Ryan Monsalve turned in a superb two-under 66 to make up for Lanz Uy’s shaky 75 as the duo pooled a 141 in aggregate format to grab a one-stroke lead over Sean Ramos and Gabby Macalaguim after two rounds of the National Doubles Amateur Golf Championship at the Camp Aguinaldo Golf Club in Quezon City yesterday.
Monsalve, a junior at California Baptist University, bucked a three-bogey miscue with five birdies, including on the par-5 18th that spiked his 35-31 card at the par-68 military layout and cushioned the impact of Uy’s 41-34 game in hot conditions for a 203 total heading to today’s deciding round where play shifts to two-ball foursomes (alternate shot).
After an impressive 61 in four-ball, the Macalaguim-Ramos pair struggled with 71 and 72, respectively, for a 143 but remained in the title hunt at 204, still upbeat of their chances in the crucial format which puts premium on cohesion and accuracy where a slightest mistake by one could lead to a challenging shot for the other.
Josh Jorge and Santino Laurel, together with the Jed Dy-Mikha Fortuna pair, made it a four-way fight for the National Golf Association of the Philippines’ closing event for 2019 as the two teams submitted identical 206s after a 138 and 141, respectively.
Jorge fired a one-under 67 while Laurel carded a 71 while Dy, who won this event with Southeast Asian Games gold medalist and LPGA Tour-bound Bianca Pagdanganan, struggled with a 71 but drew an impressive game from Fortuna, who shot a 70 marred by a double-bogey on the par-3 13th.
Ivan Monsalve, a senior at CBU, actually fired the day’s best four-under 64, marked by five birdies against a bogey, while Aldo Barro produced a 71 as the tandem jumped from last place at 24th to fifth at 208 and nurtured hopes of pulling off a spectacular feat in the event sponsored by the MVP Sports Foundation and held as part of the PLDT National Amateur Golf Tour and backed by Cignal and Metro Pacific Investments.
