Jerome forced to a wringer; Juvic romps home

SILANG, Cavite — Pushed to the limit by a pesky opponent, Jerome Delariarte uncorked a gem of a shot on the fourth playoff hole then watched Jonard Rates self-destruct to snatch a 1-up victory from the clutches of defeat at the start of the match play event in the Philippine Amateur golf championship at Riviera’s Langer course here yesterday.

Four other matches went through extra holes but the Delariarte-Rates duel provided the drama and thrill to a hot but exciting day that saw former champion Artemio Murakami and DHL Open titlist Abe Rosal bundle out by two of the five jungolfers who gatecrashed the round of 16 party.

Stamina will be the order of the day today as the surviving field plays 36 holes with the staging of the round of 16 in the morning before the quarterfinalists fight it out for the semis berths in afternoon play, according to the organizing National Golf Association of the Philippines.

Also advancing in this event sponsored by DHL, Philippine Sports Commission, WWWExpress and DHL Worldwide are fancied Juvic Pagunsan, veteran Tommy Manotoc, Pepot Inigo, Marvin Dumandan, Gene Bondoc and jungolfer Miko Alejandro.

Pagunsan and Manotoc came through with identical 3 & 1 victories over Jose Mari Hechanova and King Stehmeier, respectively; nigo won by default over Lyndon Barril; Dumandan came up with day’s most-lopsided win — a 6&4 victory over Yaye Escuadro; Bondoc beat Bobby Celestino, 2 & 1; and Alejandro whipped Marc Lopez, 4 & 2.

But no victory wouldn’t be as sweeter than that of Delariarte.

Delariarte hacked his 8-iron tee shot on their second trip to the par-3 No. 4 within 18 feet then clinched the victory without holing out as Rates, who blew an otherwise won bid on the 18th hole, conceded the hole — and the match — after a disastrous blast, the ball overshooting the green near the No. 5 mound before choking on his chip shot.

In disgust, the sturdy Rates reluctantly picked up his ball then gestured to Delariarte that he has conceded the match that in one stretch had appeared to be already his.

But fortunes do change in every shot or putt especially in head-to-head matches like this as Rates, who won the par-3 17th hole to draw level, flubbed a four-foot par putt on the 18th hole, enabling the defending champion to force the sudden death.

No, it actually took them four holes as Delariarte and Rates matched pars on the first extra holes with the former likewise flubbing to wrap up the match on No. 3 when he muffed a three-foot birdie putt set up by a superb second shot.

That was after Rates dumped his approach shot into the bunker guarding the green and the Uratex Caddies champion, including his father Joe, appeared to have given up the fight until he blasted to within a foot and watched his rival blow his chance.

It was indeed a great escape which Murakami and Rosal failed to pull off.

IG Gutierrez battled from four holes down in the last eight holes, winning six of them, including four straight from No. 11 as the 15-year-old jungolfer stole a 2 & 1 victory over Murakami, the 1999 champion at Wack Wack.

Michael Bibat, the national age-group champion last year, battled from two holes down after nines then completed a stunning 3 & 2 victory over Rosal, who routed a star-studded field in the DHL Open Championship in Canlubang in February.