Pucay trails Thai by five after a 70

MANILA, Philippines - Mars Pucay blew a three-under par card with a double-bogey on No. 8 as he settled for a 70 to trail Thai veteran Prayad Marksaeng by five at the start of the Queen’s Cup at the Santiburi Samui Country Club in Samui, Thailand yesterday.

Pucay bounced back from a two-over start at the backside of the par-71 layout with five birdies in a nine-hole stretch but hit a wayward shot on the par-5 No. 8 for a 35-35 card and a share of 17th.

He stood five strokes behind Marksaeng, who rattled off four straight birdies from No. 5 en route to a six-under 65 and a one-shot lead over India’s Anirban Lahiri, who bucked a shoulder injury to fire a five-under 66 while Australian Gavin Flint, Finnish rookie Kale Samooja, Jbe Kruger of South Africa and Taiwane Lin Wen-tang all had 67.

Veteran campaigner Tony Lascuna carded a 72 for joint 38th while Michael Bibat and teener Miguel Tabuena struggled with 74s to fall below the projected cutoff line in the $300,000 event serving as the eighth leg of the Asian Tour.

Juvic Pagunsan, runner-up Thanyakon Khrongpha in last week’s ICTSI-Malarayat Championship of the ASEAN PGA Tour, groped for form with three bogeys for a birdie-less 75 in a tie with Artemio Murakami while Elmer Salvador, in a rare stint abroad, fumbled with a 78.