‘It’s match play and anything can happen. So I just stayed focused and I’m proud of myself.’
Photograph by joey sanchez mendoza for the daily tribune @tribunephl_joey AT long last, Mikha Fortuna gets to peck at the champion’s trophy.
SANTA ROSA, Laguna — The strong morning rains brought an end to what has been a long, long wait for Mikha Fortuna.
The 23-year-old local pro golf's bright light ended months of frustrations through a week brilliance, capping it on Friday with a rousing victory in the ICTSI The Country Club Match Play Invitational at the TCC course here.
Fittingly, Fortuna captured her most anticipated first pro trophy over another young golfer emerging from the amateurs, Laurea Duque, 7&5, in the finals.
"It's so special, this being my first pro win," said Fortuna.
"I just feel happy, I don't know how to put into words what I'm feeling right now."
Despite rainy and windy conditions, Fortuna displayed consistent play from tee to green, winning three holes from No. 5 to dominate their frontside battle.
She kept her momentum even after the rain subsided, claiming the first three holes at the back en route to a victory that highlighted a series of dominant wins in the previous rounds.
Duque went that far besting Florence Bisera, Apple Fudolin and Gretchen Villacencio.
But she was unable to gain any ground against Fortuna's superb all-around game in their abbreviated match.
Fortuna's victory was worth P280,000. But most importantly, it helped erase the memory of at least three previous unsuccessful attempts in the regular Ladies Philippine Golf Tour on final round setbacks.
"I think I had three attempts being in contention and finally I got it," said Fortuna, who stuck to her game plan and stayed focused all week.
"Heading to the finals, knowing I was going to play with Laurea, I just really focused on my game. I knew she can play, she was hitting good. But I just told myself to give more birdie opportunities for me, I think that was the key," said Fortuna, who drained five birdies in annexing her title romp.
As the last-ranked player in a field of 16, her noteworthy 5&3 triumph over the top-seeded and last year's winner Harmie Constantino hinted at the potential for a breakthrough week for the University of Oklahoma alumni.
And she did it in dominant fashion, rolling past Korean Seoyun Kim, 5&4, in the quarterfinals then blasting Chihiro Ikeda, 4&3, to roll into the finals of the P1.5 championship which served as the season-ending tournament after the 10-leg LPGT season.
"It's match play and anything can happen. So I just stayed focused and I'm proud of myself," Fortuna added.
Despite initial nerves induced by rainy conditions, she exhibited resilience, regaining her confidence over time.
"When it rained, I was pretty nervous but I told myself that 'I can't control the weather.' I had a 'it is what it is mindset,'" said Fortuna.
"This is the condition and I got to play with it. But I needed to focus on one shot at a time. It pretty worked and I'm proud of myself about that."
While the title duel concluded in one-sided fashion, the battle for third extended to the 18th hole where Ikeda narrowly edged Villacencio, matching the latter's birdie on No. 17 to preserve a 1-up lead and birdying the last for a 2-up victory.
