Olympic-bound Ardina trails by 7 after 71

MANILA, Philippines -- Dottie Ardina carded a two-birdie, two-bogey round to match par 71 at Highland Meadows Golf Club, trailing Hye Jin Choi by seven strokes at the Dana Open in Sylvania, Ohio Thursday (Friday Manila time).

Preparing for her Paris Olympics debut, Ardina hit all but two fairways and reached regulation 13 times. However, she struggled with her putting, needing 31 putts to complete a 33-38 card marked by birdies on Nos. 2 and 4 but marred by bogeys on Nos. 6 and 12.

Tied for 55th, the veteran Filipina campaigner, who alternates between the LPGA and Epson tours, stood just above the projected cutoff line in the $1.75-million championship, which serves as part of the Olympic-bound players’ buildup.

Bianca Pagdanganan, who will join her ICTSI teammate Ardina in Paris, opted to skip this week’s LPGA event but will compete in next week’s CPKC Women’s Open in Alberta, Canada, her final tournament before the Olympics set to begin on August 7 at Le Golf National.

Meanwhile, Choi dazzled with a bogey-free 64 to take a one-stroke lead over Aditi Ashok and Xiyu Lin, who will also vie in the Olympics, both shot 65s. Natthakritta Vongtaveelap posted a solid, eagle-spiked 66 to tie for fourth with Paula Reto and fellow Thai Chanetee Wannasaen.

Filipino-American Clarris Guce, however, struggled with a 75, putting her in danger of missing the cut at tied 126th place in a field of 143.

Over in Epson Tour, four Filipinas begin their title quest in the Twin Bridges Championship Friday with ICTSI-backed Pauline del Rosario and Abby Arevalo aiming to deliver strong performances at Pinehaven Country Club in Guilderland, New York, following a series of mediocre outings on the LPGA’s developmental tour.

Del Rosario tees off at 12:46 p.m. on No. 10 alongside Anna Berman and Christine Wang, while Arevalo starts at 2:20 p.m. on the first hole in a group with Noramol Nuchsila and Amelia Williamson.

Tomi Arejola and Chanelle Avaricio are also competing, with Arejola seeking a strong start in the 9:03 a.m. group on No. 10 with Irene Kim and American amateur Hayden Knapp. Avaricio will play with Anne Chen and Jessica Welch at 1:08 p.m., also on the backside of the relatively short 6,080-yard, par-71 layout.