Yuka Saso’s ride in Jakarta, Indonesia was a roller coaster. By the end of the ride, she not only bagged a gold – she ended up with two.
With the top prize on the line, and three shots down entering the last hole, Saso sank a pressure-laden eagle putt from 10 feet on the par-five 19th as erstwhile-leader, China’s Liu Wenbo, collapsed with a quadruple bogey on the same hole in a dramatic conclusion at the par-72, 6,252-yard layout.
With identical three-under 33s in the front nine, the 17-year-old Filipino-Japanese wunderkind capped her golden Asian Games debut with a four-round tally of 275, three shots better than Liu, who slumped to a 73 and settled for the silver with a 278 aggregate.
As the icing on the cake, Bianca Pagdanganan came charging home with a similar six-under 66 to snatch the individual bronze medal with a combined 72-hole score of 279.
With the sterling final-round performances of Saso and Pagdanganan, the squad – which includes Louis Kay Go – rallied to lift the team championship trophy with a four-round output of 554, relegating South Korea to silver (557) and China to bronze (558).
In just one day, the prolific Filipina parbusters were able to contribute two golds and one bronze to the country’s overall medal tally, tripling the lone gold won by BMX rider Danny Caluag in the Incheon edition four years ago.
Their glowing achievement also ended a 32-year gold-medal drought in the sport since former amateur standout Ramon Brobio bagged the individual men’s mint in the 1986 Seoul Asian Games.
“I feel very happy. I really don’t know what to say,” enthused Saso of her memorable maiden appearance in this continental sports showcase. “Sobrang saya at ganda ang experience ko this week.
“I just never lost faith in myself and I never doubted this team form the beginning. We are all fighters and we really fought hard for our country.”
Idolized by fans as a big star back home, chef de mission Richard Gomez, who watched the team from the gallery, couldn’t help himself and was just like an ordinary fan – asking to be photographed together with the country’s latest sensations.
