Magada, Lascuna share Orchard golf top view

Dasmarinas, Cavite — Benjie Magada and Antonio Lascuna smiled their way on top of the P1-million ICTSI-Orchard Golf Championship. The always smiling Magada produced a four-under-par 68 under hot and humid conditions for a two-day total 137 that enabled him to catch up with opening day leader Lascuna, who made a one-under-par 71 at midpoint level. Both stars have easily made the cut-off scored pegged at six-over-par 150 at The Orchard Golf Club’s par-72 Gary Player layout — the major site of the Johnnie Walker Super Tour in the late 90s. “This is a big surprise for me. Tony (Lascuna) didn’t do well I guess and that helped me to get even with him," said Magada one day after he made his second career hole-in-one at hole No. 5. Lascuna’s fear of not hitting too many fairways came to fore Thursday. While he flourished with an eagle and three birdies as against a lone bogey for a 32 at the turn, he stumbled heavily at the back nine. He missed on tough fairways on Nos. 13 and 14 that resulted into consecutive bogeys. At the 16th, an easy 350-yard par-four, he yielded two strokes after a double bogey mishap. “Like I told you (Wednesday), it is important to have a good, straight tee shot right into the fairway. Otherwise, it will be hard to recover because of the difficult pin placements and deep roughs around," said Lascuna. Lascuna, 39, ended with a birdie at the 18th, much to his delight, to keep the lead in the chase for P200,000 top prize in the Philippine Golf Tour’s (PGT) Orchard leg. Cassius Casas also had a one-under 71 to lurk behind by one at 138. At fourth spot with 140 each were the Bayron brothers, Jay and Rufino, after each turned in a three-under 69. Other notables that reached Friday’s final round are Mars Pucay (71-141), Elmer Salvador (72-142), Juvic Pagunsan (69-143), Angelo Que (74-146), Artemio Murakami (75-146), and lone foreigner Korean Choi Moon-sik (72-142). Art Arbole, meanwhile, took the driver seat in the amateur division as he churned out a one-under 71 for 144. He was one up against Jhonel Ababa (73-145) and two up over Dante Becierra (73-146). – JVP, Adrian Flores, GMANews.TV