Bianca Pagdanganan unleashed another trademark final-round charge, firing a four-under 68 to salvage a joint 10th-place finish in the Smoky Mountain Championship at Green Meadow Country Club in Alcoa, Tennessee on Saturday (Sunday Manila time).
More importantly, the strong finish gave the big-hitting Filipina a timely boost heading into her next Epson Tour campaign, with an LPGA Tour stop providing an added opportunity to sharpen her game against the world’s best before she returns to the developmental circuit later this month.
Pagdanganan, backed by ICTSI, started the final round seven strokes off the lead and never seriously threatened the championship. But her closing 68, highlighted by five birdies, underscored her ability to make a late charge and gave her another Top-10 result on the Epson Tour.
She birdied three of her first eight holes to move from joint 19th after two rounds into the Top 10 group. A bogey on No. 14 briefly stalled her momentum, but she responded with birdies on Nos. 15 and 18 to secure her share of 10th.
Meanwhile, Mirabel Ting outlasted Rachel Kuehn in a playoff after both finished at 15-under 201. The dup shot identical 67s to force sudden death after second-round leader Anne Chen, who held a two-shot advantage going into the final round, slipped to a 71.
Ting recovered from a bogey on No. 13 with back-to-back birdies on Nos. 14 and 15, while Kuehn fashioned a bogey-free 34-33 card capped by a birdie on No. 16.
Ting then clinched her first Epson Tour title on the opening playoff hole at No. 18. Her drive clipped a tree but took a fortunate bounce into the fairway, from where she struck a 7-iron from 155 yards to within three feet and converted the birdie for the victory.
For Pagdanganan, however, the focus now shifts to an even bigger test – and a potentially valuable tune-up for the next stretch of her Epson Tour campaign.
She is entered in the Standard Portland Classic, an LPGA Tour event set August 13-16 at the Columbia Edgewater Country Club in Portland, Oregon, where she will line up alongside fellow ICTSI mainstay and two-time major champion Yuka Saso.
The LPGA stint comes at an ideal time for Pagdanganan, giving her a chance to test her form against elite competition and fine-tune her game before returning to Epson Tour action. Her next Epson Tour stop is the Wildhorse Golf Classic, scheduled August 21-23 in Pendleton, Oregon.
Pagdanganan will be looking to carry the confidence from her Smoky Mountain Top 10 – and the lessons from her LPGA test – into that event as she seeks a stronger run on the Epson Tour.
Meanwhile, Pauline del Rosario hit two backside birdies to card a second straight 71 and tie for 29th at 6-under 210, while Dottie Ardina birdied the final two holes to close with a 70 and share 36th at 5-under 211.