BAGUIO CITY — With the howling winds that battered Pinewoods Golf Club a day earlier suddenly gone, Chanelle Avaricio seized the perfect opening to mount a championship charge and complete a gripping finish in the ICTSI Pinewoods Challenge on Thursday here.

Starting the final round five strokes behind, Avaricio wasted no time erasing the deficit, unleashing a blistering front-nine rally that immediately put the field on notice.

From there, she leaned on experience, patience and steady nerves to outlast Tiffany Lee and Harmie Constantino in a tense back-nine duel, sealing the crown with a closing two-under 70.

The victory marked another emphatic rebound for the seasoned campaigner, who has rediscovered her winning rhythm after a playoff heartbreak to Sarah Ababa at Del Monte. She quickly answered that setback with a dominant seven-shot triumph at Apo and now added another title — this time, forged through a gritty comeback that underscored her resilience and championship composure.

“I never really thought about being five down because this course is so difficult — anything can happen out here,” said Avaricio, who finished with a 54-hole total of one-over 217 to claim the top P125,000 purse in the third leg of the Ladies Philippine Golf Tour.

As Lee faltered early in the final round, Avaricio gradually found her rhythm, particularly on the greens, and capitalized on the momentum.

“I played really well on the front nine,” she said.

 “My putting finally clicked, and I made a couple of 12-foot birdie putts.”

But the win did not come easily.

“One bad hole can put you in trouble, and it’s really hard to recover,” she said.

Instead, Avaricio focused on staying patient, a mindset shaped by the demanding conditions throughout the week.

“This course really tested my patience,” said Avaricio, who opened with a 71 before struggling to a 76.

Constantino and Lee mounted a furious late charge that turned the closing stretch into a pressure cooker. Constantino strung together three birdies over the last five holes to post a 72, while Lee, rebounding from a difficult round, sparked hopes of a miracle finish with back-to-back birdies from No. 14 to salvage a 76. Both finished just one shot behind at 218.

Avaricio, meanwhile, stood at the edge of a collapse that could have rewritten the leaderboard. After steadying herself earlier, she suddenly wavered with three-putt bogeys on Nos. 15 and 16 — her advantage shrinking, the tension rising, and the roar of a possible playoff beginning to build in the distance.

On the 17th tee, the tournament tightened into a test of nerve rather than shot-making. Every swing felt heavier, every step slower. Yet Avaricio refused to yield to the pressure. She responded not with heroics, but with calm: a safe approach, a composed putt, and a par that steadied her grip on the lead.

Then came the final hole.

With Constantino and Lee still breathing down her neck, Avaricio once again chose restraint over risk. No flourish, no gamble — just execution. Another clutch par, struck under immense pressure, sealed not just the round but the championship itself, as she held on by a single shot to complete a hard-earned, nerve-wracked victory that was as much about composure as it was about skill.

“I started feeling a little nervous over the closing stretch, especially after seeing the leaderboard on No. 16,” Avaricio said. “I was a bit rattled that’s why I three-putted Nos. 15 and 16.”

Despite the late stumble, Avaricio steadied herself when it mattered most, finishing strongly over the final two holes to secure the victory before the downpour and fog enveloped the entire course.

“This course really tests not just your skills, but every aspect of your game and mindset,” she said.

Coming into the P1-million championship, Avaricio brimmed with confidence after narrowly making the cut and mounting a strong comeback to finish tied for 15th at last week’s Qingdao Open on the China LPGA Tour.

“I think it definitely helped,” she said.

“The course we played in China was also very tough, with firm greens that weren’t very receptive. Playing there prepared me well for the conditions this week.”