Cyna 2 adrift in Malaysia

MANILA, Philippines - Cyna Rodriguez dished out a superb putting stroke to fire a two-under 69 and trail Malaysian Kelly Tan by two at the start of the Malaysian Ladies Amateur Open at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club in Malaysia Tuesday.

Rodriguez, the reigning Hong Kong Am champion who blew a final round lead and ended up third in the recent ICTSI Ladies Philippine Golf Tour, rolled in two long putts from 30 feet and gunned down three more birdies from close range to negate her three bogeys for a 34-35 card.

That put the top ICTSI bet within two off Tan, who flashed her familiarity with the par-71 layout and shot a four-under 67 to seize control in the 30th staging of the 54-hole championship.

“I putted well today despite the fast greens,” said Rodriguez. “The course does not require long drives but more on placing your ball on the fairway and giving yourself a comfortable approach to the green.”

Princess Superal, the other Team ICTSI mainstay who finished second to former teammate and now pro Dottie Ardina at LPGT back home, likewise put herself in contention with a 70 in a tie with teammate Pauline del Rosario while Michelle Koh, another local bet, matched par 71 in the premier Division 1 event.

Sofia Chabon, one of the new members of Team ICTSI, struggled with a 79 but stood just one shot behind Malaysian Nur Shahzan, who carded a 78, in Division 2 of the tournament, Malaysia’s premier amateur championship.

Rodriguez hit a solid approach shot on No. 4 for a tap-in birdie then knocked down a pair of 30-footers on Nos. 5 and 7 to go three under but stumbled with a bogey on an errant drive on the ninth before dropping another stroke on No. 11 on a three-putt miscue.

She bounced back with birdies on Nos. 12 and 15 inside three feet but dropped another shot when she dumped her approach shot into the hazard on No. 16 before closing out with regulation pars.