RICO HOEY FIRES 64, TIES FOR 11th IN HOUSTON OPEN
RICO Hoey, the first Filipino to play in the PGA Tour, birdied five of his last six holes, to claim an 11th place tie in the Houston Open Sunday (Monday in Manila.)
It’s his best finish after nine events this season during which he missed the cut four times. But Hoey reserved his best for last in the final round where he shot six-under-par 64 and vaulted near the top.
His strong finish netted him $211,315 (about P12 million) and likely given him some confidence heading to this week’s Valero Texas Open where he is also competing.
The Valero event is the last tournament before the Masters where a player who is not yet qualified, like Hoey, has a chance to participate by winning the event.
Hoey, 29, shot a four-day total of 268, 12 under par, eight strokes behind Australia’s Min Wo Lee who captured his first PGA Tour win.
Lee shot a final round three-under-par 67 for a 20-under-par total.
Lee survived the charge of world No. Scottie Scheffler who shot a 63 and was one-stroke behind in a tie with Gary Woodland who scored 62.
YUKA SASO, PAGDANGANAN MISS LPGA CUT
Yuka Saso, the Filipino Japanese who has won the US Open twice, had a woeful second round and missed the cut at the Ford Championship in Arizona last Friday (Saturday in Manila).
Saso shot 75 in the second round after a 69 in the first and missed the cut which was at minus 4.
Also missing the weekend was Bianca Pagdanganan who shot 72-78.
AIDRIC CHAN TIED 6th IN TAIWAN
Aidric Chan shot a four-under-par 68 at the Chang Wah Open in Taiwan and tied for sixth place as he continues his international campaign.
Chan had four birdies in a bogey-free round for an aggregate 12 under par, three strokes behind winner Ching Hung Su who beat compatriot Tseng Tsu Hao in a playoff.
READ Aidric Chan nips Juvic for ADT title; Tabuena tied 14th in Macau
The event was part of the Taiwan PGA Tour with a total prize money of NT$3,000,000 or about 5.1 million pesos.
Though he did not win, it was still a strong follow up to his victory in last week’s Lexus Challenge in the Asian Development Tour held in Vietnam where he battled compatriot Juvic Pagunsan for the title.
COLLEGE GOLF GETS BOOST
Collegiate golfers will have a more robust competition soon following the signing of an agreement between Philippine College Golf Series and DuckWorld PH.
Under the agreement, signed by PCG’s Roy Ibay and DuckWorld’s Patrick Gregorio, the collaboration aims to strengthen and expand collegiate golf by holding tournaments and developing sustainable golf programs nationwide.
The first tournament will be on April 27 at Caliraya Springs Golf Club. Dubbed the “Battle of the South,” the event will feature golfers from La Salle, College of St. Benilde, La Salle-Dasmarinas, Mapua University, Arellano University, and Lyceum of the Philippines.
It will be followed by the “Battle of the North” on June 22 to be held at Camp John Hay Golf Course. Competing there are University of the Philippines, Ateneo de Manila, University of Santo Tomas and University of the Cordilleras.
Organizers are hoping to get more entries from the north and south of Luzon.
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