Backnine blitz puts Shin back in command, but Tabuena lurks

STA. Rosa, Laguna – Micah Shin proved once more why patience and resilience are priceless at The Country Club.

On a course kept in pristine condition year-round – its manicured fairways, firm approaches, and slick, true greens maintained to international standards – Shin authored another composed yet commanding performance, turning back a mid-round challenge to seize control heading into the final day of the PHP6.5 million championship honoring ICTSI founder Don Pocholo Razon.

In an eerie echo of his stirring backside charge on Wednesday, Shin once more flipped the script on moving day. After seeing a once-commanding lead evaporate amid a flurry of charges on a near-perfectly conditioned layout, he birdied four of the first six holes on the back nine, reasserting dominance and stretching his lead to four strokes despite a steady 72 for a 214 total.

For a stretch, the leaderboard resembled musical chairs – typical at TCC, where consistency and true pace reward bold play, but a single lapse can prove costly. Carl Corpus briefly surged to the forefront with an eagle on the par-5 10th for a running two-under card, while multiple players crowded into a five-way tussle as the course continued to offer both opportunity and peril in equal measure.

But Shin, unfazed by the heat, swirling winds, and rising pressure, leaned on crisp driving, precise iron play, and steady putting to dominate the course’s exacting finishing holes. His closing 33 – one better than his second-round finish that propelled him to the lead – was a rare feat under such demanding conditions and effectively separated him from the pack.

The performance revived memories of Shin’s breakthrough victory at TCC in 2018, when he denied Miguel Tabuena a back-to-back title. Now, eight years later, the rivalry has been renewed – with a fresh narrative.

Tabuena, the 2017 champion, mounted a gritty charge of his own to secure solo second at 218 after a second straight 73. Shaking off an uncharacteristic front-nine 40, he rallied with a solid 33 at the back, highlighted by a rare birdie on the 18th – proof that he remains very much a threat for the top PHP2.2 million purse.

“I wasn’t hitting it as good as the first two rounds, but I tried not to lose shots and just maintain,” said Shin, fully aware that the final 18 holes demand another level. “I still need to play well tomorrow. Miguel is just four shots back.”

“Playing this event, they always set it up to play very, very difficult, and to score just around level par is good already. The course is in great shape,” said Tabuena, who struggled with bogeys in the first four holes.

“My game is not quite there yet, but it’s enough to compete. I’m just really glad I have a chance coming into the last day,” said the Asian Tour International Series Philippines winner last year.

While Shin holds a four-stroke cushion, history – and TCC itself – suggests nothing is guaranteed. The course’s character changes with every swirl of wind, capable of yielding low scores one moment and punishing mistakes the next.

“I don’t really care if I’m in the lead or not,” said Shin. “It was really windy today, and around the greens here is pretty tough. I just have to keep my shots in the fairways and greens and try to make it as easy as possible.”

Behind the frontrunners, Clyde Mondilla stood at third at 220 after a roller-coaster 75, six strokes off the pace but still within striking distance on a layout where momentum can shift quickly. Corpus slipped to a share of fourth at 221 alongside two-time champion Guido van der Valk, whose bid faltered with a 76.

Corpus’ round unraveled late despite early promise. After eagling No. 10, he bogeyed the next hole for the second straight day, dropped two more shots on No. 13, briefly revived hopes with a birdie on No. 14, then closed with a costly double-bogey to fall seven shots behind Shin.

Van der Valk, meanwhile, briefly joined the lead following a birdie on the 10th but stumbled with a bogey on the next and a double on No. 16, opening the door for Shin’s surge and Tabuena’s steady pursuit.

Jaehyun Jung carded a 77 to slip to 222, while Keanu Jahns rebounded impressively from a disastrous 78 with a 72 – matching the day’s best – for a 223. Three-time champion Angelo Que struggled to a 78 and fell back to 227, all but ending his bid for a record-breaking crown.

As the championship heads into its final act, the stage is set on one of the country’s finest tests of golf – immaculately prepared, relentlessly fair, and brutally honest. Shin leads, Tabuena stalks, and the rest remain hopeful, knowing all too well that at TCC, no lead is ever truly safe.