BIANCA Pagdanganan narrowly missed an unlikely bronze medal in women’s golf, finishing fourth in a thrilling conclusion to the Philippines’ campaign in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Pagdanganan shot her best round of the tournament with a 68 including a birdie on the 18th and final hole to end up with a 6-under-par, 282 total and enter the clubhouse in a share of third place and at least a playoff for the bronze medal of the women’s individual stroke play competitions.
But Lin Xiyu Janet dislodged Pagdanganan out of medal contention after a birdie at 18th, and the Chinese finished with a 7-under-par 281, just one stroke ahead of Pagdanganan for the bronze at the Le Golf National.
Lydia Ko of New Zealand maintained her lead in the final few holes to win the gold with a 10-under par 278, and Esther Henseleit of Germany taking the silver with an 8-under par 280
It was still a very impressive finish for Pagdanganan, who is ranked No. 36 in the Olympic ranking of the International Golf Federation, and 125th in the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour rankings.
Pagdanganan also came so close for a medal even with the Philippine golf team encountering uniform issues during the Games. She shared fourth along with Hannah Green of Australia, Amy Yang of Korea, and Miyu Yamashita of Japan.
Dottie Ardina, who was at the center of the controversy after a video of her complaining about the absence of an official uniform for the tournament went viral, also had a respectable showing by finishing in a tie for 13th after shooting a 68 on Saturday for a 285 total.
After a lackluster third round that dropped her to 13th position, Pagdanganan made four birdies to make up for a bogey during the front nine to regain ground for her medal hopes.
The Filipina golfer’s medal chance appeared doomed when she had two bogeys in the back nine including at the 10th where she took a drop penalty after her tee shot landed in the water.
But Pagdanganan birdied the 14th after a bogey in the previous hole, before draining a huge 13-foot birdie putt at the 17th to stay in the hunt for the medal.
Just like in the previous three rounds, Pagdanganan knocked in another birdie in the final hole setting her up at a chance at a medal until Lin made the crucial putt in the end.
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