Korean Kim hangs on to slim DHL Am golf lead

MANILA, Philippines— Kim In-jae, the South Korean frontrunner in the first round whose father wants him to be known by his American name Brian Kim, fired nine birdies in a 4-under-par 68 yesterday to keep his one-shot lead over defending champion Rupert Zaragosa halfway through the 20th WWWExpress-DHL RVF Amateur Golf Championship at tree-lined Canlubang North in Laguna.

Kim fired six of those birdies on the front nine against a lone bogey but dropped three straight shots from the 11th and just managed to stay ahead of the pint-sized Zaragosa with a 36-hole 138 aggregate.

Zaragosa, the freshman at Lyceum who won this event in come-from-behind style over Andres Saldaña last year, had a bogey-less 68 to remain in solid contention for a rare repeat.

“It was a great round except for the bogeys at the back,” said Kim, who is gunning for   a second big tournament win over the same course after ruling the 2012 Canlubang Open.

But he will have to contend with the talented Zaragosa in the last two rounds, with the latter having the advantage because of his familiarity with the wind-swept course he calls home.

Park Min-ung, the former Philippine Junior champion, was two strokes behind at 140 after a 69 with national pool member Justin Quiban lurking another two shots back with a 69 highlighted by an eagle.

A Korean also set the pace at the start of the 54-hole women’s division.

Choi Ve-rim gunned down seven birdies in a 67 for a five-shot lead over a badly outclassed local field led by Bianca Pagdanganan and Felicia Medalla.

Annika Cedo and Harmie Constantino, both junior standouts, fired 74s and stood seven shots off the pace.

World junior campaigner Raymart Tolentino shot a 69 and caught Korea’s Ji Hyok-chung at 146. Ji fired a 70 even as GJ Katigbak assembled a level 72 for 147 with Kristopher Arevalo shooting a 69 for 148. Musong R. Castillo