Sugar Barons tee off for historic four-peat

DAVAO CITY, Philippines  – The 62nd Philippine Airlines Interclub golf tournament comes off the wraps here today with all eyes on the Canlubang team seeking a record “four-peat” sweep of the two major team championships.

The Canlubang seniors hope to build the momentum for Sugar Barons, looking for a good start in the event teeing off at the Apo Golf and at the Rancho Palos Verdes Golf and Country Club courses here.

The team’s core – Tommy Manotoc, Dave Hernandez, Rolando Viray, Bing Bunye, Tony Olives and Luigi Yulo – will spearhead Canlubang’s bid together with Jose Mari Hechanova and Philip Brodett.

The Cangolf seniors beat 12-time champion Luisita by 20 points last year, paving the way for the Sugar Barons’ third straight sweep.

Luisita was the first to sweep both Interclub crowns for three straight years (1991 to 1993) since the seniors championship was added in 1987. Luisita came close to duplicating the feat with twin titles in 1997 and 1998 but lost the following year.

Luisita, composed of Iggy Clavecilla, Richie Garcia, King Sumulong, Pepot Iñigo, Freddie Mendoza, Francis Gaston, Bong de Guzman and Bong Sison, is the only team expected to put up a tough challenge to Canlubang in the seniors play.

Interclub veterans, however, consider Canlubang the prohibitive pick with its powerhouse lineup.

“I can say our team is strong but we have to work hard to get win No. 13,” said Luisita manager Joey Romasanta.

As a strategy, team captains would not divulge the names of the players they would field at the start of the four-day event using the modified PAL points system of scoring. Each team fields four players per round with the best three scores counting for the team’s output.

The 2009 event lured a total of 151 local and foreign teams, including newcomers MSU Golf and Bowlers Golfers Association of British Columbia.

Thirty international teams from the United States, Canada, Australia, China, Taiwan and Saudi Arabia compete with 19 teams from Luzon, 14 from Mindanao and 12 from the Visayas in the annual PAL tourney.

PAL president and chief operating officer Jaime Bautista, PAL senior assistant vice president for Mindanao and tournament chairman Domingo Duerme, Davao City councilor Bonifacio Militar (representing Mayor Rodrigo Duterte), Police Chief/Superintendent Andres Caro of the Eastern Mindanao Directorate for Integrated Police Operations, Mindanao Business Council chairman Vic Lao, Independent director of Palos Verdes Nonoy Llamas and Apo Golf and Country Club president Jimmy Larrabaster hit the ceremonial drives which kicked off the 23rd seniors tournament yesterday.

The Platinum sponsors are ABS-CBN Cable Channels & Print Media Group, Airbus, Boeing, Business Mirror, Mizuno, MTV Philippines, Radio Mindanao Network and Solar Sports.

Action Asia, Bombo Radyo, Crossover 105.1, People Asia, Royal Caribbean and XFM 92.3 are the major backers. The other supporters are Inquirer.net, PAGCOR, Rajah Broadcasting Network, Century Park Hotel and hole-in-one sponsor Honda Cars Davao.