Princess Superal put on a swashbuckling performance and overtook world No. 4 Lydia Ko and erstwhile leader and former world No. 1 So Yeon Ryu with a 71 yesterday and a resilient Pauline del Rosario got back into the scoring act as the duo helped put the Philippines back in the hunt in the second round of the Asia Pacific Cup in Jakarta.
Despite a missed birdie chance on the closing par-5 hole, the Philippines moved into strong contention in team play with a second straight 141 for a six-under 282 total, rallying from nine down to within three as Team Korea 2 slowed down with a 147 for a 279 and Team Korea 1 battled back with a 138 to seize solo second at 281.
That set the stage for a wild finish at the wind-raked Pondok Indah Golf Course with the winner in the inaugural 54-hole championship going home with a whopping $500,000 top prize.
But Superal is all focused on what could be a record $100,000 top prize in individual race with the diminutive but talented shotmaker putting herself on top of the elite field that features a couple of multi-major winners who are in the current world Top 10 rankings with a big bounce back from a frontside 37 with two birdies in the last six to salvage a 71.
That included a brilliant putt from outside the green on No. 13 that tied her with Ko for the lead and a long bending stroke on the 16th that got her past the Kiwi ace, who fumbled with an unlikely bogey from just about two feet on No. 15 in a flight ahead.
“While I made more putts today (yesterday) than in the first round, I hit some pretty good iron shots and a lot of greens,” said Superal, who finished with 29 putts, five more than in her opening solid 66.
While her recent campaign in the Thailand Ladies PGA and Thailand Women’s PGA has been marred by late-round meltdowns, including a playoff loss and a slide outside of the Top 10 after leading the way, long-time swing coach and mentor Bong Lopez believes his multi-titled ward is ready for her biggest test.
“Cess has been waiting for this kind of a chance, eager to prove her worth against some of the world’s best players. I believe she’ll hold up, she has trained hard for this,” said Lopez.
The ICTSI-backed aces will take on Ko and Momoka Kobori of New Zealand in the final group with the two Korean teams battling it out in a flight ahead.
“We’ll just do what we have been doing in the first two days and hopefully, we’ll be able to shoot under-par again, so we’ll have a chance (to win),” added Superal, whose partnership with del Rosario dates back to their amateur days, the last in the Queen Sirikit Cup in Korea in 2016.
Counting her bogey-free 66 Thursday, the 25-year-old Superal, who won here in the 2015 edition of the Pondok Indah Junior Championship, assembled a 137, now one stroke ahead of Ko, who salvaged a 72 in soft, blustery conditions after matching the former’s opening six-under card, for a 138.
