Sweeties inch closer to epic four-peat

Davao City — It won the battle in Apo and probably the war.

Defending champion Canlubang came up with a sure-fire formula for a massive breakaway, going into the trenches in a battle of will and character at the tough compact Apo course and emerged with a huge lead in its bid for a historic four-peat in the 56th PAL Interclub.

It threw an odd mix of native talent and old reliables over the hazard-laden 38-year-old course at the outskirt of the city and when the mano-a-mano with its top rivals was over in mid-afternoon it had secured a hefty 28-point margin over Manila Southwoods.

Now the Sweeties are two days away from history.

"Unless something catastrophic happens the last two days, it’s safe to say we are within reach of our goals," said Canlubang team captain Luigi Yulo, chief architect of the Sweeties’ 11 Interclub crowns since 1977.

The siege was swift and decisive.

Canlubang amassed 139 points in ideal conditions and came up with 280 total following a 141 in an initial clash with the Carmona team at the Ranchos Palos Verdes.

Former caddies’ champion Jay Bayron and Boyet Zaragosa, who grew up toting bags at Apo, exploited their working knowledge of the course for 36 and 35 points, respectively. Veteran Tommy Manotoc and former pro Dave Hernandez added 34 each for the Sweeties’ second day card.

That sustained offensive kept Canlubang’s momentum going that Jose Mari Hechanova’s 31, a virtual frontrunning score for some teams, was discarded from the team output.

"I’m confident of victory. For us to lose, Manila Soutwoods has to play exceptionally well. And for Southwoods to win, we have to play exceptionally bad," said Manotoc.

After an impressive start at the brand-new Palos Verdes, Southwoods simply failed to keep up with the champion’s torrid scoring and staggered to a 114 card with only a team high 33 coming from former national champion Artemio Murakami.

Erwin Vinluan added 30 but Montito Garcia struggled to a 27, Juami Rocha hobbled with a 24 while Junjun Plana didn’t count with 23. That gave Southwoods 252 after a first day 138.

The team hopes to regain lost ground at Palos Verdes in a make-or-break third round today by fielding the same unit that hung tough against the defending champion a day earlier led by Japanese Toru Nakajima and ace amateur Jerome Delariarte.

" We will not go without a fight. We have two rounds to go and I believe we have a chance however slim," said Southwoods skipper Thirdy Escano.

The other teams fared as badly in the wake of Canlubang’s charge.

Luisita came up with 117 to go with its earlier 119 for 236 and Del Monte collapsed from its strong 129 opener with a shocking 107 to share third place with the Tarlac squad.

Old hand Francis Gaston, known for his feats in individual and team derbies in the past, had 32 but Luisita missed some good cards from the rest with Ritchie Garcia and Jinky Tuason having 28s and Alex Montelibano a 29.

Del Monte had Ben Miñoza’s 28 as the top card. Budoy Mondilla and Lino Retuerto had identical 27s and Tommy Tabanas a 25 while Joel Opaco didn’t count with 23.

In the other divisions completed at presstime, Cebu Country Club posted a 13-point edge in its bid for an Interclub three-peat after a 103 with Eric Deen firing 30 points after a 36. Andre Borromeo had 25 and Keenan Ugarte and Marko Sarmiento 24 each.

Riviera came in second with 218 following a 106 on Eric Gozo’s 32, Bobby Celestino’s 26, Pepot Inigo’s 25 and Eric Escalona’s 23.

Iligan was running third with 98-214. Scorers for the team were Calvin Seveses 30, Ben Gualisa 24, Frederick Siao and Adlai Monzo 22 each.

Over at the Ranchos Palos Verdes, Bay Area-based Maharlika was showing the way with 177 in the Friendship division, followed by South Cotabato (155) and UP Tee Jots (139).

This year’s event has for major sponsors 105.1 Crossover, ABS-CBN Global, Air Philippines, CNN International, Fortune Tobacco, GE Aircraft Engines, Joey 92.3, MTV Philippines,PLDT, Premier Wines and Spirits, Radio Mindanao Network, Royal Caribbean International, The Marco Polo Hotel and UMBN- Mindanao Times.

The corporate backers are 96.3 WRock, Apo View Hotel, and Boeing International while the minor supporters are Accel Sports Gear, Asia Brewery, Century Park Hotel, Tanduay Rum, Taylormade, Nestle, and Discovery Channel.