STA. ROSA City, Laguna – Artemio Murakami put on an amazing display of shotmaking, superb iron play and steady putting to fire a stirring course-record eight-under 62 to seize a huge five-stroke lead over reigning Philippine Open champion Angelo Que at the start of the P4.6 million The Country Club here yesterday.
Murakami banged away birdies in bunches, starting on the first two holes before coming up with two three-string birdies from Nos. 6 and 11 en route to an eye-popping 30-32 card, leaving his rivals in awe and in fear of another blowout the way Juvic Pagunsan did last year.
Murakami, however, downplayed his title chances this early although he hopes to sustain his form today and into the weekend play in a bid to end a year-long drought here and abroad.
“I’m happy to shoot this low, my first time to break a course record,” said Murakami after turning in one of the lowest rounds in a pro tournament in years despite the course playing to a par-70.
“But this happens to players of our caliber. I believe we can really shoot low, low rounds in any given tournament. But the problem is how to sustain it. It will be difficult to do the same in the next three rounds,” said Murakami.
But the field’s concern is how to catch up the rotund Fil-Japanese shotmaker, who scored a breakthrough win on the Asian Tour in the Johor Open in Malaysia in 2007 but failed to contend in any other tournament last year.
“He was awesome. But this is a four-day event although I need to shoot a three- or four-under tomorrow to keep it close,” said Que, who opened with a birdie but dropped two strokes on the par-5 when he drove out of bounds.
Que, the 2007 winner of this event sponsored by ICTSI, needed an eagle and a birdie in the last five holes to break out of a rollercoaster start and into second place with a 67. He whacked a 3-wood from 260 yards to within two-feet for an eagle on No. 14 before sinking a seven-foot birdie putt on the 16th.
Unlike last year when he outclassed the field with his awesome start, a course-tying 64 en route to an 11-shot romp over Que, Pagunsan turned in a mediocre 34-35 card this time, ruing his day-long bout with his balky putter.
“I could’ve shot better but I had three or four missed birdie putts inside four feet. It was really a struggle on the putting surface,” said Pagunsan.
Murakami, the former national champion, actually went nine-under with another birdie on No. 15 but he dropped a stroke on the next after missing the green and missing what had appeared to be an easy three-foot par putt.