NEGROS OCCIDENTAL. — In a final round filled with chaos, collapse and sheer unpredictability, Florence Bisera emerged as the most unlikely of champions, conjuring a victory that will long be remembered not only for its drama but for the grit and composure it demanded.
Coming into the final round of the ICTSI Negros Occidental Classic at the rain-lashed Marapara Golf and Country Club on Thursday, the Davaoeña was barely on the radar – trailing by six strokes and seemingly destined for a respectable, but forgettable, finish.
Instead, Bisera produced a late-round brilliance in resilience, poise and opportunism to shoot a 67 and pull off a remarkable one-stroke win over Seo Yun Kim (72) and Princess Superal (74).
“I didn’t expect to win because I was six shots behind after two rounds,” said Bisera in Filipino after clinching her third career victory on a 54-hole 209 total, nearly a year after her win at the Match Play Championship at The Country Club. “I just told myself that I wanted to shoot under par on the final day – that was my only goal. I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it.”
Bisera credited her putting for the win that mirrored Pauline del Rosario’s victory over Kim at Binitin last week. Although she missed several birdie opportunities, her putter came alive when it mattered most, as shown by her five birdies on a day when sinking putts was more the exception than the rule.
“When play resumed on No. 15, my only goal was to hit the fairway and reach the green because I knew how tough the course conditions were,” she said. “But the putt dropped, and on No. 17, my approach shot landed close enough for me to convert another birdie.”
The final day began under sweltering heat and ended in outright mix-up. What seemed like a two-woman duel between Superal and Kim turned into a free-for-all as weather disruptions and pressure-packed missteps cracked open the leaderboard at the finish.
Kim, chasing her elusive first win after seven excruciating runner-up finishes, looked poised to finally break through. She surged ahead by three strokes at the turn after a pair of birdies on Nos. 4 and 5 and seemed in full control, especially with Superal stumbling early with a double bogey on No. 4 and another dropped shot on the sixth.
But as has happened before, the ghosts of squandered chances returned to haunt Kim.
Struggling with club control and shaken confidence, the Korean wobbled on the back nine – faltering with three bogeys and no birdies in a costly meltdown. Her miscues on Nos. 16 and 17 proved decisive, inviting challengers back into contention just as the rain came pouring down and momentum shifted once again.
Ahead of them, Bisera had quietly but effectively gone about her business.
Playing one flight ahead of the leaders, she ignited her charge early with birdies on Nos. 2, 3 and 6 – an explosive start that signaled intent but still seemed too little, too early. Her bogeys on Nos. 9 and 11 threatened to stall her momentum, but she regrouped with the heart of a champion.
Despite the punishing conditions and the immense pressure of a tightly packed leaderboard, Bisera birdied two of her last four holes – including a critical one on the par-5 15th. As play resumed after a rain delay, Bisera was already in the clubhouse with a superb 67 – the round of the day – and one-under overall total.
And then, she waited.
What unfolded in the final holes was the kind of finish that defines careers and tests nerves. Superal, needing a birdie on the final hole to tie, missed from distance. Kim overshot the green on the 18th, salvaged par from a greenside bunker, but that too wasn’t enough.
Both settled for a share of second at 210, Kim carding a two-over card and Superal fading with a four-over round. They halved the combined purse of P147,000.
Lois Kaye Go, also in strong contention, faltered late with three bogeys in her last five holes, ending her bid with a 72 and solo fourth at 212. Tiffany Lee made a late charge with a 69 to finish fifth at 215, while Chanelle Avaricio (71-217), Daniella Uy (74-218), Sarah Ababa (70-220) and Kayla Nocum (73-221) and Gretchen Villacencio (74-221) rounded up the Top 10.
