Japanese leads by a shot and is pursued by a horde, counting Quiban and Tabuena

Toyomo Ikemura will try to stave off a talented field. —CONTRIBUTED PHOTOS

Toyomo Ikemura failed to handle a critical four-hole stretch in the back nine well on Saturday and allowed a lot of names back in the Smart Infinity Philippine Open fight, counting two Filipinos who doggedly fought it out on a brutally hot and demanding day that could have wilted lesser men.

The Japanese dropped three strokes in that span and needed to birdie his 54th hole for a three-under-par 67 and a 202 aggregate that left him just one shot ahead of Sadom Kaewkanjana of Thailand, with local hopes Justin Quiban and Miguel Tabuena churning out contrasting rounds to stay well in the mix and have shots at keeping Asia’s oldest national trophy on local soil.

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There’s also a five-man bunch just two shots off Ikemura, with another four a further shot behind before seven others like Quiban who are within four shots off the pace, making the chase for the Asian Tour’s season-opening title truly a wide-open race with 18 holes left to play.

“I got some bad bounces [today],” Ikemura, a two-time winner on the Japan Tour, said through an interpreter. The 29-year-old actually had it to 10-under after birdies in five of his first 11 holes, before encountering trouble on the tight 12th that led to a double bogey 6. He also dropped a shot on No. 15.

“I will just try to find more fairways [in the final round] and hopefully putt as well,” Ikemura, who found the large lagoon on the left on No. 12 off the mound before three-putting for that 6, said. “I hope to be lucky [on Sunday] and win my first Asian Tour event.”

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Kaewkanjana, who started the day with a three-shot lead, also played with steely resolve. He almost slipped out of the top 10 after playing his first nine at five-over-par 40, only to birdie his last two holes and rescue a 72 and be just a shot behind.

Danthai Boonma, another seasoned Thai, demolished the Masters layout of the Manila Southwoods in Carmona, Cavite, with a course record 62, a 14-shot turnaround from his unfortunate 76 on Friday as he crept to within two shots like four others.

Fiery windup

“I fought it out today,” the 28-year-old Quiban said after turning a slow start into a good finish with birdies in two of his last three holes for a 69 and 206. “I wasn’t hitting it in the center [of the club face] early. I just found some groove late [in the round].

“It was definitely a very different day from [the second round],” Quiban, who shot a flawless 64 on Friday, added. “Nothing really clicked, but I hung in there.”

Tabuena was easily one of the stories of the day, having made the cut on the dot before unleashing an effort that boosted him back in the hunt of winning what he says is a very special tournament for him.

Coming into the round staring at an 11-shot deficit, Tabuena worked his way around the Jack Nicklaus-created gem with “calculated aggression,” finishing off a brilliant 65 with four straight birdies from No. 6 to be a manageable five strokes off at the end of the day.

And the 30-year-old knows winning in come-from-behind style pretty well.

“Yes, it’s very possible,” Tabuena said when asked of overhauling that kind of a deficit, one he did when he won his latest Asian Tour title in 2023 in New Delhi in India. “Of course I would need a good start and will try to see where I stand at around the eighth hole [on Sunday].”

Young Aidric Chan and Sean Ramos fired a 69 and a 70, respectively, to be in a group that will start the final day six shots off the pace.