Shinichi Suzuki turned what had appeared to be a tight, long-drawn battle into a coronation walk, while Grace Quintanilla survived a late scare in a thrilling duel as the two emerged as contrasting champions of the NGAP Match Play Championship at Luisita Golf and Country Club in Tarlac on Saturday.
Suzuki broke away from top seed Rolando Bregente early and never looked back, cruising to an emphatic 8and7 victory in the men’s final and completing a dominant title run in the 36-hole finale.
Quintanilla, meanwhile, had to summon all her poise and resolve before escaping with a hard-earned 1-up victory over Precious Zaragosa in the ladies’ final, which went down to the final hole of the marathon showdown.
The contrasting finishes provided a fitting climax to a championship that tested the players’ endurance, shot-making and ability to handle pressure in the match-play format.
For Suzuki, the final became increasingly one-sided after a closely fought start. For Quintanilla, it remained a fight until the very end, with Zaragosa mounting a spirited late charge that nearly turned the match on its head.
The victory marked another major milestone for Quintanilla, an ace Cebuana who has quickly established herself as one of the country’s leading amateur players. It was her second major title after her breakthrough triumph in the Singapore Amateur Open last month, further strengthening her claim at the top of the national amateur ranks.
Suzuki yielded the opening hole of the scheduled 36-hole duel after a bogey but quickly erased the deficit, forcing the match back to all square on No. 5.
After they traded holes over the next two, Suzuki seized control with a birdie on No. 8 and a par on No. 9 to move two holes ahead.
The Manila Southwoods standout then turned the match into a rout, winning Nos. 11 and 12 to stretch his lead to four before stringing together three straight victories from No. 15.
Bregente managed to stem the bleeding by parring the tough par-3 17th, trimming the deficit to six, but Suzuki answered by birdieing No. 18 to take a commanding seven-hole advantage into the break.
Any hopes of a Bregente comeback briefly flickered when the top seed won Nos. 1 and 4 at the resumption of play.
But Suzuki immediately restored order, winning No. 4 and then Nos. 7 and 8 to storm eight holes ahead and put the championship virtually beyond reach.
With victory within sight, Suzuki wisely traded holes over the next three, refusing to give Bregente any opening as he closed out the lopsided triumph.
The ladies’ final was an entirely different story.
Quintanilla appeared headed for a relatively comfortable finish after building a three-hole cushion with only three holes remaining. But Zaragosa refused to concede and produced a dramatic late surge that forced the Cebuana to close out the match under intense pressure.
Quintanilla started strongly, taking two of the first three holes, but Zaragosa quickly answered by winning Nos. 4 and 6.
Quintanilla regained the upper hand with a par on No. 8 and then tried to pull away heading into the break after winning Nos. 11 and 13.
Zaragosa, however, continued to hang around.
The Davaoeña won Nos. 15 and 17 to cut the deficit to just one hole at intermission, ensuring that the second 18 would remain a wide-open contest.
Quintanilla regained the initiative early in the afternoon when Zaragosa stumbled to a bogey on the opening hole, but the latter countered by taking No. 7.
That only prompted another response from Quintanilla, who won Nos. 8 and 10 to rebuild a three-hole cushion.
Zaragosa again refused to go away, taking the 11th hole, but Quintanilla delivered one of the crucial blows of the match on the 31st hole, the par-3 13th, where she made birdie to restore her three-hole advantage with just five holes left.
With the match apparently slipping away, Zaragosa produced one last remarkable charge.
She won the par-5 16th with a par, then followed with a birdie on the 17th to win back-to-back holes and suddenly move within one with only the final hole remaining.
The comeback, however, stopped there.
Quintanilla kept her composure and matched Zaragosa’s par on the last hole, doing exactly what she needed to do to preserve her slender lead and escape with the championship.
Meanwhile, Ralph Batican secured third place in the men’s division with a 2and1 victory over Emilio Hernandez, while Lisa Sarines likewise claimed the ladies’ bronze after beating Nicole Gan by the same 2and1 scoreline.