RP golfers lose edge but near World Cup berth

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines bogeyed the final hole for a five-under 66 and slid to second behind Singapore but remained within sight of a World Cup stint with one round left in the Omega Mission Hills World Cup Asian Qualifier at the Seri Selangor Golf Club in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia yesterday.

Angelo Que and Mars Pucay struggled in the early going of the four-ball format but recovered their form at the back, making five birdies in a six-hole stretch from No. 12 only to fall behind a charging Singapore with that last-hole bogey.

Still, RP’s 15-under total of 198 was just a shot adrift of Singapore’s 197 and seven strokes ahead of Hong Kong, Malaysia and Myanmar, the three other teams tipped to slug it out for the last World Cup berth in today’s final round.

Singapore’s Lam Chih Bing and Mardan Mamat combined for a bogey-free nine-under par 62 as it surged past the Philippines with a 16-under 197 total heading into the last 18 holes of the elims – the foursomes or alternate shot format.

Malaysia bounced back from a 74 in the second round with a six-under par 65 as it gained a share of third with Hong Kong, which turned in a 67, and Myanmar, which also shot a 65, at 205s.

Pakistan also shot a 65 and stayed in the hunt at 206.

The top three teams after four rounds will advance to the World Cup proper on Nov. 26-29 at the Mission Hills Golf Club in Shenzhen, China.

Que and Pucay, who combined for a tournament-best 11-under 60 in the first round, bogeyed No. 2 and could only hit two birdies in the next seven holes.

But after gunning down back-to-back birdies from No. 12, the Filipinos rattled off three straight from No. 15 to remain on top with the Singaporeans until they stumbled with a bogey on the last hole.

“All in all, we are happy especially coming into the last few holes where we birdied four of the seven holes which was good except for the bogey on the last,” said Que, a two-time Asian Tour winner.

“We are happy with a seven shot cushion over third place. If we keep playing how we are playing, we will be okay for tomorrow. We won’t think about protecting our score (in the final round foursomes) but will stick to our game plan which is to hit fairways and greens and try to two-putt at every hole,” said Que.