RP ladies waver with 151, slip to 9th

MANILA, Philippines –  The Philippines turned from awesome to awful as it limped home with a seven-over 151 on a windy day after a sizzling nine-under 135 and reeled back to ninth place after three rounds of the World Amateurs Golf Team Championships in Argentina Friday.

Dottie Ardina, whose flawless 65 at the Buenos Aires Golf Club lifted Team RP from joint ninth to solo fourth halfway through the Espirito Santo Trophy, lost her touch after a birdie on No. 3, fumbling with four bogeys and a double-bogey and didn’t count with a five-over 77, under tough playing conditions also at the BAGC.

Chihiro Ikeda and Mia Piccio didn’t fare well either. Ikeda turned in a roller-coaster round of 75 and Piccio couldn’t find her rhythm for the second straight day and scored a 76.

That 151 aggregate dropped the ICTSI-backed team to ninth at 430 in a tie with Mexico, which pooled a 149, even as South Korea braced for a runaway victory with another sterling round of 134 for a 25-under 407 total.

With Kim Hyun-soo firing six birdies in the first 10 holes for a 66 and Kim Ji-hee scoring a hole-in-one for a 68 and Han Jung-eun knocking down two eagles for another 68, one of which counted for the team, Korea pulled away from the US with a 13-shot lead heading into the final round. US wavered with a two-over 146 but stayed at second with 420 while Germany also kept its place at third with a 423 after a 146. South Africa shot a 143 to move up to fourth with a 424. Argentina (144), Spain (138) and France (141) tied for fifth at 425.

Defending champion Sweden stood at eighth with 426 after a 145 while four strokes back at 430 are Mexico and RP, seeking to improve its best finish of ninth in the 1968 edition in Australia.

“They had a good start but failed to sustain it. Dottie and Chihiro struggled with their iron game and Mia continued to struggle on the greens, missing at least three makeable birdie putts,” said RP and ICTSI team coach Bong Lopez.

He also said his wards came in ruffled by the wind that blew from all over Friday and wilted in biting cold in this second largest South American country. Despite the poor round, Lopez remains confident of a big finish by his wards, especially Ikeda, who recovered from a 39 with three straight birdies from No. 10, only to yield them back with three straight bogeys from No. 15.