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Angelo
Que finished second behind Singaporean Lam Chih-bing in
the first leg of the Mercedes-Benz Tour—the
Mercedes-Benz Masters Indonesia—played at the Emeralda
Golf and Country Club in
Jakarta.
Que
trailed Lam by eight strokes halfway through, but got
back into the groove with a seven-under 65 on the third
day and a one-under 71 Sunday. The reigning Philippine
Open champion closed out with a 14-under 274, three off
Lam’s 271.
Malaysian Danny Chia was six strokes behind Lam at
70-277. Filipino Tony Lascuna (71-282) and Malaysian
Sukree Othman (72-282) were tied for fourth.
Other
Filipino finishers were Mars Pucay, 69-285 (ninth);
Marvin Dumandan, 70-290 (22nd); Raymund Sangil, 68-292,
and Jay Bayron, 75-292 (27th); Cassius Casas, 76-298
(39th); Gene Bondoc, 75-299, and Mike Bibat, 78-299
(41st).
The
Mercedes-Benz Tour, which boasts of 10 events this year,
with each event offering $50,000 as prize money, heads
to the Mercedes-Benz Masters Philippines at the Tagaytay
Midlands Golf Club in Tagaytay City this week.
The
Mercedes-Benz Masters, which will be coorganized by CATS
Motors Inc., begins with a pro-am side event tomorrow,
where 120 participants comprising 30 teams (one pro and
three amateurs) battle it out for honors and cash
prizes.
Tagaytay
Midlands Golf Club, one of two world-class courses
inside the vast Tagaytay Highlands and Midlands
property, meanwhile, announced recently the near
completion of its new driving-range facility.
The
driving range, which covers about 1,200 square meters
and uses the Tifton 419 grass variety, is being put up
in time for the Mercedes-Benz Masters Philippines.
“The
driving range is a great addition to the club. We know
that the Asean Golf Tour professionals, including our
very own top golfers, would benefit from this because it
gives them another venue to warm up before the
tournament starts,” said Tagaytay Midlands general
manager Mabel Martinez.
On a
long-term basis,
Martinez
said, the driving range would greatly benefit members of
the Tagaytay Highlands and Midlands golf clubs.
CATS
Motors, Inc., the Philippine distributor or
Mercedes-Benz and co-organizers of the Mercedes-Benz
Masters, which is also part of the worldwide
Mercedes-BENZ Tour program, is very excited at the
prospect of working with Tagaytay Midlands as the
official tournament venue.
“With a
championship course and, soon, a driving range, CATS
Motors and Mercedes-BENZ are eager to showcase to the
Asean Region what the Philippines has to offer when it
comes to organizing major golf events,” CATS Motors
chairman Greg Yu and president Felix Ang jointly said.
“I’ve
been hearing so much good reviews about Tagaytay
Midlands. With the structure soon to rise give more
excitement to the Mercedes-BENZ Masters,” said Joechen
Carle, vice president of GD Markets and Southeast Asia
of Daimler SEA Singapore.
Late
last month, the Asean Golf Tour and Daimler Southeast
Asia (makers of Mercedes-BENZ) launched a three-year
deal covering three years of the Mercedes-BENZ Tour. As
part of the partnership, both parties will stage at
least 10 professional tournaments (two in the
Philippines) exclusive for players in the Asean region
with each having a guaranteed prize of $50,000 (at least
P2 million).
The
Mercedes-BENZ Masters officially begins on Wednesday
with the invitational pro-am side event where about 30
pros and 90 guest amateurs are participating. The
inaugural leg opened this week with the Mercedes-Benz
Masters in Indonesia. |
