Unheralded Arnold Villacencio stole the thunder from the big guns after carding a one-under 69 for a two-stroke lead over Marvin Dumandan in yesterday’s opening round of the $65,000 Aboitiz Invitational at the Cebu Country Club in Banilad.
Villacencio holed back-to-back birdies from No. 8, spiking a sterling frontside for the day’s lone under-par card at the par-70 course, whose tight fairways and tough greens bedeviled the games of the starting 102-player field in this leg of the Asian Development Tour.
The Davao native appeared headed for a bleak one with early bogeys on Nos. 11 and 13 but rebounded with birdies on Nos. 14 and 16 inside five feet, dropped another shot on the 18th before holing out with a four-footer and a tap-in birdie for a 33-36 round.
Dumandan, who bids to stop a losing skid in the local circuit after winning three legs last year, also leaned on a frontside rally of 33 to salvage an even par 70 as the rest either struggled with wayward shots to the greens or simply groped for form on the unpredictable putting surface.
Jay Bayron took off from where he left last year and threatened to blow away the field in his title retention bid with a three-under 32 on the front nine but stumbled with five bogeys at the back, marred by three straight from No. 13, and needed to birdie the par-4 17th to save a round of 71.
He forged a four-way tie for third with fellow Davaoenos Cassius Casas, Edgar Ababa and Elmer Salvador, the pro-am winner last Tuesday, who turned in a one-under par at front but hobbled with two bogeys coming home.
Thailand’s Tony Mansuwan and American Jonathan Moore emerged the best placed foreigners with identical 72s for a share of seventh with local bets Randy Garalde, Antonio Asistio II and teener Miguel Tabuena, who is coming off a joint 14th place finish in Taiwan Championship last week. /Correspondent Jonas Panerio