GEN. TRIAS, Cavite — Veteran Guido van der Valk leaned on his wealth of experience to navigate the wind-battered and unforgiving Faldo course, carding a hard-earned 69 to seize control after another grueling day in the ICTSI Eagle Ridge Championship here.

The Manila-based Dutchman propelled himself halfway toward a mission of redemption, aiming to bounce back from a heartbreaking playoff defeat in The Country Club Invitational last January.

From joint 16th and seven strokes behind, the two-time TCC Invitational champion surged to the top of the leaderboard with a two-over 146 total — a testament to the demanding nature of the Faldo course, which has tested the field’s skill, strategy and mental fortitude.

Tuesday’s conditions remained harsh, with swirling winds and tricky pin placements, yet van der Valk delivered a gutsy performance, braving the elements and sinking a series of long putts that typically wouldn’t fall.

“This course is so hard. I really struggled a lot yesterday (Monday), but I managed to hit it a bit better today (Tuesday). I also holed a lot of putts — 20-footers that you don’t usually expect to make. That probably helped keep my score way lower than it should’ve been,” said van der Valk, who now stands 36 holes away from ending his title drought.

A group of young challengers, however, stayed well within striking distance at 147, ensuring a tense battle ahead in the P2 million championship organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments Inc. and sponsored by ICTSI.

Lloyd Go, who matched par 72, and Sean Ramos and Hyun Ho Rho, who matched 73s, credited their improved putting for keeping them in the hunt in the second leg of the 10-stage Philippine Golf Tour (PGT).

Go, in particular, positioned himself just a shot behind after a round that featured a fiery three-under card through his first six holes before a couple of costly mishaps.

He birdied Nos. 11, 12 and 14 but stumbled with bogeys on Nos. 16 and 17 and double-bogeyed the par-5 No. 2 after a four-chip miscue.

“I was able to birdie the easy holes in a back-nine start. I was three-under after six holes,” Go said. “But I had a costly mistake on No. 2 where I struggled around the green.”

Despite the setback, Go remains focused on his game plan, mindful of the challenges posed by the tough layout.

“I don’t expect anything. It’s hole-by-hole, shot-by-shot. I can’t think ahead,” he said.

Ramos, meanwhile, kept himself in the mix despite a rollercoaster round of 35-38 marred by five bogeys against four birdies. But he attributed his better performance to his improved iron play.

“I hit more greens today, which made it easier to make par. My short game and putting were also pretty solid, but the highlight was really my ball-striking,” said Ramos, who only reached regulation six or seven times in the opening round.

Rho, still in search of a maiden PGT crown since topping the Q-School in 2023, also kept pace with a four-birdie, five-bogey round, citing better shot-making that created more birdie opportunities.

“I holed more putts and was driving it straighter, which gave me better chances,” said Rho, who flagged his round with a superb 6-iron approach from 178 yards to within two feet for birdie on No. 16.

“But the wind is really tough. The key is hitting fairways and greens because the greens are so tricky.”

The unforgiving Faldo course, however, proved too much for erstwhile leader Ivan Monsalve, who crumbled with an 84 after a stunning lead-grabbing 71, tumbling to joint 18th at 155, now nine shots off the pace.

Multi-titled Clyde Mondilla rallied with a 74 to join unheralded Jeffren Lumbo (75) at 150, while Pradera Verde leg winner Angelo Que recovered with a 74 for joint seventh with rookie pro Jaehyun Jung (76) at 151.

Reigning five-time Order of Merit champion Tony Lascuña skied to a 77 after an opening 75 to fall to ninth at 152, while Carl Corpus clawed back from an 81 with a 72 to salvage a share of 10th at 153 alongside Kakeru Ozeki (77) and Ryan Monsalve (78).

Corpus actually put himself in strong contention with a three-under card through 14 holes but faltered down the stretch under challenging conditions, stumbling with three bogeys in his last four holes to lose valuable strokes.