Ababa leads by 2 strokes

DANAO City, Cebu—Jhonnel Ababa carded a bogey-free five-under 66 to grab a two-stroke lead over Korean Kim Joo-hyung halfway through the ICTSI Club Filipino de Cebu Invitational here yesterday.

Ababa proved rock solid from tee to green with crisp iron play, producing five birdies that spiked his impressive pair of 33s that put him on top of the heap with a seven-under 135.

“Some fairways were tight in the opening nine so I played conservative,” said Ababa, who has had four top 10 finishes in the last six Philippine Golf Tour events in Mindanao and Visayas.

He actually snapped a six-month title spell with a three-stroke victory over Jobim Carlos in the PGT Asia Forest Hills leg last month.