CABANATUAN City – Justin Quiban unleashed a record 10-under 62 behind a fiery start and an explosive closing stretch to wrest control of the ICTSI Lakewood Championship by four as the Lakewood Golf and Country Club succumbed to a relentless birdie-eagle barrage on Tuesday.
Quiban torched the back nine with four birdies in the last five holes as he not only shattered the course record but also opened a wide gap between himself and his nearest pursuers.
“I consider myself more of a ball striker, and on a course like this, everything just clicked,” said Quiban, who is chasing his fourth Philippine Golf Tour title while balancing his schedule between the Asian Tour and the local circuit.
Quiban breaks record by 3
“With the course being relatively wide, I was able to trust my ball striking all day, which really helped me go low,” he added.
Quiban surpassed Reymon Jaraula’s 65 from the tournament’s inaugural staging in 2024, though he remained grounded about the achievement.
“Did I expect to break it? Yes and no. I’ve been working on the right things leading up to this week. I stayed focused on the process and didn’t dwell on expectations for today’s round – and I ended up shooting this low.”
Q-School qualifier Miki Ryoma of Japan turned in a 66, highlighted by a frontside 33, to finish four strokes behind Quiban.
Ryan Monsalve eagled both par-5s to move into early contention in the P3 million opening leg of the 10-event circuit organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc., finishing at 68 alongside Russel Bautista and defending champion Sean Ramos.
A group at 69 included Taewon Ha, Junichi Katayama, Brycen Ko, Lee Song and Jeffren Lumbo, while Keanu Jahns eagled the eighth on his way to a 70, joining Lloyd Go and Charles Lee at 11th.
Ten players, led by reigning Order of Merit champion Angelo Que, Aidric Chan and Jaraula, carded 71s, while nine others – bannered by multi-titled veterans Tony Lascuña and Clyde Mondillas – settled for even-par 72.
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