Puckett powers John Hay to 11-pt lead

BAGUIO, Philippines  – Camp John Hay assembled a 128 as it fended off Manila Southwoods and ABW Megafiber to post an 11-point lead halfway through the Seniors Fil-Championship in the 63rd Fil-Am Invitational golf tournament at the John Hay course yesterday.

Fred Puckett turned in another steady round of 70 at the up-and-down layout worth 35 points while Park Jung Won, Rudy Lockey and Clyde Cabreros added 34, 30 and 29, respectively, for the defending back-to-back champions, who pulled away with a 36-hole total of 249. Bong Mandapat didn’t count after a 28.

Edmund Yee shot 33 points for Southwoods, which made a 120 for a 238. Poch Hernandez had a 32, Bong Sison came through with a 29 and Florene de los Santos added a 26 for the Carmona-based squad, which hopes to rebound when play resumes tomorrow at the tricky Baguio Country Club.

“We will try to recover,” said De los Santos.

John Hay hopes to get the most of the one-day break as they brace for Southwoods’ fightback at the shorter but trickier BCC layout.

“We have to beat our flightmate or stay close. If you lose, better not count,” said Lockey.

ABW Megafiber stayed at third with 226 after another 113.
Over at the BCC, Nueva Ecija fired a tournament best 106 for a 197 as it took an eight-point lead over Manila Southwoods in the Am Championship division.

Vidal Querol and Duay submitted identical 29s while Manuel Bakunawa and Joel Jan Vincente each had 24 points for the Novo Ecijanos. 

Southwoods drew 29 points from Bryan Park, a pair of 24s from Freddie Mendoza and Erwyn Lumanog and a 22 from Jun Fontanilla as it assembled a 99 for a 189.

John Hay remained in third with a 180 after a 92 but the defending champions are expected to bounce back strong when action resumes at the CJH layout tomorrow.

Meanwhile, Ely Lagman and Bayani Tecson scored identical 30s to lead Summer Capital Golf Club-North to 110 and 206 total for a 22-point lead in Fil F.

Ed Montenegro and Manny Solis each added 25 points for Summer Capital-North, which leads Regent Travel Team, which had a 95-184, and Summer Capital Golf Club-East, which also had a 184 after a 94.

Kalinga Vice Gov. Sonny Mangaoang scored 26 as the Mountaineers had an 84 for a 167 and an 11-point lead in Am F. 

Apayao Gov. Elias Bulut, Jr. had 23, former Tabuk City mayor Camilo Lammawin and Gigi Jayme scored 18 and 17 points, respectively, for the Mountaineers.

The event is backed by Toyota, Adams Golf, Pacsports, Nike Golf, Empire Golf, Wilson and Rudy Project with Toyota offering a Vios car for a hole-in-one feat on designated holes.