Song Min-hyuk leads Philippine Open by 4 shots after eagle, hole-in-one

Song Min-hyuk fired a 10-under-par 60 in the second round of the Philippine Open, the Asian Tour's season finale, to move four shots clear of the field Friday.

Playing at South Woods Golf and Country Club's Masters Course (par 70) in Manila, Song reached a 36-hole total of 10-under 130, pulling four strokes ahead of Sarit Suwannarut of Thailand, who sits alone in second place.

Suwannarut posted a 7-under 63 to reach 6-under 134 for the tournament. Sadom Kaewkanjana of Thailand, the reigning Korea Open champion, moved to 5-under 135 after a 3-under round to claim sole third place.

Starting on the 10th hole, Song made seven birdies over a five-hole stretch from the 14th through the 18th. At the 14th, an approach shot that struck the flagstick settled close to the cup for a birdie. At the 15th, his third shot from a bunker behind the green went straight into the hole.

At the par-4 16th, Song holed out from 126 yards in the fairway for an eagle. He then made a hole-in-one at the par-3 17th, using an 8-iron from 178 yards — the fifth ace of his career. The back-to-back eagle and hole-in-one brought him four strokes in just two holes, and he added a birdie at the par-5 18th to complete the front nine at 7-under 28.

Song made a bogey at the 1st hole to begin his back nine but added four more birdies over the remaining eight holes to finish with a 60. At the final hole, the 9th, he left a putt short of the cup that would have given him a 59. Song told local media he had chosen to play conservatively with two putts rather than risk a three-putt.

However, the round will not count as an official course record. Preferred lie conditions — allowing players to lift, clean and place the ball within a designated area — were in effect for the first two rounds. Local outlet Philstar said Danthai Boonma of Thailand holds the official course record of 62, set in the third round last year.

After his round, Song singled out the 15th hole as the turning point. He said he had focused simply on getting the ball onto the green from a difficult bunker lie, only for it to drop in, and that the momentum carried into the next hole, where a birdie attempt turned into an eagle.

Song, the 2024 Korea Professional Golf Association Tour Rookie of the Year, claimed his first professional victory and first Asian Tour title at the GS Caltex Maekyung Open this year. He is chasing a second tour win this week along with the Asian Tour Rookie of the Year award. His main rival for that honor, Cameron John of Australia, is absent from the event, competing in the DP World Tour Qualifying School this week.

Wang Jeong-hun carded a 5-under 65 to reach 4-under 136 for the tournament, placing him in a tie for fourth alongside Kevin Na of the United States and others. Ham Jeong-woo, who shared third place after the opening round, managed only an even-par round and fell to a tie for 10th at 3-under 137.

First-round leader Nick Voke of New Zealand struggled to a 4-over 74 and dropped into a tie for 18th at 1-under 139.