Mars Pucay produced a spectacular display to propel the Philippines into the third round lead at the Fortis International Challenge – the Asian qualifier for November’s Omega Mission Hills World Cup.
Playing alongside Angelo Que, Pucay hit seven birdies in the fourball better ball format as the Filipinos combined for an eight-under-par 64 to overhaul overnight leader Korea at Kota Permai Golf and Country Club.
Bae Sang-moon and Kim Hyung-tae slipped one stroke back after a 67 while Nigeria’s Oyebanji Gboyega and Odoh Andrew Oche kept their Omega Mission Hills World Cup dreams alive by staying in third place with also a 67.
With the top three teams earning tickets to China, Italy, represented by Edoardo and Francesco Molinari, and Singaporean duo Lam Chih Bing and Mardan Mamat maintained their aspirations by lying in tied fourth place after matching 67s, one behind the Nigerians.
Danny Chia and Iain Steel combined for a 66 to keep Malaysia’s slim hopes alive as they improved to tied sixth place and three shots off the World Cup mark.
Que, who is chasing a first World Cup appearance, hailed Pucay for taking them to the top of the leaderboard on 15-under-par 201. “I worked only in three or four holes. It was all Mars today. His irons were really good and he hit like 10 shots within six feet,” said Que, who is a two-time Asian Tour champion.
“I made par on the fourth hole after he found water and contributed an eagle on the seventh hole and one more par on 16 when he was in trouble. I don’t feel tired at all. I’m sure he’s tired as he worked all day!”
Pucay was over the moon as he relished a return to Kota Permai, where he also qualified for the World Cup in 1999 with Felix Casas. He knows they have a great chance to qualify for China but warned that the race for the top-three finish was far from over.
“It’s too early to think about China. When you’re holding the lead, there’s always pressure. We’re appreciating each other and not blaming anyone. We are both trying our best to make birdies and pars. We respect each other so much and we trust each other. That has been the key this week,” he said.
Korea dropped a bogey on the 11th hole and Kim conceded they were starting to feel the pressure after leading the first two rounds. “We hit a bogey on 11 and we felt nervous. We still have a chance. I think if we can shoot even par in the foursomes tomorrow we will be in China. But we have to play it safe and find our rhythm on the back nine,” said Kim, who contributed six birdies on the team’s card.
The unheralded Nigerians stayed on course for a dream ticket to the World Cup and have been encouraged by numerous text messages from back home. “We’ve received a lot of support from friends who are telling us to keep doing the same thing and that’s what we plan to do,” said Gboyega.
Oche, the country’s leading player, got the team off to a strong start with a chip-in eagle on the first and contributed three more birdies while his partner sank two birdies against one bogey.
“We played very well, we were solid. We didn’t finish too strongly but we’ll take the round. We’ll stick to our game plan and if we can keep to the same spirit, we’ll be fine. It’s possible to catch the leaders, they are still within reach,” said Oche.
For a third straight day, the Italians were ruing their luck on the greens but the Molinari brothers believe their fortune will turn for the better in Sunday’s foursomes.
“We are playing well but unfortunately we are not holing many putts. But foursomes is our best format and hopefully we can shoot low tomorrow. We just have to stay patient. Out of four days, sooner or later the putts will drop,” said Francesco.
Mardan contributed five birdies for Singapore but it was Lam’s lone birdie at the last hole which kept them on track. Lam said: “My partner did all the work. I couldn’t make putts until the last. I was struggling out there and he carried me.”
Malaysia’s hopes of a first World Cup appearance in seven years will require a big push in Sunday’s final round. “We’ve got the door slightly open and we have to kick it down. I think we’ll need to shoot 66. We have to do that as we can’t hope for everybody to come back to us. We’re improving everyday but we dug ourselves in a big hole on the first day (with a 73) but it’s not impossible,” said Steel.
Third round scores
201 – Philippines (Angelo Que, Mars Pucay) 67-70-64
202 – Korea (Bae Sang-moon, Kim Hyung-tae) 63-72-67
205 – Nigeria (Oyebanji Gboyega, Odoh Andrew Oche) 69-69-67
206 – Singapore (Mardan Mamat, Lam Chih Bing) 66-73-67
206 – Italy (Francesco Molinari, Edoardo Molinari) 68-71-67
208 – Malaysia Iain Steel, Danny Chia) 73-69-66
208 – Hong Kong (Derek Fung, David Freeman) 66-78-64
210 – Myanmar (Soe Kyaw Naing, Zaw Zaw Latt) 70-69-71
210 – Pakistan (Muhammad Shabbir, Muhammad Munir) 68-77-65
210 – Uganda (Deo Akope, Godfrey Mande) 73-74-63
211 – Indonesia (Junaedi Ibrahim, Sarmilih) 71-72-68
211 – Swaziland (Robbie Wesselo, Meshack Zwane) 71-73-67
212 – Kenya (Dismas Indiza, Anil Shah) 70-71-71
213 – Sri Lanka (Anura Rohana, Lalith Kumara) 72-72-69
218 – Bangladesh (Siddiqur Rahman, Jibon Ali) 72-73-73
218 – Ghana (Emos Korblah, Victor Bravemensah) 67-79-72
220 – Brunei (Pengiran Hassanal, Faiz Damit) 70-78-72
224 – Nepal (Deepak Thapa Magar, Deepak Neupane) 72-77-75
Note: Fourball used in first and third rounds, Foursomes (alternate shot) used in the Second and final founds.
