There will be a favorite and an underdog in the final day of the Bonallack Trophy. Asia-Pacific outscored Europe 7,5 to 2,5 on Friday at La Manga, meaning the home team will have a five-point deficit to overcome in the singles.
It was all Asia-Pacific in the morning foursomes in Spain. Three of the five matches came to a close with two holes or more left to play, all won by the visitors.
The battle lasted a bit longer for New Zealand’s Joshua Bai and Vietnam’s Nguyen Anh Minh. But they won both of the last two holes to beat Michael Mjaaseth and Herman Sekne, 1 up.
Europe’s best chance to a full point came in match number two. England’s John Gough and Barclay Brown entered the final four holes in the lead. But errors off the tee put Korea’s Wooyoung Cho and Yubin Jang back in the mix, with the match eventually halved after a closing eagle for the Asia-Pacific side.
The visitors carried the same momentum into the afternoon fourballs. A session that also ended up with more points for the trophy holders, but also with sparks of a fight back from Europe.
John Gough and Alex Maguire had to come from behind in the top match. But their persistence paid off, with an eagle on the final par-5 18th securing a full point.
A full point after 18 holes was also the outcome in match number two for Sweden’s Albert Hansson and Tobias Jonsson. The Swedish pair ended a three-match winning streak by Aussies Harrison Crowe and Jack Buchanan.
But the final three matches of the session all went Asia-Pacific’s way, setting the overall score at 12,5 to 7,5.
Europe will need nothing short of a miracle at La Manga to win back the trophy from their opponents on the final day. The visitors need just 3.5 points from the 12 singles matches to take the trophy back east.
