Go, 19, recovered from a bogey-bogey mishap from No. 7 with three birdies at the back of the demanding par-71 layout, moving from two down after nine holes to one-up over the Thai ace with a 54-hole aggregate of 215 heading to the final 18 holes of the country’s premier championship.
Thai Vanchai Luangnitikul, meanwhile, grabbed the lead in the men’s side despite a 75 for a 226 as two-day leader Jang Sung Hun of Korea was disqualified for violation of Rules 1.2.
That also threw the battle for the men’s crown wide open as Singapore’s Lucius Toh and Gen Nagai assembled identical 227s after a 73 and 74, respectively, and Weiwei Gao stood just three strokes behind at 229 despite a 78.
Aidric Chan also moved within four at 230 after a second 78 while Ivan Monsalve skied to an 82 for a 281 and Paolo Wong and Japanese Atsushi Ueda carded identical 81s for 232s, six shots off the pace in the event organized and conducted by the National Golf Association of the Philippines.
“I have a pretty solid game at the back. Unlike in the first round where I missed a lot of putts, my putting worked well this time,” said Go, who birdied the first two holes at the back to draw level with Thitikul then went 2-up on another two-shot swing on No. 16.
Thitikul, who surged past the Pinay duo despite a 75 Friday, hiked her lead to two with a 36 start but failed to match Go’s blistering finish in windy conditions, needing to birdie the last hole to salvage a 72 and keep the new leader within sight at 216.
Pagdanganan, who took charge in the opener with a 67 but faltered with a 78 in the second round, slipped farther back with a 38 but hit two birdies against a bogey in the last nine holes to save a 73 and stay in the hunt at 218.
Back in women’s play, the rest stood too far behind with Malaysian Natasha Oon pooling a 225 after a 73 for joint fourth with Junia Gabasa, who fumbled with a 76, while Korean Kim Heeji limped with an 80 for a 227 followed by Kim Seo Yun (80-232) and Nicole Abelar and Japanese Tae Saito, who tied for eighth at 233 after an 80 and 82, respectively.
That should reduce the title chase to the three leading players with Go vowing to play more smarter in anticipation of Thitikul and Pagdanganan’s fightbacks in the final round of the event sponsored by the MVP Sports Foundation and backed by Cignal, Metro Pacific and official hotel Summit Ridge.
“I don’t want to have any expectations. I’ll just play my game and play more smarter,” said Go, who also credited her putting in her third round surge in the event serving as part of the PLDT Group National Amateur Tour.
Meanwhile, Kim Tae Won of Korea shot a 75 to open a three-shot lead over Dylan Castillo, who carded a 78, in the Special Division for boys while Jeong Yeah Eun, also of Korea, took control of the girls’ category with an 80, six strokes ahead of compatriot Lee Bomyeong, who came up with an 86.