CHANELLE AVARICIO silenced a crowded title chase with an early eagle before leaning on her precision, patience and strong resolve to thwart Tiffany Lee’s blistering backside charge and capture the International Container Terminal Services Inc. South Pacific Classic by one in Davao City on Thursday.
In sweltering conditions at the South Pacific Golf Club, Avaricio delivered a closing three-under 69 for an eight-under 209 total, capping a gutsy performance in a fiercely contested 54-hole championship that demanded as much mental toughness as shot-making brilliance.
Avaricio’s early four-shot cushion evaporated with a costly miscue and Lee’s relentless charge and the two traded blows in a gripping finish that once again underscored the Ladies Philippine Golf Tour’s penchant for last-hole drama.
They each missed the green on the closing par-five 18th and settled for bogeys, allowing Avaricio to clinch a one-stroke victory worth P142,250.
Lee misjudged her pitch, sending the ball past the cup, then failed to get up and down from 12 feet-that effectively eased the pressure on Avaricio, who also missed her par putt from eight feet.
After winning by two strokes over Yvon Bisera at Pueblo de Oro last week, Lee settled for runner-up honors with a 70 for a 210 total worth P102,500.
‘I really played well at the front-one eagle and three birdies,’ said Avaricio, who had trouble recovering from the bunker on her first bogey and then missed the green on the final hole, leaving her pitch shot short before missing the putt.
‘But at the back, I didn’t make any birdies and instead bogeyed two of the par-5s. Overall, though, I think I played well,’ she added.
With the Apo Classic set to take center stage next week, Avaricio is already looking ahead to another opportunity to extend her winning run and claim the 11th victory of her career.
Mondilla storms ahead after firing 64
CLYDE MONDILLA is back where he has been so many times before-on top of the leaderboard and within reach of another Philippine Golf Tour title and in control of his own destiny.
Mondilla fired an eight-under 64 under preferred lies to storm from four shots down into the outright lead after the third round of the ICTSI South Pacific Classic also on Thursday, putting himself in prime position to end a title drought that has lingered since 2024.
‘I’ve been working on my iron and wedge play this week, making a few adjustments to fix the mistakes I made at Pueblo,’ said Mondilla in Filipino, one of the winningest players on the PGT whose last victory came two years ago at Caliraya Springs, when he defeated Angelo Que by three strokes.
The Bukidnon ace opened with four straight birdies, erased his deficit to catch halfway leader Lee Song at 13-under, then sustained the charge over the remaining holes to seize the solo lead at 16-under 200.
Standing in his way is Song, who has been knocking on the door of a breakthrough since topping the PGT Qualifying School in 2023.
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The Korean, who surged into the lead with rounds of 67 and 65, remained firmly in contention despite Mondilla’s spectacular charge, carding a 69 for a 201.