Tabuena fades with 72 as Quiban cards 71 in Phuket golf fest

MANILA, Philippines — Miguel Tabuena ran out of holes trying to make up for an early triple-bogey miscue and an unlikely bogey on a hole he had dominated in the first two days as he fumbled with a two-over 72 to fall back to joint 34th in the third round of the Laguna Phuket Championship still paced by Korean Bio Kim in Thailand Saturday.

Tabuena had hoped for a sustained charge in moving day after rallying with a 67 Friday that shoved him from joint 43rd to a share of 18th but instead found himself in a jam after a run of six pars from No. 1 as he hit an errant drive on the par-4 No. 7 and ended up with a one-putt 7 that all but crushed his bid.

Worse, he bogeyed the par-5 ninth, which he eagled in the first round and birdied in the next, and fell off the leaderboard with a thud although two birdies in the last five holes saved the ICTSI-backed shotmaker a 38-34 card for a 54-hole total of 208.

He dropped 16th rungs back and now lay 9 strokes behind Kim.

The Korean also wavered in tough conditions at the par-70 Laguna Phuket layout but his 71 kept him along on top with a 199 but just one shot ahead of Thais Panuphol Pittayarat and Phachara Khongwatmai, who pooled a pair of 200s after a 68 and 69, respectively.

Veteran Prom Meesawat likewise stayed in the title hunt with a 202 after a 69 for joint fourth with Yikeun Chang of Korea, who fired a 68, and local bets Chanachok Dejpiratanamongkol and Natipong Srithong, who carded 70 and 72, respectively.

Justin Quiban, who barely made the cut Friday, mixed three birdies with four bogeys, his 71 and a 213 put him at joint 55th in a surviving field of 75.

Quiban, who placed tied 23th in last week’s Blue Canyon Championship, also bogeyed No. 9 where he teed off, hit two birdies against two bogeys at the back then drained another birdie putt on No. 4 but holed out with another bogey on the eighth for a 35-36.