Del Rosario sustains fightback, finishes joint 22nd

MANILA, Philippines – Pauline del Rosario checked a faltering frontside windup with a birdie on No. 9 as she pounded out a 69 to salvage a joint 22nd finish in the Champions Fore Change Invitational won by Canada’s Alena Sharp in New Bern, North Carolina Sunday (Monday, Manila time).

Way off the pace after 36 holes, del Rosario pressed her bid with back-to-back birdies from No. 10 of the Tabema Country Club course where she teed off and gained another stroke on No. 15. Through she yielded a shot on the 18th, she resumed her charge with birdies on Nos. 2 and 4 but bogeyed Nos. 6 and 8 before holing out with another birdie for a second straight three-under par card.

She tied six others at 22nd with a six-under 210, 11 strokes off Sharp.

The Canadian bucked a bogey mishap on No. 4 with five bogeys in the last 14 holes, including on Nos. 16 and 18, as she fired a 68 and stalled Gigi Stoll of the US by two on a 54-hole 199 total.

Stoll also wavered in the early going with two bogeys in the first four holes but like Sharp, she bounced back with a string of birdies — six. But she ran out of holes in her comeback bid, also finishing with a 68 for a 201.

Meanwhile, Bianca Pagdanganan birdied the first hole coming off a 69 Saturday but missed a couple of birdie opportunities then bogeyed the seventh before dropping two strokes on the par-5 11th. She, however, fought back with two birdies in the last six holes to rescue a 72 although she dropped to joint 35th with a 212.

Filipino-American Clariss Guce stumbled with a 77 and ended up 60th at 218.

Over in Japan, Fil-Am Justin delos Santos holed out with a birdie to save an even-par 71 as he tied for ninth in the Japan Golf Tour Championship at the Shishido Hills’ West course in Ibaraki Prefecture Sunday.

Delos Santos had hoped to match his big third round 65 output but wrestled with his driver in the last 18 holes that had him hitting just six fairways. He fired five birdies but also made the same number of bogeys on a 29-putt showing as he wound up with a 279.

That was six strokes behind local ace Takumi Kanaya, who shot a 71 for a 273 for a two-shot victory over Yuki Inamori, who turned in a 69 for a 275.

Juvic Pagunsan, who nailed his second Japan Golf Tour victory in the Golf Partners Pro-Am last month, put in his best card in four days, a 68, as he tied for 31st at 286.