By IANS
Manila : India’s Arjun Singh courted disaster at the very end with a triple bogey and a bogey in last three holes while local star Angelo Que lifted the Philippine Open golf title.
Arjun slipped from a top-10 placing to a tied 22nd as the event came to an end Sunday at the Wack Wack Golf and Country Club. He was three-under through 15 and was lying ninth when he triple bogeyed the par-4 16th and fell dramatically. Reeling under the disappointment he ended dropping one more shot on the 18th to finish with a 73 and a total of one-under 287.
Arjun started with a bogey on first but then birdied the second and fourth. A bogey on par-3 seventh saw him turn in even par. Then he birdied the 11th, 13th and 14th before dropping four shots on last three holes.
Himmat Rai, the only other Indian to make the cut, shot a 79 with three birdies, six bogeys and two double bogeys and ended 18-over 306 in 61st place.
Que, who recently won a place into the British Open, held off a strong challenge from Malaysian Danny Chia and Australian Gavin Flint in the closing stages to win by one shot and give the tournament a home winner for the second year in a row.
The Filipino shot 73 and finished with five-under 283 while Chia (66) starting eight shots behind Que finished the tournament at four-under 284.
Que, the overnight leader, had a nervous start with two birdies and three bogeys on the front nine. His playing partners in lead group fared no better as Flint went through in even par and Kodai Ichihara of Japan was three over for the stretch.
Que faced with a target of four-under stuttered with a bogey on 11th but recovered with birdies on 12th and 14th to go to six-under. He played the last four holes gingerly and dropped a shot on 17th, but he managed to stay one ahead.
The 29-year-old Manila-based Que claimed his second success on the Asian Tour at the challenging. It was a double celebration for the golfer as his wife Tracy is also expecting their first baby.
As a result of the win, Que took home the top prize of $47,550 and rose to 20th place on the Asian Tour’s Order of Merit. “I’m out of words. To win here at the Philippine Open is like a dream come true for me,” said Que.
“I’m feeling overjoyed. I get to play in the HSBC Champions and I get to pick my tournaments this year since I’ve sealed my card for the next two years. My wife Tracy is seven weeks pregnant so I will get to spend more time with her as a result of this win,” said Que.
On the final hole, Que needing a par to win calmly struck a 20-foot chip at the edge of the green, which left the ball inches away for a simple tap in for par and the win.
His first win was the 2004 Carlsberg Masters Vietnam and this year he had previously sealed his spot at the British Open alongside Chia during the qualifiers in Singapore last week.
Last year’s winner Frankie Minoza carded a 71 and claimed tied 13th spot for a 290 total.
Making it a great week for the Philippines was Anthony Lascuna (73) who shared the fourth place with Mardan Mamat (73) at two-under 286.