Cebu Country Club’s very own Mark Dy reached another milestone in his golf career as he earned a ticket to the Philippine Golf Tour after scoring a final round of 79 in the PGT Qualifying School yesterday at the Splendido Taal Golf Club in Tagaytay.
Fresh from helping his home club clinch the championship in the 66th Philippine Airlines Interclub golf tournament last weekend, Dy submitted his fourth straight 79 to total 316 in the four-day tournament.
He was one of four amateurs to make the cut. Also earning their stripes were Chris Mamaril (80-306), Lawrence Celestino (80-311) and Mike Yee (80-313).
However, the man of the hour was Dutch Guido Van der Valk, who won top honors after scoring a four-over 76 for a total of 286. Former national player Jude Eustaquio bested the local field with a final round 71 and a total of 298.
The Dutch ace relied on his big eight-shot cushion Thursday and held off a charging Japanese pair of Tomokazu Yoshinaga and Toru Nakajima, who both shot 70s for 288s.
The troika plus six other foreign bets thus gained their cards for this year’s ICTSI Philippine Golf Tour, which fires off March 20 at Sherwood Hills in Cavite.
Others who gained full status were Dino Villanueva and Belem Arancon, who ended up with 299s after a 71 and 75, respectively, while Paul Echavez and amateur Agustin Mata finished tied at 303 after a 76 and 77, respectively.
They will join the top 40 players in last year’s Order of Merit rankings, headed by topnotcher Tony Lascuna.