By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Cho Wooyoung bared his fangs in the rain-soaked final round, firing a blistering five-under-par 67 to secure a four-stroke victory in the Philippine Golf Championship presented by the Philippine Sports Commission at the East Course of the Wack Wack Golf and Country Club on Sunday, Feb. 8.
Starting the day two shots behind overnight leader Karandeep Kochhar of India, the 24-year-old Korean stumbled with a bogey at the opening hole but roared back with six birdies on the way to winning his maiden Asian Tour crown.
A two-time champion in the Korean PGA, he finished the 72-hole, $500,000 event at 11-under 277 after rounds of 69, 70 and 71. He opened the tournament tied for second, then shared the second-round lead with three others before relinquishing it in the third round.
He made sure to reclaim the lead — and the title — on the final day.
Pavit Tangkamoprasert threatened to catch Cho after back-to-back birdies on the 12th, closing the gap to just one stroke, but a bogey on the par-3 17th dashed his hopes.
The Thai finished with a 70 for 281 at solo second.
Travis Smyth came in third after limping home with a 73 for 283, while Kochhar faded with a 77 for 285.
Keanu Jahns, who trailed by four shots going into the final round, struggled with a 75 but managed to finish tied for ninth with five others at 285 to become the best Filipino performer in this tournament supported by BingoPlus.
“I wasn’t hitting my irons too well and I couldn’t find the rhythm early on,” Jahns admitted. “I kinda got it back towards the end with two nice birdies, but it was a bit of a struggle today.”
Jahns added the tournament served as a learning experience for him.
“Overall, I think I performed pretty okay. Obviously I was disappointed today, but I take this as a learning experience,” he said.
