Copa de Casino

Casino Español de Cebu has dedicated the whole month of March for sports. Well, it will not just be sports like holding a small event here and there, but a grand celebration of sports itself.

I was at the press conference last Tuesday evening and learned that they have scheduled tournaments in golf, billiards, badminton, bowling, swimming, poker, and basketball.

The golf tournament aptly dubbed as "Copa de Golf" is set on the last part of the month, said Edgar Chiongbian, who will be at the helm of the event.

This tournament is something that is also close to my heart since I saw how it started in the late 1990s when I was invited by my good friend Edito 'Nonoy' Tirol to help out.

The tournament was first played at Club Filipino in Danao City then moved to the Mercedes Plantation Golf and Country Club in Medellin before heading to the Cebu Country Club.

Edgar said that they are still negotiating with two probable venues for the event and are working on coming up with a format that would draw a lot of interest from the Cebu golfing community.

The tennis event, according to Jeffrey Dico will also be open to non-members of Casino Español. I learned about it while he was talking to tennis champ and columnist John Pages, who along with his dad, Bunny, brought the media to the event.

Although I did not quite get all the details of the other events that are planned, I managed to pull aside Nonoy Tirol after the press conference to encourage him to include volleyball in the line-up.

He seemed interested about it and I surely hope they can really include one of my favorite sports in the "Copa de Casino."

Mark your calendars for March and watch the events unfold at Casino Español.

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It's over two weeks away, but many are now eagerly anticipating the Philippine Airlines Interclub Golf Tournament that will be held at the Pueblo de Oro Golf and Country Club and the Del Monte Golf Club.

The PAL Interclub was first held in Cagayan de Oro in 2000 and was last held there in 2004.

The Interclub once had a permanent home in Cebu, but moved between Bacolod and Davao for several years until it moved to Cagayan de Oro. Then Cebu once again hosted the event acclaimed as the national interclub championship in 2001, but it doesn't look like it will be coming back here very soon.

The seniors' event will open the PAL Interclub on February 16 to 18 then the men's regular event will follow starting on the 21st to the 24th.

On the two free days, the media event will be played.

One thing that has changed in the PAL Interclub is that two courses are now being used unlike in the past when the seniors' tournament will be played in one course and the men's regular event in another.

Well, with the event getting bigger, organizers are also looking for ways to make them better.

I am heading to Cagayan de Oro for my 14th PAL Interclub and just like in the past, I always look forward to the excitement that this event brings.

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MILESTONE: I'd like to greet the chairman of the board of The FREEMAN Jose 'Dodong' Gullas a very happy birthday!

Sir Dodong as he is fondly called, is a man who wears many hats and one of them is as an athlete and sportsman. Many probably do not know that he was part of the national champion team of the University of the Visayas back in his collegiate days.

He is an avid tennis player and is the man responsible for bringing back the fans to the inter-school league when he introduced the home and away format while sitting as president of the Cebu Amateur Athletic Association (CAAA) now known as the CESAFI.

More power to you Sir!