Backside assault lifts Jaraula to 5-shot win

ANTIPOLO—Hounded by a throng of pursuers in a rousing frontside battle, Reymon Jaraula repelled them with a decisive birdie-eagle feat from No. 10 then lived through a wobbly finish to pound out a 71 and a fivestroke victory over Lloyd Go and Clyde Mondilla in the ICTSI Valley Golf Challenge here on Friday.

Mondilla did match Jaraula’s exploits on Nos. 10 and 11 to wrest solo second but failed to gain any stroke in the stretch with a spate of pars marred by a couple of late bogeys, his drive to end a long title drought hampered by a missed birdie putt from four feet on par-4 No. 9 of Valley South.

In contrast, Jaraula fueled his own bid with a big par-save on the same hole, punching a shot from the trees to the front of the green then chipping way past the sloping hole. But he returned a pressure-packed putt from six feet, drawing subdued applause from the gallery, that, however, was left in virtual shock as Mondilla blew his birdie try from close range.

Averting a possible 2-shot swing, Jaraula kept his overnight two-stroke lead intact over Alido while holding off the charges of Korean Chon Koo Kang, Japanese Ueda Atsushi, Jhonnel

Ababa, Go and Mondilla in a round that started in a shaft of sunlight, played through dark skies midway through before ending in sweltering conditions at mid-noon.

The Del Monte ace then pulled away by 5 with that big backside blast, coupled with Alido’s uncharacteristic doublebogeys on Nos. 12 and 13, that not even his miscues on Nos. 16 and 18 could derail his claim to a second Philippine Golf Tour crown.

“There was pressure from the start – I had a couple of mishits and bogeyed the first two holes. But I told myself to just relax and try to rebound at the back nine,” said Jaraula in Filipino.

“But I regained my confidence after saving par on No. 9 then made a birdieeagle start at the back,” added Jaraula, whose 10-under 278 total netted him P360,000, four years after hitting paydirt with a playoff victory over Tony Lascuña at Pueblo de Oro.

Go rallied with a 69 to tie Mondilla, who scrambled for a 72, at second at 283 and received P186,000 each while Aidric Chan took the low amateur honors with a day-best 66 as he fashioned out a strong joint fourth place finish with recent Villamor Philippine Masters winner Ababa, who also closed out with 72, at 284.