ABS-CBN News
Posted at Aug 26 2018 04:33 PM | Updated as of Aug 26 10:26 PM
 
Together with 2 gold medals, Philippines wins bronze, thanks to Bianca Pagdanganan

(UPDATED) Yuka Saso of the Philippines won the gold medal in women’s individual golf in a heart-stopping finish in the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta on Sunday.

It was a glorious day for the Filipinas at Pondok Indah Golf & Country Club, where they also bagged the team gold and an individual bronze courtesy of Bianca Pagdanganan.

Lois Kaye Go, who finished tied for 17th in individual play, is the third member of the national team.

Saso finished the competition at 13-under 275, 3 shots lower than silver winner Liu Wenbo of China.

Pagdanganan and Ayaka Furue of Japan ended up with identical 279s, but Pagdanganan reached the podium by beating Furue in a one-hole playoff.

It was a roller-coaster homestretch for Saso, who lurked behind Liu most of the day before going joint first with her after 15 holes.

Disaster struck in the par-3 17th, though, when Saso came up with a double-bogey, giving Day 3 leader Liu a firm grip of the top spot with a 2-shot lead.

But luck and some clutch shot-making gave the 17-year-old Saso the miraculous, nerve-wracking finish.

She eagled the par-5 18th from 10 feet, and saw Liu quadruple-bogey there.

This was the first time the Philippines landed a gold in Asian Games golf since Ramon Brobio in Seoul in 1986.

Du Mohan, another Chinese golfer who emerged a gold-medal threat, bogeyed the par-4 16th and double-bogeyed the 17th, paving the way for Saso’s coronation.

Pagdanganan, a key member of the University of Arizona team that won the US NCAA Division 1 title, was brilliant in Jakarta, too.

She entered the final round tied for eighth, but showed her strength when it mattered the most, making 8 birdies against 2 early bogeys for a 66.