Lascuña, Constantino grind out contrasting wins

Antonio Lascuña (right) with Harmie Constantino. —CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Coming up short despite clear shots in the last three events, Antonio Lascuña on Sunday ended the Philippine Golf Tour season on a winning note after dismantling the ICTSI Villamor Match Play field.

With a 4&3 victory over Keanu Jahns, Lascuña became the Tour’s first match play champion, a distinction shared by Harmie Constantino, who took out young amateur Rianne Malixi after a pitch-in birdie on the 19th hole which she said “came as a surprise.”

Lascuña opened up a 4-up lead after the first eight holes, and not even a slip on the cart path on No. 10 could slow him down.

“I really wanted to end the year on a positive note,” Lascuña said in Filipino. “Finishing second (at Eagle Ridge, Riviera and Pradera Verde) was very hard to take. So I’m very happy. This is my first win since (Riviera-Couples) in 2020.”

Probably the shortest hitter in the field, the 52-year-old used his accuracy to eliminate Paul Echavez in the first round, Angelo Que in the next, Gerald Rosales in the quarterfinals and Clyde Mondilla in the semifinals.

Constantino, meanwhile, made the most out of Malixi’s miss in her second shot on the par-5 18th to draw level, before holing a 40-foot shot from the rough in their second trip to No. 1 to win.

“I can’t explain it. I was only trying to land it a couple of yards close to the hole,” Constantino said. “I was just trying to take it as close to the hole as possible, not hole it.”