BIANCA Pagdanganan and Dottie Ardina continued to display fine form yesterday (Saturday in the US), shooting 65 and 66, respectively, to join five others in a seven-way tie for 11th in the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship at the Pinnacle Country Club in Roger, Arkansas.
Once the standard-bearers of the country in international play, Pagdanganan shot a 69 and Ardina 66 in their respective opening rounds in the tournament being held at the par-71, 6,438-yard course located 11.9 kilometers southeast of US retail giant Walmart’s headquarters in Bentonville.
They had two-round tallies of 134 and stood six shots behind pacesetting South Korean LPGA tour rookie Hae Ryan Ryu, who shot a second straight bogey-free 64 in the $2.3 million event offering a top prize of $345,000 (around P19.5 million).
In the groove in both her driving and putting, Pagdanganan, who is seeking to break out of a prolonged slump and finally land her first LPGA championship since joining the tour in 2020, sank six birdies in a bogey-less round.
The 2019 Southeast Asian Games double gold medalist hit 11 of 13 fairways and 12 of 18 greens in regulation.
Ardina had one bogey on the first hole but more than made up for it with an eagle on hole No. 8, a par-four, and four birdies, hitting 11 of 13 fairway and, more remarkably, 17 of 18 greens in regulation. — Bong Pedralvez
