the expected charge of his rivals, padding his overnight three-shot lead to eight with a 158 aggregate through 36 holes with one round left in the premier Championship Division.

The Luisita mainstay gunned down a lone birdie on No. 15 and made nine bogeys but still built a big margin as his chief rivals either failed to match his shotmaking skills and steady putting or simply faded in tough playing conditions at the par-71 layout.

Hernandez matched Clavecilla’s 40 after nine holes but dropped seven strokes in the first six holes at the back and wound up with a 44 for an 84 and a 166.

Rolly Viray, third at the start of the round, reeled back with an atrocious 47 at the front and finished the day with an 87 and slid to joint fourth with a 170, enabling Caloy Coscolluela to move up to third at 169 after an 85.

Meanwhile, the last 18 holes of play in other divisions will also be held today with Ben Jacinto (Category II), Ben Liclican (Category III), Peter Shanks (Super Senior I) and Jun Galindez (Super Senior II) hoping to keep the lead in their respective classes in the three-day event conducted by the National Golf Association of the Phils.

Tony Olives joined Viray in fourth with an 84 while Pepot Iñigo strung up nines of 43-41 to gain fifth place with a 171.

Clavecilla, who beat Hernandez by three shots to complete a three-peat feat last year, held his ground against Hernandez in the early going then watched his rival waver at the back to pull away.

With a three-shot with nine holes to play, parred three of the first five holes at the back before holing out with a birdie on the par-4 15th to leave Hernandez behind and built a comfortable lead heading into the final 18 holes.