RP golfers struggle, remain at 7th

Jerome Delariarte and Juvic Pagunsan came through with three birdies each and kept the Philippines in seventh place in the best-ball team competition but the former slipped further back the leaderboard in the individual race with a mediocre game in the third round of The Spirit International Amateur Golf Championship in Trinity, Texas, USA Friday (Saturday in Manila).

As the US threatened to sweep the team events, the Philippines settled for the best they could dish out on another challenging day at the Whispering Pines golf course.

Delariarte, who stunned the stellar field with a fiery 66 in the first round when play was still in a stroke format, gunned down two birdies in his first six holes at the back but closed out the backside with three straight pickups.

The 25-year-old Southwoods mainstay never got the chance to recover his rhythm, his iron game failing to set up birdie opportunities the way he did on the first day. He closed out with two more pickups that negated a lone birdie effort.

After a miserable three-birdie game in the first 36 holes, Pagunsan rammed in three this time but the Canlubang club bet had too many pickups — 11 — that hardly helped the team’s bid in the best-ball competition.

With an aggregate score of 67, the Philippines, skippered by Danilo Pizarro and backed by the Philippine Airlines, Mizuno and the National Golf Association of the Phils., remained in joint seventh with Sweden at 201, nine strokes behind the US. The Americans combined for a 62 and a 192 for a four-stroke lead over Finland, which had a 196 after 64. New Zealand (64) caught up with Australia (68) at 197.

Delariarte’s measly birdie-output likewise pulled him down to 10th from seventh (11 birdies) in the individual race paced by Bradley Iles of New Zealand with 17. Roppe Kakko of Finland and Brandt Snedeker of the US had identical 16 birdies with one round left in the championship held in alternate years with the World Amateurs.

The RP ladies tandem of Carmelette Villaroman and Lora Roberto moved up to 14th from 17 in a field of 24 as they pooled a 68 after struggling with 73 and 75 in the first two days. Villaroman had three but limped home with six pickups while Roberto could only chip in one birdie in a round marred by 11 pickups.

The US ladies tandem of Jane Park and Paula Creamer pooled a 64 and had a 191 for a 12-shot lead over Australia with a 203 after a 66 while South Korea shot a 69 for 205.