Guce sizzles with 68, trails leaders by 1 in Tuscaloosa Toyota Classic

MANILA, Philippines -- Clariss Guce banked on a solid frontside charge to shoot a four-under 68 and trail American Auston Kim, Alena Sharp of Canada and two others by just one after 18 holes of the Tuscaloosa Toyota Classic in Alabama Friday.

Guce strung up a pair of back-to-back birdies from Nos. 1 and 6 in an explosive finish after starting out with a one-birdie, one-bogey card at the back of the par-72 Ol’ Colony Golf Course in Tuscaloosa.

That put the US-based Filipina within a stroke of Kim, Sharp, Amelia Garvey of Australia and Maddie McCrary, also of the US, in one of her stronger starts in pursuit of a third Epson Tour championship.

She actually bucked a shaky stint off the mound that saw her hit just eight fairways. But she reached regulation 15 times and finished with 29 putts, including one bunker-save.

Abby Arevalo, on the other hand, recovered from a mediocre frontside 37 with birdies on Nos. 10, 12 and 17 as she grabbed a share of 14th at 70, three shots adrift of the leaders with 36 holes left in the three-day, $200,000 tournament.

Arevalo, whose campaign is supported by ICTSI, flourished with her long game as she missed just one fairway and made up for her iron and wedge struggles by finishing with 28 putts.

The former Cactus Tour winner went out of regulation six times.

Pauline del Rosario, meanwhile, blew a three-birdie binge from No. 6 coming home as she holed out with a double-bogey on the par-4 ninth and settled for a 72.

Del Rosario, also backed by the world's leading port operator, scrambled early on at the back, bogeying the 11th but gaining strokes on Nos. 13 and 15 before yielding another shot on the 16th. She birdied the par-5 No. 3 but bogeyed the next two before rattling off three straight birdies to go one-under.

A last-hole mishap, however, pulled the ace Filipina shotmaker to joint 47th with eight others in a starting field of 106.

Kim and Sharp matched bogey-free 67s as they joined Garvey, who gunned down eight birdies against three bogeys, and McCrary, who spiked her 36-31 card with an eagle-2 on No. 16, at the helm.

Taiwanese Cheng Ssu-Chia and Korean Ji Eun Baik tied Guce at fifth with a bogey-free card and a five-birdie, one-bogey round, respectively.