Bisera tightens grip, masters par-5s for 3-shot lead

CABANATUAN City – Yvon Bisera sustained her blistering form and tightened her grip on the ICTSI Lakewood Championship, firing a second straight 69 to seize a three-shot lead over Lois Kaye Go after 36 holes here Wednesday.

Displaying a complete game – distance, control and touch under another sweltering sky – Bisera birdied all but one of the Lakewood Golf and Country Club course’s long holes over two rounds, underscoring a dominant blend of firepower and finesse that has left her closest pursuers scrambling to keep up.

With a six-under 138 aggregate, Bisera heads into the final round of the PHP 1.2 million championship brimming with confidence.

Her three-shot cushion, combined with her current form and the course’s generous fairways and receptive greens, positions her strongly for a wire-to-wire victory.

She could have stretched her lead further if not for a string of missed birdie looks early in her round, but her steady scrambling kept the momentum intact.

“Sa front nine marami birdie chances sa par-4s pero di pumapasok.

Pero sa back nine, may 5 save pars ako galing sa labas ng green,” said Bisera, who repeatedly set herself up with makeable opportunities, particularly on the par-5s at Nos. 4, 8 and 14.

Go mounted the day’s strongest challenge.

After opening with a 73, she rebounded with a tournament-best 68, overcoming a shaky start with a five-birdie surge to climb to 141, three shots behind Bisera and firmly in contention for the top PHP 146,400 purse of the 54-hole kickoff leg of the Ladies Philippine Golf Tour.

“I struck the ball much better today – I drove it well, hit it close on several holes, and was able to convert,” said Go.

“My wedge game was sharp, which gave me plenty of birdie opportunities.

That was the biggest difference from yesterday.”

Sarah Ababa, who threatened to stay within striking distance with a five-birdie, one-bogey run through 13 holes, faltered with a costly double bogey on the par-5 14th and another bogey on 17.

She settled for a 71 and a 142 total, slipping to solo third.

Bisera welcomes the head-to-head battle with Go, recalling their previous final-round pairing.

“We played before in the final round, at Valley I think, but this will be exciting,” she said, looking ahead to a decisive closing stretch.

Martina Miñoza carded a second straight 72 for fourth at 144, defending champion Tiffany Lee showed flashes of a rally but couldn’t sustain it, carding a 72 for a 145 total, seven shots off the lead.

Harmie Constantino recovered from an early stumble with three straight birdies but closed with back-to-back bogeys to finish with a 73 and share fifth with Lee. Velinda Castil surged with a 69 to tie Daniella Uy at seventh with 146, while Kayla Nocum faltered with a 74 for a 147 and Mafy Singson pooled a 148 after a 74 in a tie with Seoyun Kim, who limped with a 76 after a 72.

But all eyes remain on Bisera, whose red-hot ball-striking and clinical dismantling of the par-5s have put her within 18 holes of opening the new season of the circuit organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc. in emphatic, wire-to-wire fashion.