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Bacolod City—Canlubang
started hot as expected, and Manila Golf, too—but that,
on the contrary, was rather surprising.
Canlubang, seeking its third-straight crown, pooled 145
points to pace the 61st Philippine Airlines (PAL)
Interclub Seniors tournament Thursday at the Bacolod
Golf and Country Club.
Manila
Golf, the Makati-based club, had 142 points and found
itself on unfamiliar territory—in second place hounding
the hat-trick-seeking Sugar Barons.
In fact,
Manila Golf’s players only realized they were running
second when the media hounded them for interviews.
“Really? Wow! We never realized we’re running second.
It was unbelievable,” said team member Alex Prieto.
“We are
clearly the underdogs here. We’ll adopt a
‘never-say-die’ attitude from hereon,” said lawyer
Manoling Chan, skipper of Manila Golf, which finished
fourth last year in Cagayan de Oro.
Canlubang skipper Luigi Yulo paced his team with 51
points, followed by Tommy Manotoc’s 48 and Baxo
Adriano’s 46. Rolly Viray had a 45, but did not count
in the new-look four-to-play, three-to-count format.
“The
sudden rise of Manila Golf caught us a little by
surprise because we are expecting rival Luisita to go
head-strong, too. Luisita could have been in better
position if [its] key player Iggy Clavecilla played. I
believe he had a bum stomach,” Viray, Cangolf manager,
told the BusinessMirror.
Viray
also could not help but comment on the new tournament
format, which replaced the eight-to-play, five-to-count
rule. “With the new setup, team captains will have to
choose the best four players for the day because every
point is crucial.”
Still,
even with the lead, Yulo admitted that his crew is not
yet in peak form. “We are up, and that’s what is
important. If we keep this up, it would be nice for
Cangolf to make it threepeat,” Yulo said.
Manotoc,
who usually scores in the high 50s, said: “We did not
play our usual consistency, but it’s still nice to be on
top.”
Eduardo
Cu-Unjieng led Manila Golf with 49 points. Severo Tuason
carded 47, while Prieto accounted for 46. Fourth man
Joey Yujuico’s 36 did not count.
Luisita,
considered as Canlubang’s toughest foe this year, only
managed 137. Pepot Iñigo had 47 points, and Carlo
Gamban and Bong Sison had 45 apiece.
The
Tarlac team sorely missed the services of Clavecilla.
An early evaluation before dinner Thursday revealed
Clavecilla has not yet fully recovered from the bum
stomach.
“We’ll
have to assess if he can play tomorrow. If not, the
other guys will have to step up big,” said Luisita
spokesman Freddie Mendoza.
Completing the top 10 in the championship division were
Alabang Country Club, 135; Negros Occidental Golf and
Country Club, the event’s other host this year, 128;
Chamorro Golf Club, 127; Fil-Cansa Golf Club, 105; and
San Francisco Peninsula, 96.
Over at
the Negros Occidental Golf and Country Club, the Orchard
Golf and Country Club came through with 138 points on
Rene Unson’s 49, Joe Gonzales’s 45 and the 44 of Philip
Gahol Jr. to open up an eight-point spread over Cebu
Country Club in the Founders’ division.
Former
champion Cebu Country Club made 130 built around the 45
of Koichi Horii, 44 of Efren Sarmiento and 41 of Anton
Fernando.
Camp
John Hay Golf and Country Club and Valley Golf and
Country Club were tied for the next slots with 126s
each, and Wack-Wack Golf and Country Club was fourth
with 125.
Airbus,
Boeing, Bombardier, GE Aviation, MTV Philippines and
Solar Sports are platinum sponsors, while Action Asia,
BusinessMirror, 105.1 Crossover, Pacsports and Royal
Caribbean International are the major backers of the
event.
Fortune
Tobacco, Gecas, MasterCard, People Asia, RMN, Bombo
Radyo, Callaway Golf, Century Park Hotel, Lufthansa
Technik, Patio Pacific Boracay, Philippine Long Distance
Telephone Co. and Pan Pacific Hotel are also supporting
the tournament. |
