It was cinema. Tabuena started calmly (–1 in 7 holes) and, when the battle tightened with Sampson Zheng and Sarit Suwannarut, he achieved an eagle on the 8th that turned the tournament in his favour. From there, four birdies and zero concessions. On the 18th, knee to the ground and tears: “It is the biggest golf event ever organised in the Philippines… winning it here, as a Filipino, is an incredible honour.” Words from a 31-year-old champion who faced the week with emotional and physical strain —having withdrawn due to neck issues in the previous tournament— and responded magnificently.
The victory elevates Tabuena to four wins on the Asian Tour, surpassing the national record of Angelo Que (3), and pushes him above 3 million dollars in career earnings. Higa, who came from two consecutive titles in September, regains the lead in the Order of Merit with his second place. Asaji marked his competitive resurgence with an unleashed weekend (including a 29 on the back nine on Saturday and a holed bunker shot on the 17th on Sunday).
Among the LIV figures, the best was Marc Leishman (65, 6th solo), while Caleb Surratt (67) shared seventh place with Gaganjeet Bhullar (69). Dustin Johnson finished with 67 for a 15th place at –13. But the week —and the postcard— belonged to Tabuena and his country.
The International Series now travels to Hong Kong for the Link Hong Kong Open (30 Oct–2 Nov), before heading to Singapore and concluding in Saudi Arabia. A red-hot calendar. The only Spaniard present at this event, Eduard Rousaud, missed the cut by two strokes.
