BACOLOD CITY—The 61st Philippine Airlines (PAL) Interclub golf tournament comes off the wraps Thursday with Canlubang Golf and Country Club focused on one goal: a rare “three-peat” sweep of the two major team championships.

“Of course, that’s our focus,” Cangolf team owner Luigi Yulo said after the Sugar Barons won their second straight victories in both the Men’s Regular and Seniors divisions in Cagayan de Oro last year.

Only one club has swept both Interclub crowns thrice in a row since the first Men’s Regular event was launched in 1948, and the Seniors championship was added in 1987.

That was Luisita Golf and Country Club, which pulled off the feat from 1991 to 1993.  Luisita again came close with twin titles in 1997 and 1998, but lost the following year.

That puts Canlubang on the cusp of making history.  But with the pressure building up, the powerhouse squad from Laguna insists it just wants to play good golf, and if it wins in the process, well and good.

“More than the record, we just want to win them both again, if possible,” Cangolf general manager Rolly Viray said last week.

The 21st Seniors Interclub officially opened Wednesday with the hitting of the traditional ceremonial drives on the first tee of the Negros Occidental Golf and Country Club (NOGCC), followed by the team captains meeting.

Doing the honors were Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia, PAL president Jaime J. Bautista, NOGCC president Panio Torre and top golf pro Frankie Miñoza.

The Bacolod Golf and Country Club in nearby Hacienda Binitin in Murcia is the other host club this year.

The Seniors tournament will end February 24.  The Men’s Regular championship will be played from February 27 to March 1.

“A record field of 160 clubs—83 in the Seniors and 77 in the Men’s—are competing this year,” said tournament chairman Domingo T. Duerme.  “This easily surpasses last year’s aggregate attendance of 140 clubs in both classes.”

Aside from clubs hailing from all over the archipelago, teams from the United States, Canada, China, Australia and Saudi Arabia are also seeing action in the Interclub.

California boasts of teams from San Francisco, Daly City, San Diego, Crystal Spring and Los Angeles.  The other US entrants are clubs from New Jersey, Pittsburgh, Las Vegas, Honolulu, Texas and Guam.

There are also teams from Shanghai, Taipei, Vancouver and Sydney competing.

The Interclub was launched by PAL 61 years ago and it has evolved over the decades to become the acknowledged national clubs championship of the Philippines.

The 61st PAL Interclub, dubbed “Sugar and Tee,” will be jointly played on the sugar-growing province’s two premier golf courses—the Negros Occidental Golf and Country Club in downtown Bacolod City and the Bacolod Golf and Country Club in nearby Murcia.

Both par-70 layouts have hosted the Interclub many times in the past, including the milestone 50th championships in 1997 and, most recently, the 58th tournament in 2002.

This year’s competition is backed by platinum sponsors Airbus, Boeing, Bombardier, GE Aviation, MTV Philippines and Solar Sports.

The major sponsors are Action Asia, BusinessMirror, Crossover, Pacsports and Royal Caribbean.

Fortune Tobacco, GECAS, MasterCard, People Asia and RMN are the corporate sponsors, while Bombo Radyo, Callaway Golf, Century Park Hotel, Lufthansa Technik and Patio Pacific Boracay are the minor sponsors.

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BACOLOD CITY—The 61st Philippine Airlines (PAL) Interclub golf tournament comes off the wraps Thursday with Canlubang Golf and Country Club focused on one goal: a rare “three-peat” sweep of the two major team championships.

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