IN a huge boost to her morale and Olympic bid, Bianca Pagdanganan was not as flashy as the previous round but played a solid, steady game yesterday, firing a 71 to wind up in a seven-way tie for seventh at the close of the Mizuho Americas Open in New Jersey City.
Teeing off on the front nine, Pagdanganan had a lone birdie on No. 2 and parred the rest of the holes on the par-72, 6,656-yard Liberty Golf Club course overlooking the Statue Liberty and impressive Manhattan skyline.
She wound up with a 72-hole total of 279, worth $64,365 (around P3.75 million), five shots behind sensational American Nelly Korda, who overcame a shaky front nine to shoot a similar 71 and win by one shot on the final hole over Australian Hannah Green for her sixth tour victory of the season.
Korda, the reigning world No. 1 and Olympic champion, pocketed the top prize of $450,000 (P25.9 million) in an auspicious triumph that bodes well for her campaign in the US Women’s Open teeing off on May 30 at the Lancaster Country Club in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
The performance was a superb pick-me-up for the ICTSI-backed Pagdanganan, who had been struggling at the start of the 2024 campaign as she finished in the top 10 finish since finishing tied for second in The Ascendant LPGA benefiting Volunteers of America at The Colony, Texas last October.
Her finish fortified her grip on a return ticket to the Olympic Games opening in Paris, France in July since she is currently at No. 37 in the International Golf Federation Olympic women’s rankings, with the top 60 on the cut-off date of June 24 eligible to see action in the quadrennial meet.
Solid off the tee, the 2019 Philippine Southeast Asian Games double gold medalist hit 12 of 14 fairways, made 30 putts, reached 13 of 18 greens in regulation and bailed herself twice out of the bunker.
The long-hitting Pinay bet would likely be pumped up about her chances in women’s golf second major competition which former compatriot Yuka Saso ruled three years ago at The Olympic Club in San Francisco, California.
