GEN. TRIAS, Cavite — Learning from his struggles at Pradera Verde, Ivan Monsalve took a different mental approach into the ICTSI Eagle Ridge Championship — and it paid off handsomely.

With swirling winds and an unforgiving layout making scoring a premium, Monsalve defied the odds and the elements, firing a gutsy one-under-par 71 to seize the early lead at the Eagle Ridge Golf and Country Club here on Monday.

“I came in here with a different kind of mentality,” said Monsalve, whose best finish in a three-year professional career was joint 15th at Caliraya Springs in 2023.

“At Pradera, it was more of a stress knowing how hard the course was. But here, I knew the layout would be difficult and the wind would be a big factor, so I told myself not to expect much and just try to have fun. Anything can happen in this kind of setup.”

And indeed, the unexpected happened — Monsalve, who missed the cut at Pradera, outshone the field of seasoned campaigners and rising stars, banking on his solid short game to offset missed greens in regulation.

He birdied No. 14, bogeyed the next, and reeled off a string of pars before picking up strokes on Nos. 5 and 8. Though he dropped a shot on the ninth, his 35-36 proved enough to emerge as the day’s best score.

“It’s really the wind and the tricky putting surface. But the key was my short game — I didn’t hit a lot of greens but managed to get up-and-down most of the time. I also got lucky with some of my reads despite the unpredictable conditions,” he added.

The demanding Faldo course and shifting winds proved unrelenting for the rest of the field. Sean Ramos birdied No. 15 to salvage a 74, matching Hyun Ho Rho’s output for joint second, while seasoned pro Tony Lascuña squandered an even-par card after 15 holes, stumbling with a double bogey-bogey finish for a 75 and a share of fourth with Lloyd Go, Taewon Ha, Ryan Monsalve, Jeffren Lumbo and recent PGT Q-School topnotcher and Pradera leg third placer Jaehyun Jung.

‘It’s really the wind and the tricky putting surface.’

Clyde Mondilla, a multi-titled champion accustomed to grinding out victories in challenging conditions, looked poised for a solid round after shaking off an opening-hole bogey with back-to-back birdies from No. 2. But as the winds picked up and the Faldo course bared its teeth, his game began to unravel.

Mondilla stumbled with bogeys on Nos. 9 and 11, then yielded a costly double-bogey on the 16th before dropping another stroke on the next hole.

By the time he reached the clubhouse, his scorecard read a disappointing four-over-par 76, placing him alongside Russell Bautista, Albin Engino, Josh Jorge, Kakeru Ozeki and Kento Watanabe — all of whom endured tough finishes on a day when the course showed no mercy.

Angelo Que, fresh off a commanding six-shot victory at Pradera Verde, entered the 72-hole championship brimming with confidence. He birdied No. 2 and seemed primed for another strong showing. However, his round quickly faltered after a disastrous stretch from No. 7, where he absorbed a bogey-bogey-double bogey-bogey slide that crippled his momentum.

Though Que managed to pick up another birdie on No. 14, he fumbled once more with consecutive bogeys coming home, signing off with a painful 39-38 round for a five-over-par 77. The setback dropped him to a tie for 16th alongside Jerson Balasabas, Randy Garalde, Keanu Jahns, Reymon Jaraula, Tae Soo Kim, Mars Pucay, Guido van der Vlak and Collin Wheeler of the US.

Carl Corpus, who impressed with a runner-up finish in his pro debut at Pradera Verde, suffered a surprising meltdown. After a birdie on the 14th, he crumbled with six straight bogeys, finishing with an 81 and in danger of missing the Top 40 and ties cut.

Monsalve, however, stayed composed, using his newfound perspective to his advantage.

With three rounds left in the P2 million championship, organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments Inc. and sponsored by ICTSI, and the unpredictable conditions looming, Monsalve remains wary but optimistic.

“It’s still a long way to go, and anything can happen here. I’ll just keep the same mindset and hope for the best,” he added.