Gialon strikes again for 2nd ICTSI crown

MANILA, Philippines - Zanie Boy Gialon annexed his second victory in his rookie season, beating Elmer Saban by three with a closing four-under 68 for the ICTSI Canlubang Golf Invitational crown as second round leader Jhonnel Ababa cracked with a 74 at Cangolf’s north course yesterday.

Pouncing on his rivals’ shaky start, Gialon turned what was expected to be a down-to-the-wire finish into a virtual cruise, hitting five birdies against a bogey for a 33-35 output and a 54-hole haul of eight-under 208, three shots ahead of Saban, who made a 71-211, and five over Ababa, who wound up with a 213.

He pocketed the P200,000 top purse, his second on the ICTSI-Philippine Golf Tour after edging Order of Merit frontrunner Tony Lascuña in a playoff to capture his maiden victory in the rain-shortened ICTSI Negros Occidental Classic last July.

“I just played my game and didn’t put much pressure on myself. I didn’t expect to win this but I hit my drives quite well and had a solid iron game,” said the 22-year-old Gialon, a former mainstay of the ICTSI amateur squad of Bong Lopez, in Filipino.

While Ababa struggled with his balky putter all day, Gialon played steady on the putting surface, including a 10-footer on No. 1 that gave him the needed momentum then came through with a superb short game where he saved all but one par in five times that he went out of regulation.

“After that two-shot swing on the first hole, things turned out quite well for me. It was just a matter of holding on to it (lead) and making the most of the opportunity,” said Gialon, who rallied with a 66 to salvage sixth place in the last ICTSI-PGT leg at ICTSI Calatagan last month.

Tied with Saban and one shot behind Ababa at the start of the final round, Gialon grabbed the solo lead early on a two-shot swing as he birdied the opening hole which Ababa and Saban bogeyed and went two-up on Saban with back-to-back birdies from No. 8 for the second straight day for a 33.