CHIHIRO Ikeda and Rianne Malixi produced another pair of lopsided wins to arrange an explosive showdown while Harmie Constantino needed to fend off a late-charging Sunshine Baraquiel to forge a clash with Marvi Monsalve in the ICTSI Villamor Match Play at the Villamor Golf Club yesterday.
But the faceoff between the top seed and the fancied amateur ensues before the finals as Ikeda ripped Lovelynn Guioguio, 7 and 6, and Malixi posted a second straight 3 and 2 win, this time over Gretchen Villacencio in the Last 8 phase of the first head-to-head battle on the Ladies Philippine Golf Tour.
In the other half of the draw, Constantino fashioned out a 3 and 1 victory over Baraquiel after surviving a back-and-forth skirmish with amateur Mafy Singson, 1-up, in the first day of the event organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc. to advance to the semis, while Monsalve rallied late to repel Florence Bisera, 1-up, after booting out Lucy Landicho, 3 and 2, last Tuesday.
Ikeda, who trounced Martina Miñoza, 4 and 2, in the first round of the 16-player draw Tuesday, wrested control after four holes, went 3-up after eight then coasted to victory at the back where the Manila Southwoods and AsiaGlobal Technologies, Inc.-backed ace practically warmed up for her keenly awaited duel with the 15-year-old Malixi.
“Malixi is playing very good now, so I will just play my game,” said Ikeda, seeking to add the match play crown to her victories at Mount Malarayat and Eagle Ridge-Aoki that netted her the Order of Merit diadem.
Winner of all three legs she had competed in this year’s LPGT, Malixi took command after the sixth hole and preserved a three-hole cushion she had built after No. 12 all the way to the finish to match her romp against Pamela Mariano in the first round.
“Last 4 holes my irons were a little bit off but I was able to pull up some putts, the most crucial was my 6-footer (on No. 16) for the win,” said Malixi, who is also coming off a remarkable campaign in Thailand where she won the Thai Junior World title, placed second in the Thai Amateur Open and tied for third in the Women’s Amateur Asia Pacific Championship.
Malixi maintains putting will be key not only against the seasoned Ikeda but also in her title drive where a win on Friday would cap a dominant campaign in the circuit she dominated with victories at Luisita, Valley and Riviera.
