Miri: Jay Bayron of the Philippines won his third Asian Development Tour (ADT) title by defeating Hsu Mong-nan of Chinese Taipei and Malaysian Nicholas Fung by one-shot at the PGM Eastwood Valley Masters on Saturday.

Bayron, who started the final round with a three-shot lead, carded an even-par 72 to win his second ADT title of the season, which propelled him to the top of the Order of Merit.

Hsu and Fung made a final round charge of 70 and 68 respectively but had to settle for tied second at the US$80,000 ADT event staged at the Eastwood Valley Golf and Country Club.

Bayron was delighted to overcome the pressure from Hsu and Fung as he held on to his overnight lead with three birdies against as many bogeys.

“I felt the pressure throughout the round. I came from behind to win in Indonesia so to be leading going into the last day was different for me,” said Bayron, who totalled 11-under-par 277 and won US$14,000.

The Filipino is now a step closer to securing a 2013 Asian Tour card as the top three players on the Order of Merit will earn playing rights on the region’s established Tour.

“I knew how important this win would mean to me and my rankings on the Order of Merit. It isn’t easy to finish in the top three of the Merit list but I know that it is even more stressful trying to earn your Asian Tour card in Qualifying School.

“This win means a lot to me. I’m happy I won and now I’m quite confident of staying inside the safety zone. I just need a good result in Chinese Taipei (Yeangder ADT Championship, which is the last event of the season) to cement my position,” said Bayron.

After his birdie on the fourth hole, Hsu played par golf and needed a final push to secure his first ADT win. He was rewarded with a birdie on 15 but his title hopes was dashed when he ended his campaign with a bogey and birdie finish.

“I’m happy with how I finished. This is my second runner-up result on the ADT and I feel that I’m coming closer to a victory,” said Hsu, who has played on the Asian Tour since 1997.

Fung was aiming for a third straight victory after winning successive tournament at the Palembang MUSI Championship on the ASEAN PGA Tour and the PGM Negeri Sembilan Classic in the past two weeks but took pride in his battling performance. He said the result will prepare him for the Barclays Singapore Open next week.

“I’m very happy with how I played because I was bogey free. I’ve learned a lot about my game and I’m feeling very confident. Hopefully I can continue in Singapore next week,” said the Sabahan, who took over as the new

Leading final round scores (Malaysians otherwise stated)
277 – Jay Bayron (PHI) 67-71-67-72
278 – Nicholas Fung 73-70-67-68, Hsu Mong-Nan (TPE) 66-71-71-70
280 – Sukree Othman 69-73-70-68
281 – Sofian Kepli 73-67-72-69
282 – Hirotaro Naito (JPN) 69-74-69-70
283 – Park Jin-Woo (KOR) 69-71-69-74
284 – Mitsuhiko Hashizume (JPN) 72-72-69-71
285 – James Byrne (SCO) 74-70-70-71
286 – Carl Santos Ocampo (PHI) 72-72-71-71, R. Nachimuthu (MASl) 70-73-68-75