Kim grabs lead with 18 holes left

MANILA, Philippines —  South Korea’s Ahyeon Kim stormed to the top with a flawless, bogey-free 67 entering the final round of the ICTSI Worldwide Link Philippine Ladies Masters yesterday at the Country Club in Sta. Rosa, Laguna.

Lone Filipina title contender Pauline del Rosario, meanwhile, stumbled in the last three holes to miss out on solo second after a 71 on a cloudy day here.

Rising from joint eighth place in the opening round, Kim rifled in five birdies on the front nine then proved steady on the back to card a searing five-under round in the KLPGA-sanctioned tourney held in partnership with the TLPGA and the LPGT.

Kim, ranked No. 190 in the KLPGA, birdied Nos. 1, 2, 4, 8 and 9 and never looked back by parring the entire back nine for a total of seven-under 137.

“I focused on making birdies accessible and that’s the difference today,” said Kim, who’s coming off an eighth-place finish in the Indonesia Women’s Open.

Kim remained in position to rule the 54-hole, $200,000 tourney as previous leader Eunjeong Seong tripped all the way to joint sixth with Del Rosario and Thai ace Pattharat Rattanawan with a 73 after a 67 in the first round for 140.