Macau Open: Tabuena regains touch, but trails by 10 despite 66

MANILA, Philippines – Miguel Tabuena brandished superb putting to shoot a second 66 in three days but Aussie Min Woo Lee proved steadier in moving day, firing a 65 to cling to a two-stroke lead over a charging Thai Poom Saksansin after 54 holes of the Macau Open at the Macau Golf and Country Club Saturday.

Tabuena used 26 putts to stoke the fire of a Top 10 drive in the $1-million championship. He went on to register eight birdies against three bogeys as he matched his first round output to move from joint 23rd to a share of eighth at 12-under 201 heading to the final 18 holes of the 18th leg of this year’s Asian Tour.

But the ICTSI-backed shotmaker, No. 2 in the current Asian Tour Order of Merit derby, remained too far (10 strokes) behind Lee, who firmed up his title bid with a six-under card for a 22-under 191 total.

Saksansin, however, gained a stroke and pulled within two with a 64 spiked by a birdie-birdie finish as he assembled a 193 while Korean Jaewoong Eom matched Lee’s six-under round for a 195.

Tabuena quickly picked himself up from a miscue on the first hole with three birdies in the next five then birdied the ninth to make the turn at three-under 32. He shot three more birdies at the back to negate a mishap on No. 16 to fashion out the five-under round at the par-71 layout.

But while Tabuena found his grove after slowing down with a 69 Friday, compatriots Justin Quiban and Lloyd Go lost theirs after matching 67s in the first two days and fell off the leaderboard.

Quiban scrambled for a frontside 35 but made three bogeys and a double bogey against two bogeys in the last nine holes, ending up with a 74 and tumbling from tied 14th to a share of 48th at 208.

Go hung on despite a one-over 36 at the front but the Cebuano slipped late on back-to-back double bogeys from No. 16 and wound up with a 41 and a 77. He fell to joint 58th at 211.