Hangzhou—The Philippines holed out without a medal in the Asian Games golf competitions after a three-medal haul the last time out, including two women’s golds, as Clyde Mondilla finished tied for 10th in men’s individual and Rianne Malixi wound up joint 11th in the women’s side at the West Lake International Golf Course in Xihu District here yesterday.
Mondilla closed out with a second 70 in four days for a 15-under 273 total and a share of 10th place with Thai Atiruj Winaicharoenchai, who skied to a 76, 12 shots behind the 261 total posted by Hong Kong’s young star Taichi Kho, who fired a 69 to edge world No. 27 and PGA Tour campaigner Sungjae Im of Korea, who fell short of his rally with a 65 for a 262.
Chinese-Taipei’s Chien-Yao Hung shot a 69 to secure the bronze with a 264.
Meanwhile, Carl Corpus wound up 33rd with a 287 after a 76 while Ira Alido tied for 37th at 289 after a 75.
The Philippines also ended up ninth in men’s team competition with a 20-under 844 after a 218.
Korea clinched the gold with a mind-boggling -76 under 788 in the four-to-play, three-to-count tournament after a 198, beating Thailand by 25 strokes.
The Thais assembled an 813 after a 209 while Hong Kong captured the bronze with a 210, also after a 209.
Earlier, Malixi birdied two of the last four holes in a frontside finish and rescued a 71 but missed posting a Top 10 finish in the distaff side ruled by Thai Arpichaya Yubol in stirring fashion.
Yubol battled back from seven shots down to snatch the individual gold with a closing 68 as erstwhile leader Aditi Ashok crumbled under extreme pressure and faded with a 77 after storming ahead with a flawless eagle-aided 61 Saturday.
But except for one birdie on No. 9, the Indian shotmaker was all flawed when it mattered most, making four bogeys and blowing it all with a double-bogey on the par-3 16th.
She limped with a five-over card, enabling Yubol to snare the coveted medal with her closing four-under round for a 72-hole total of 269.
She won by two Ashok, who finished with a 271 for silver, while Korean Hyunjo Yoo claimed the bronze with a 272 after likewise charging back with a 65.
Malixi, 16, had sparked hopes for a medal with a bogey-free 68 in the first round. But after settling for a 70 in the second day, she faltered with a 73 and needed a strong windup to save a 71 for a share of 11th with Japanese Saki Baba.
The world amateur No. 3, who led in the first round but wavered with 72, bounced back with a 68 Saturday before bowing out with an uncharacteristic 77.
Starting out at the back, Malixi birdied the 10th, yielded a stroke on the 12th before gaining another shot on No. 14. But the young ICTSI-backed ace bogeyed the par-5 No. 2 and gave up another stroke on the fifth to fall off the leaderboard.
She, however, finished strong with birdies on Nos. 6 and 9 for a 36-35.
Yubol’s final round fightback also brought back memories of Yuka Saso’s incredible comeback to bag the individual gold in the last Asiam Games in Jakarta in 2018. She trailed by three with one hole left but eagled the closing par-5 hole and watched Chinese Liu Wenbo collapse with a double-bogey to win by three.
Saso, now carrying the Japanese colors, also led the squad made up of Bianca Pagdanganan and Lois Kaye Go to the team gold with Pagdanganan also bagging the individual bronze in PH women’s golf’s most prolific campaign in the continent’s premier sporting meet.
Despite missing out on the medal race, Malixi said she was more than satisfied with how she performed in all four days and savored the chance to play against the region’s best players in the event where she gained valuable lessons and experience.
Meanwhile, Thailand matched the Philippines’ gold medal sweep as it also bagged the team gold with a 34-under 542 total after a 138. The Thais beat the Koreans by four as the latter posted a 548 after a 136 while China settled for bronze with a 146 for a 552.
The two-player women’s team failed to figure in the medal hunt after Go missed the cut.
