Lascuna pads OOM lead after S'woods' romp

MANILA, Philippines - Tony Lascuna firmed up his lead in the Order of Merit race on the ICTSI Philippine Golf Tour, pulling away from fellow Davaoeño Elmer Salvador after annexing his second leg victory in the rich ICTSI Manila Southwoods in Cavite recently.

Lascuna beat former Philippine Open champion and three-time Asian Tour leg winner Angelo Que by two in the P2.5 million event, pocketing the top P450,000 purse and hitting the P1 million mark with earnings of P1,103,750.

That includes his triumph at Eagle Ridge last May where he won P200,000, a runner-up finish at Sherwood and two third place finishes at Splendido and Eastridge.

Salvador, who retained the crown at Sherwood last April, the first of five P2.5 million events lined up in this year’s tour organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc., has racked up P752,250 in winnings for No. 2 while teener Miguel Tabuena, the other two-leg winner after six legs (Splendido and Eastridge), is in third with P553,500.

Jay Bayron, the 2010 OOM winner, has earnings P420,708 for fourth while ICTSI John Hay Invitational champion Marvin Dumandan is in fifth with P389,850 followed by Angelo Que (P388,750), Jun Bernis (P275,000), rookie Clyde Mondilla (P242,875), Ferdie Aunzo (P225,750) and Charles Hong (P224,475).

Lascuna, meanwhile, hopes to sustain his form as the tour, sponsored by ICTSI, goes to Bacolod next week for the Negros Occidental Classic on July 18-20 at the Marapara layout where he will not only go for a third win but also seek redemption from a failed bid last year.

Lascuna lost to veteran Robert Pactolerin in a thrilling four-hole playoff for the latter’s first victory in a long, long while.

Action shifts to Iloilo the following week for the ICTSI Iloilo Golf Challenge on July 25-27 where Jhonnel Ababa scored his breakthrough win as a pro.

Ababa’s playoff win over Bayron also sparked a run of victories for the former national team mainstay, who also ruled the Riviera and Calatagan legs to emerge the top player last year.

The other backers of the circuit are Sharp, Nike Golf, Callaway, Titleist, Srixon, Custom Clubmakers, Mizuno and Foot Joy with support from Event Captain, Inc., Omnisource Int’l. TPGAP and media partners Balls, A Round of Golf, Inquirer Golf, Studio 23, Pinoygolfer.com and Impact.