INQUIRER Sports

CANLUBANG, Laguna ? Juvic Pagunsan drained a five-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to cap a wire-to-wire victory Friday in the season-ending Canlubang leg of the ICTSI-Philippine Golf Tour.

The 31-year-old former Asian Tour Rookie of the Year finished with a 1-under-par 71 for a 54-hole total of 207 and a three-stroke victory over Angelo Que and Elmer Salvador at the North course here.

Pagunsan, the top Filipino in the Asian Tour Order of Merit at No. 16 with $182,815 (about P8.44 million) in earnings, landed a pitching wedge approach from 125 yards pin-high on the right side of the cup before calmly rolling in the putt to break par for the third time.

It was the second win in the circuit this season for Pagunsan, who also went all the way at the Apo leg in Davao last July over Artemio Murakami and Jerome Delariarte.

?It may have looked easy (three straight under-par rounds), but it definitely was not,? said Pagunsan, who had 68s in the first two days.

He won the P200,000 top prize.

Reigning RP Open champion Que fashioned out a second straight 68 and then watched Salvador in the flight behind miss a two-foot birdie putt on the 18th that resulted in a 72 and left them tied for second at 210.

That missed putt was worth P27,500 for Salvador, who won the Order of Merit title with two wins and a handful of Top 10 finishes. He settled for P92,500 like Que.

But he received a P50,000 bonus for topping the OOM race from port magnate Ricky Razon, the award rites? guest of honor.

Jay Bayron settled for a 70 and a fourth-place tie with Richard Sinfuego (71) at 211.

Danny Zarate fired a 69 and obscure Ricky Marcelo shot a 72 to finish at 214.