Juvic Pagunsan fell out of the top 10 and wound up at joint 25th in the dangerous weather-hit second round of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics men’s golf tournament on Friday, July 30, at the Kasumigaseki Golf and Country Club.

Pagunsan fired a two-over par 73 for a total of three-under par 139 after 36 holes.

The 43-year-old Filipino had hoped to build on his impressive five-under par 66 in the opening round, that put him three strokes behind first round leader Sepp Straka of Austria.

But Pagunsan hit four bogeys in the 5th, 8th, 11th, and 13th that cost him his good position.

Though he birdied the 15th hole to try to save his performance, he failed to repeat it with three straight pars to cap off the round.

There were also big movements within the leaderboard, but the tournament was disrupted by lightning.

Four-time major winner Rory McIlroy of Ireland vaulted to a joint fifth place, while Japan’s prized golfer Hideki Matsuyama, who won the host country’s first major title in the 2021 PGA Masters, did not complete the round due to the tournament suspension and is currently tied for third.

Both rallied from a joint 20th place after hitting a 69 in the opening round, Thursday.

Straka also dropped to fifth and surrendered the lead to current leader Xander Schauffele of the US, who hit two eagles to cap off the round with an eight-under par 63 for a total of 11-under par 131.

Pagunsan can still rebound in the last half of his maiden Olympic golf campaign.

The organizers announced that the second round will resume, in position, on Saturday, July 31, 6:45 am, Philippine time and approximate third round tee times will be between 8:30 am to 10:18 am on the 1st and 10th tees in groups of three athletes.

The Bacolod native is the oldest member of the Philippine delegation at 43 years old, but has been on a hot momentum as he claimed the 2021 Mizuno Open with a three-stroke margin. 

He also qualified for the 2021 British Open, but he opted out due to scheduling conflicts with the Olympics.

Pagunsan hopes to bank on his veteran experience as a former Asian Tour top earner and he has also been playing in the professional Japan Golf Tour since 2012. – Rappler.com