Staff WriterSarit Suwannarut is playing like a man possessed at the International Series Philippines, turning Sta. Elena Golf Club into his personal playground.
The Thai star, already a two-time winner on the Series, fired a six-under-par 66 to stretch his lead to four shots at the halfway mark of the US$2 million event presented by BingoPlus.
After an opening-round 64, Sarit now sits comfortably at 14-under-par — the kind of number that makes the rest of the field glance nervously at the leaderboard and wonder if he’s even human.
Local favourite Miguel Tabuena gave the home fans plenty to shout about with a spectacular 65, featuring a hole-in-one and an eagle in the space of three holes, vaulting him into second alongside Japan’s Kazuki Higa (69) at 10-under.
Behind them lies a logjam of contenders at nine-under, including Japan’s Yosuke Asaji (66), Korea’s Soomin Lee (67), Chinese Taipei’s Wang Wei-hsuan (67), and Hong Kong’s Matthew Cheung (67).
Add in New Zealand’s Denzel Ieremia (67), America’s Patrick Reed (66), and India’s Gaganjeet Bhullar (69) at eight-under, and you’ve got a leaderboard that reads like a mini United Nations summit — nine countries represented in the top 10.
But all eyes remain on Sarit, whose steady poise and relentless form have been impossible to ignore. His day began in trouble — his first tee shot found the penalty area — yet somehow, he walked off the green with a birdie.
“It helped a lot (the birdie on first). I mean, after I hit the tee shot, I didn’t even know where it was. I asked Guna (caddie) where it was and he said it was in the fairway. I didn’t believe him.
Luckily, I got a good lie and it was a good shot from about 50 yards, and the birdie helped to keep the momentum from yesterday,” said Sarit, who has only made one bogey in each of his first two rounds.
It’s that mix of luck, skill, and mental control that separates the hot streaks from the truly great weeks.
“You just have to focus only on what you have to do, and hit your shot. I have been playing good golf for the past four weeks, so I know what I can do.
“I know my game well, and I’ve just tried to stay calm and focus on what I need to do. So far, it’s been working nicely, and I hope to keep the momentum going over the next two days.”
While Sarit cruised, Tabuena ignited the gallery. The Filipino hero started his round from the 10th and made early sparks fly, holing out on the par-three 14th for an ace — the kind of moment that turns golf crowds into football fans. Three holes later, he eagled the par-five 16th and then rolled in birdies at the 18th, second, and third to finish on a high.
“It’s not every day you make a hole-in-one, but I was glad I kept it together after that. There’s a lot of golf to be played, but it was nice. It’s been probably six years since my last one and only second in a competition. It was nice that it was here in front of friends, family and in my home club,” said Tabuena, who was forced to withdraw from the SJM Macao Open due to a neck spasm.
“And then the eagle on the 16th. That was a perfect seven-wood for me. I don’t know how many times I’ve eagled that hole, so it’s very familiar for me. And that is my favourite pin position for that hole, so it was very green light for me.
“I slowed down quite a bit after the birdies on the second and third. But other than that, it was a pretty solid round. The plan was to get back in position for moving day tomorrow.”
Meanwhile, Higa — currently sitting second on the Asian Tour Order of Merit — found the greens at Sta. Elena less cooperative on Friday but still managed to stay in the hunt.
“I struggled a lot on the greens, had so many chances but holed almost nothing. But even after missing some short putts to make bogey, I managed to make a few good birdies. It was a little bit frustrating, but I just had to be patient,” said Higa.
“I have talked about it before, I want to play well in International Series events. However, it’s just halfway. So just trying to keep the good feeling like today, and try to shoot some good scores.”
England’s Steve Lewton posted the low round of the week with a blemish-free 63, erasing the memory of his opening 74, while star attraction Dustin Johnson had a rare off day — carding a one-over 73 that included a double bogey on the par-five eighth.
The International Series Philippines is the sixth stop of nine elevated events on the 2025 Asian Tour schedule. And as moving day looms, the script is set: Sarit Suwannarut is leading the dance, but with the local favourite charging, the global field lurking, and the tropical winds shifting, this one’s far from over.
If there’s one thing the International Series Philippines has already proven — it’s that golf in Asia has never looked more competitive, colourful, or downright unpredictable.
