Canlubang pulls away in PAL Interclub

MANOLO FORTICH, Bukidnon — Canlubang finally showed its might on Saturday as Tommy Manotoc tamed the tough Del Monte course with 56 points to power the senior Sugar Barons to an 11-point spread going into the last round of the 64th Philippine Airlines (PAL) Interclub at the Del Monte Golf Club. Kept at bay since a participant can only play in two of the four days, Manotoc came out hot by scoring three birdies including the par-fives at Nos. 9 and 14 to offset a lone bogey for that 56, a two-under-par 70 in stroke play, under weather condition. With it, Canlubang is now at 460 total in Molave points. Defending champion Luisita could only manage a 147 for 449. The momentum shift did not happen for the Sweeties from Tarlac the same way it did in the second day when they slashed Canlubang's lead to four. "The game is far from over. Our lead, though, is really, really good at this point," said Manotoc, who attributed his good game to his new, custom-fitted Ping set. Tony Olives' 52 and Bing Bunye' 46 rounded up Canlubang’s output in the 72-hole championship. Manotoc's explosion was already expected by Luisita but it did not even think that it will be that good, according to Luisita captain Iggy Clavecilla. "Magaling talaga eh (He is really a good player)," Clavecilla said of Manotoc. "We’ll give it one big fight even if our chances are slim and none." Clavecilla, Luisita's top man in the second round, skipped the third and gave opportunities to the other members. As a result, Pepot Inigo paced with 51 followed by the 48s of Bong Sison and Minieng Maravilla. Clavecilla will team up with Francis Gaston, Carlo Gamban and Lino Magpantay in Sunday's finale hoping to turn Luisita's fortunes around. Meanwhile, Manila Golf (424) and Zamboanga (356) are in the driver seat in the Founders and Friendship Divisions, respectively. - Adrian Flores, JVP, GMA News