CAVINTI, Laguna — A brilliant Moving Day surge put Keanu Jahns in the driver’s seat, but a recurring nightmare on the final hole left the door wide open for a star-studded chasing pack.
Poised to sign for a flawless, spectacular round, the Filipino-German ace holed out with a bogey on the 18th, forcing him to settle for a six-under 66 Thursday — still enough to propel him into the solo lead at 15-under 201 and within arm’s reach of defending his ICTSI Caliraya Springs Golf Championship title.
But despite grabbing the lead, Jahns’ last-hole slip has set the stage for a dramatic, high-stakes shootout for the top P450,000 purse of the P2.5-million championship at the Caliraya Springs Golf Club.
With the “lift, clean and place” rule making the course highly scoreable, no lead is safe — and the veterans behind him spotted an opportunity to capitalize.
Just one stroke behind at 202 are multi-titled veterans Zanieboy Gialon and Tony Lascuña.
Gialon spiked a 66 with an ace on No. 14, playing with the steady, aggressive precision needed to dismantle Caliraya’s defenses. If he maintains his momentum, he has the explosive scoring ability to overtake Jahns and reclaim the crown he won in the event’s inaugural staging in 2022.
Lascuña, the two-day leader, bucked another struggling start (37) with a gritty backside 33 to fire a 70 and remain firmly in the hunt. Known as one of the tour’s most cold-blooded finishers, Lascuña’s unparalleled experience in high-pressure shootouts makes him a massive threat.
Still, focus will be on Jahns, who put together a scorching start for the third consecutive day, until a sluggish back-nine performance left the door open for the chasing pack heading into the final round.
Despite hitting the greens, Jahns’ momentum ground to a halt on the back nine, where he struggled to read the pace of the greens and squandered three to four realistic birdie opportunities.
“I started really hot for the third straight day,” said Jahns, who battled back from three down and stormed to a three-stroke lead after an eagle-spiked, scorching front-side 30. “I was hitting a lot of greens at the back, but I just couldn’t dial in the speed. The greens felt slow and I missed several birdie putts.”
His troubles followed him to the final hole. Holding a two-shot cushion over Lascuña on the 18th tee, Jahns hit an errant drive that left him scrambling for par from a difficult lie.
“I nearly salvaged a par, but those things happen,” said Jahns of his late stumble.
Despite the shaky finish, Jahns remained confident about defending his crown. His primary focus heading into the finale is maintaining his composure and tightening up his execution.
“I’m just staying in the present. I like the way I’m playing, and I’m managing the course very well,” he added.
“I’m always looking for ways to be more consistent and minimize mistakes so I can post a better score. To be honest, I still don’t feel entirely comfortable with my swing. But if I can manage the course well tomorrow, I should walk away with a good result.”
Meanwhile, Lascuña endured a roller-coaster round of his own. After watching his overnight three-shot lead evaporate — eventually falling three strokes behind Jahns in one stretch, he blamed a cold putter for his early slide.