As-Pac berths staked in RP seniors

The 2006 Philippine Seniors Amateur Golf Championships presented by Harbour Centre will not only be a battle for top honors among the country’s golfing elders but also a fight for berths in the national squad competing in this year’s Asia-Pacific Men’s Seniors Golf Championship.

As defending champion in the Asia-Pacific region, the Philippines will be hard-pressed to come up with a very strong team like the one which competed and bested the best in the region, including fancied New Zealand and Australia, to win its very first As-Pac crown last year in China.

Rolly Viray, Francis Gaston, Iggy Clavecilla, Richie Garcia, Tommy Manotoc, Caloy Coscoluella and Clifford Celdran made up that champion squad and some of them are expected to clash again for this year’s crown in the Open division and at the same time lead the chase for slots in the team seeing action in 2006 Asia-Pacific Men’s Senior Amateur golf championship in November.

That should make the three-day event, slated June 14-16 at The Riviera, doubly interesting with the Langer course expected to challenge the shotmaking skills and mental toughness of the competing field.

Out to crowd the favorites in the event, conducted by the National Golf Association of the Philippines (NGAP) and backed by Mizuno, Nestea and Summit mineral water, are former Sen. Tito Sotto, Edwin Arcilla, Bing Bunyi, Bryan Cockrell, Boni Sumbilla, Peregrin de Guzman, Antonio Olves, Rupert Bayocot, Pete Cervantes, Philip Judan, Jose Marie Lao, Jose Nepomuceno, Danilo Pizarro and Fernando Quing.

Meanwhile, due to popular request, a separate age-group tournament for players aged 55-59 years outside of the Open category has been added, according to Pizarro, tournament committee chairman and NGAP vice president. The other age-group 36-hole competitions, slated June 14 and 16, are the Category II (60-64 years old), Category III (65-69), Super Senior (70-74) and Super Senior II (75 and above).