Renolds takes early lead at Philippine Open; Filipino Tabuena close behind

MANILA, Philippines – Canada’s Lindsay Renolds shot a 6-under-par 66 to take the first round lead at the Philippine Open golf tournament on Friday.

Renolds, ranked 95th in the Order of Merit, needs nothing short of victory to keep his Asian Tour card next year.

“It is a case of winning or going back to qualifying school for me this week. I got nothing to lose this week. I’m trying to stay motivated and focused,” said the Phuket-based 29-year-old.

Renolds was trailed by home favorite Miguel Tabuena, Chinnarat Phadungsil of Thailand, Gaganjeet Bhullar of India and Korean rising star Jeunghun Wang, who posted matching 67s at the Luisita Golf and Country Club.

The tour opening was delayed by a day and slashed to 54 holes due to bad weather from Typhoon Melor.

Renolds said he was lucky to have played a practice round on Tuesday, before the course was closed for two days.

“It is always an advantage seeing the course at least once. I played a quick 18 holes on Tuesday but it was very wet. I was just trying to get the round over with because I didn’t have an umbrella,” he said. – Rappler.com