Bayron snares Riviera Classic title

JAY BAYRON rallied from two strokes down in regulation to forge a playoff and then won out in three holes of sudden death over Clyde Mondilla to rule the ICTSI Riviera Classic yesterday and win a second crown in as many weeks.

The 37-year-old Bayron, President Duterte’s former caddy at Apo Golf in Davao until the late 1990s, birdied the 18th hole to close out with a level par 71 and catch Mondilla at 280, before needing just two shots on the third playoff hole to win.

Mondilla, who carded a 73 in the final round, hit a wild hook off the first tee—the third playoff hole—and then conceded the hole, just like in match play, after his approach hit a tree and the ball going back to the thick rough. Bayron was safely on the green in two by this time.

“It was a hard-fought win,” said the soft-spoken Bayron in Filipino. “Obviously, I am very happy.”

A runner-up to American Berry Henson in the Philippine Open in 2011, the first of those two titles for Bayron came in the very site of that heart-rending defeat, as he ruled the $100,000 Aboitiz Invitational coming from behind at Wack Wack East last week.
With another P270,000, Bayron has bankrolled just a shade under P1 million for two weeks of brilliant play, which saw him shoot 69s in the middle two rounds and not play a single round over par in a course considered to be one of the toughest tests in the country.

The loss was galling for Mondilla, who had a six-under total after three days only for him to open up with two straight bogeys and drop a crucial shot on the 17th.

And with that, Bayron pounced on the opportunity as he birdied the 18th—after bogeying the hole in each of the first three rounds—to seal the playoff and gain a chance at winning back-to-back titles for the first time in his pro career.

Nicolas Paez, the long-hitting American who bungled a one-shot lead in the final round at Wack Wack, again had a disappointing final round effort and fell two shots off the playoff with a 74. He started the day just a shot off Mondilla.

Micah Shin, the American-Korean who held the first round lead, closed out with a 73 and, like Paez, was two off the final regulation round score.

Rookie Jobim Carlos, who lost to Mondilla at Eagle Ridge, shot a 70 and finished at 283, the last sub-par total yielded by the unforgiving ravine-laden, wind-raked layout south of Manila.

Elmer Salvador, Antonio Lascuña and Rolando Marabe tied at 284 after efforts of 68, 71 and 68, respectively, with Marvin Dumandan shooting a 67 and Rufino Bayron, the second round leader, firing a 76 for 286s that rounded out the top 10.