Backside blitz propels Ababa to the top

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Sarah Ababa edged closer to clinching her second Ladies Philippine Golf Tour victory this season with a blistering two-under 68, pulling ahead of erstwhile co-leader Chihiro Ikeda after 36 holes in the ICTSI Iloilo Golf Challenge here on Wednesday.

The Davaoeña veteran delivered her round in spectacular style. Despite starting one stroke behind a group of four leaders on another sweltering day at the Iloilo Golf and Country Club, she faced an early setback with a double bogey on the second hole.

However, Ababa’s experience and determination shone through as she recovered with a birdie on the par-3 fifth hole.

While many of her competitors faltered on the challenging back nine of the par-70 course, Ababa stayed composed and hit consecutive birdies from No. 12, followed by another on the last hole to cap off a solid back nine of 31.

This pushed her to a 141 aggregate, just a stroke ahead of Ikeda, who matched par 70 for a 142.

Ababa’s form has been elusive in recent LPGT tournaments, but she now looks in control while eyeing a follow-up to her two-stroke victory over Mafy Singson at Apo last March.

The turning point for Ababa came on the greens, crediting her father, former Tour player Edgar, who served as her caddie.

While acknowledging that his presence adds pressure, she emphasized that it also helped her focus.

“My putting clicked, and I played more relaxed with my father on the bag,” said Ababa in Filipino. “There’s pressure when I miss shots or putts because he gets upset, but I turned that into a positive by improving on my mistakes.”

Heading into the final round against Ikeda and Princess Superal, Ababa isn’t concerned about her flightmates.

“I’m not thinking about who I’m paired with. I’ll just enjoy it and stick to our game plan,” said Ababa, who finished third at Forest Hills after struggling to joint ninth at Splendido Taal.

Meanwhile, Ikeda, who co-led after the first round alongside Mikha Fortuna, Gretchen Villacencio and Chanelle Avaricio, salvaged a 70 despite a bogey on the 14th and remained optimistic about her chances to break her title drought, which has lingered for some time.

“I’ll just need to play steady tomorrow and hopefully go under par,” said Ikeda, noting that her iron play and putting have kept her in contention in the 54-hole P1 million championship organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc.

Four strokes back at 145, Superal also remained hopeful of her title chances, focusing on her ball positioning and accuracy.

“Ball placement will be key. I need to set up birdie chances or at least secure pars,” she said, adding that her driving has improved, though her putting remains a concern after finishing with two three-putts on each nine.

Behind them, Villacencio, who took the runner-up spot at Forest Hills, shot a 74 to sit at fourth place with 146, while Avaricio struggled with three early bogeys and finished with a birdie-less round of 75, dropping to fifth at 147.

Fortuna also fumbled with a 77, falling to joint sixth with Kayla Nocum (74) at 149. Harmie Constantino and Mafy Singson carded 76 and 78, respectively, for a share of eighth at 151.

Daniella Uy slipped with a 78 to 152, while Jiwon Lee hardly recovered from a disastrous first round 79 with a 75 for a 154, tied with Pamela Mariano (74) and Marvi Monsalve (79) at 11th.