Golf: PHL contingent start strong in Malaysian Ladies Am Open

Malaysia — Cyna Rodriguez, still feeling tired from the tough grind of the ICTSI Ladies Philippine Golf Tour inaugural over the weekend, showed no effects of fatigue once she reached the course, shooting a two-under-par 69 in the first round of the 30th Malaysian Ladies Amateur Open.
                  
Kelly Tan of Malaysia currently sits stop the leader board with a 67. Three ICTSI bets are breathing down her neck including Rodriguez and the pair of Princess Superal and Pauline del Rosario, who each shot 70 at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club, Tuesday.
                  
Rodriguez flourished in the front nine with easy back-to-back birdies on numbers 4 and 5 and another tap in on the eighth negated a bogey on the ninth for a 33.  After the turn, she slowed down with two birdies as against two bogeys for a 36 and that 69.
                  
Superal, the low amateur winner in the recent LPGT leg, was the first to notch that 70 as she teed off early.  Though she dropped one shot on the opening hole, she erased that with a string of birdies on numbers 3, 4 and 6.  She bogeyed the 15th to end on second.
                  
Later, del Rosario matched it with a five-birdie stint to offset two bogey mishaps.  The 14-year-old rising star from the ICTSI camp was delighted to have posted pretty numbers on the board.
                  
Local player Michelle Koh stood on fifth with an even 71.

One stroke back were Thailand’s Parinda Phokan and Annarat Thanapolboonyaras on 72's. Singapore’s Koh Sock-hwee had a 73, as did Thai Suvathee Chanachai, Aussie Ashley Ona and Malaysian Geneviene Rynn.

Sophia Chabon, the fourth member from ICTSI-PHL, made a 79. - AMD, GMA News