Lascuña sustains fiery form, arranges title clash with Jahns

Antonio Lascuna celebrates his 19th hole victory over Angelo Que. He next faces Gerald Rosales in the third round. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Antonio Lascuña didn’t get to see the 16th hole in showing two veterans the door on Thursday as the 52-year-old who has come from heartbreaks in the last three stroke play legs of the Philippine Golf Tour (PGT) gets a chance for his first title of the year after making the finals of the ICTSI Match Play Villamor Championship.

The four-time Order of Merit winner eliminated Gerald Rosales in the quarterfinals in the morning, 4&3, before returning at high noon—under strength-sapping heat—to bundle out the long-hitting, former Philippine Open champion Clyde Mondilla, 5&3.

“I am so exhausted,” Lascuña said after using strong starts to dispose of his formidable foes and arrange a title clash with Filipino-German Keanu Jahns, who ousted former national champion LJ Go, 2&1, in the other semifinal. “But I still have enough left [for the finals].”

Jahns, the 24th seed who upset No. 1 Guido Van Der Valk in the quarterfinals, will also be looking for his first title as a pro. He finished second twice on the PGT, the last coming at Apo in 2019 when he checked in three strokes behind Lascuña.

Harmie Constantino and amateur Rianne Malixi, meanwhile, arranged a title clash in the ladies side of the event after eliminating Marvi Monsalve, 6&4 and No. 1 Chihiro Ikeda 3&2, respectively.

“I’ve been playing well and my swing feels good,” Jahns said when asked of his chances against practically the hottest player the last two months on tour.