PH bets flounder in Asian Amateur golf

FILIPINO-AMERICAN Anton Arboleda carded a second straight 2-under-par 70 and shared 23rd place with three others in the Asian Amateur Golf Championship topped by China’s Guan Tianlang in Thailand yesterday.

Arboleda birdied two of the first four holes then two more holes at the back to negate bogeys on Nos. 9 and 13 in a 35-35 card. He finished with a four-day total of even 288.

Rico Hoey, also a Fil-Am find who won the 15-17 crown in the last Junior World in San Diego, sputtered with a 75 and fell to joint 28th at 292 while Rupert Zaragosa had a 72 to share 33rd place with five others at 296.

“The performance of the two Fil-Ams showed that we will have a strong national team for next year’s Southeast Asian Games and other international competitions,” said Tommy Manotoc, president of the National Golf Association of the Philippines.

Guan, 14, fought off Taiwan’s Pan Cheng-tsung’s final-round charge with par putts in the last two holes to close out with a 71 and nip Pan by one with a 273. Musong R. Castillo