Dizon loses in playoff; Malixi rallies to 2nd

MANILA, Philippines – Sam Dizon battled back from four down to force a playoff with a 71 but lost to Sahana Mantha on the fourth extra hole in the Vaugh Taylor Championship in South Carolina.

Meanwhile, Rianna Malixi missed completing a stirring fightback from eight down with a fiery 66, falling short by one to Alice Zhao in the KPMG Stacy Lewis Junior All-Star Invitational in Arizona Thursday (Friday, Manila time).

Despite the heartbreaking results, Dizon and Malixi provided the spark and buzz to the twin American Junior Golf Association events as they mounted final round rallies that fueled hopes for the ICTSI-backed Filipinas following so-so outputs in the first two rounds of the 54-hole tournaments.

Dizon hit two birdies at the frontside of the Mount Vintage Golf Club course in North Augusta to threaten a faltering Clairey Lin, who stayed in control by four after 36 holes but cracked when the going got tough in the final round. The Californian fumbled with a four-over card after 11 holes, enabling Dizon and Mantha, who also went two-under after 13 holes, to draw level at three-over overall.

As Lin blew it all with three more bogeys in the last five holes, Dizon yielded the lead with a bogey on the 16th but regained a share of it as Mantha dropped a stroke on No. 17, leading to sudden death after both assembled 220s.

They parred the first three playoff holes but Mantha hit regulation par on the fourth which Dizon had failed to match, allowing the former to snatch the victory.

In Arizona, Malixi missed putting herself in early contention with an opening 80 and stayed eight shots behind Alice Zhao despite a second round 72 at the Blessings Golf Club course in Fayetteville.

But the two-time AJGA champion birdied three of the first five holes in the final round and moved within two as Zhao fumbled with a frontside 39. But as Malixi pressed her bid with three straight birdies from No. 13, Zhao recovered three flights behind, birdying Nos. 10 and 15 and bucking a last-hole mishap to salvage a 74 for a 217.

Malixi had a couple of birdie chances in the last three holes but failed to convert them, settling for runner-up honors with a 218.

First day leader Angela Zhang placed third with a 219 after a 73.

Next up for Dizon, who is priming up for next month’s US Girls’ Junior in Kentucky, is the Insperity Invitational/Patrick Reed AJGA Junior Championship on June 21-23 in Texas while Malixi faces a crack field in the Rolex Girls Junior Championship on June 20-23 in Florida.