HYUN HO RHO outgunned Ryan Monsalve in an early shootout between two emerging stars of the Philippine Golf Tour, spiking his solid, five-under 67 with a hole-in-one in the first round of the ICTSI Philippine Masters in Pasay City on Wednesday.
The 2023 PGT Q-School topnotcher aced the 195-yard No. 4 then had three birdies, including two in the last three holes. His bogey-free 33-34 performance came in scorching conditions at the Villamor Golf Club which yielded just five under-par rounds.
Mr. Monsalve had an impressive start in the third flight with Rho and veteran Marvin Dumandan, firing an eagle at the par-5 No. 2 and bouncing back from a mishap on the third hole with birdie on No. 6.
Still, Mr. Monsalve’s 68 put himself in early contention in the P2 million championship, his best start in a career marked by a fifth-place finish in his first pro event at Apo last March.
“I hit it solid, straight to the pin. I didn’t even know it went in until my sister told me,” said the 19-year-old Mr. Rho. “That’s when I realized I made a hole-in-one.”
“I wasn’t really putting well, but I was lucky to sink my par putts,” said Mr. Rho, who used a 5-iron and Titleist No. 2 ball for the ace worth P20,000 from the organizing Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc.
The young talents stood out against the seasoned campaigners with Aidric Chan shooting a 69 for solo third. Lloyd Go, a winner at Palos Verdes, and Guido van der Valk, twice a runner-up here, each positioned themselves with 71s.
Mr. Chan, this year’s Q-School winner, highlighted his 69 with three birdies at the front nine, overcoming a bogey on the 10th with another birdie on No,. 13.
Sean Ramos eagled the challenging par-5 No. 8 following birdies on Nos. 2 and 6 to post the best frontside output of 32. However, he struggled in the last nine holes, bogeying Nos. 12 and 14 and dropping two strokes on the No. 16, ending with a 72 and slipping to joint sixth with 11 others.
They include Art Arbole, former champion Jerson Balasabas, Russell Bautista, Michael Bibat, Rico Depilo, Ivan Monsalve, Gerald Rosales, Dino Villanueva, Rupert Zaragosa, Daiya Suzuki and amateur Jeffren Lumbo.
Meanwhile, Tony Lascuña and Angelo Que carded 73s for joint 18th with Mark Alcazar, Elee Bisera, Reymon Jaraula and Daiki Ueda, while Jobim Carlos shot a 74 for a share of 24th with Kristoffer Arevalo, Ferdie Aunzo, Fidel Concepcion and eight others.
