Del Rosario rallies to win ICTSI Bacolod Golf Challenge

BACOLOD CITY – Pauline del Rosario staged one of the most remarkable comebacks in Ladies Philippine Golf Tour history, rallying from six strokes down to stun Seo Yun Kim with a fiery closing 66 on Thursday.

Del Rosario birdied Nos. 15 and 16 to cap her late charge, rattling Kim’s composure as the Korean faltered after dominating the first 36 holes.

Kim, who shot rounds of 66 and 68, stumbled to a birdie-less 73 in the final round.

That seven-shot swing gave del Rosario a one-stroke victory at 206 at the ICTSI Bacolod Golf Challenge at the Bacolod Golf and Country Club.

“It feels good to win again, but I don’t think it has fully sunk in yet,” del Rosario said. “I was struggling with my game a lot.”

Her last LPGT win came at Caliraya Springs in 2023, following a rookie campaign in 2017 when she claimed four victories and the Order of Merit crown.

That same year, she also became the first Filipina to win on the LPGA Tour of Taiwan.

The Bacolod win was a meaningful milestone in her comeback after underwhelming Epson Tour stints.

She admitted arriving with no expectations after being ill a week prior.

“I honestly just came in with a game plan of keeping it on the fairway and on the green,” she said. “I’ve been working on a lot of techniques with my coach, Carito Villaroman, so I didn’t expect to place near the top this week.”

Del Rosario opened with a frontside 34, carding two birdies against a bogey as Kim dropped shots on Nos. 1 and 9 to cut the lead to three.

She then birdied the par-3 10th and followed with clutch birdies on Nos. 15 and 16 to draw level.

Kim bogeyed the 17th, handing del Rosario the lead she protected with a par on the 18th.

She two-putted from 45 feet while Kim missed her 30-foot birdie try that would have forced a playoff.

Kim settled for second at 207, her seventh career runner-up finish on the tour.

Defending champion Daniella Uy fired a 69 to place third at 209.

Florence Bisera and Sarah Ababa tied for fourth at 211 after posting 71s.

Mafy Singson carded a 69 to finish tied for sixth at 212 with Lois Kaye Go, who shot 71.

Tiffany Lee’s even-par 70 secured eighth at 214, while Chihiro Ikeda and Kayla Nocum both shot 68s to tie for ninth at 216.

“My putting really clicked in the last two days,” del Rosario said. “I stayed patient even after shooting three-over in the first round. Nothing was dropping, but yesterday they did and today I believed they would.”

The victory, worth PHP 90,000, was del Rosario’s first outside Luzon.

“This is my first time to play outside Luzon, ever in my life,” she said. “The course is more traditional and tree-lined. It’s shorter, but the greens are tough.”

With her confidence restored, del Rosario’s win could spark a strong resurgence on tour.