Eastridge bags PAL golf crown

BACOLOD, Philippines — Eastridge-Primehomes won its first Philippine Airlines (PAL) Interclub Men’s Championship division Friday, doing it in wire-to-wire style and leaving the rest of the opposition biting its dust with a 21-point victory over Manila Southwoods.

“Finally. This is very sweet,” non-playing skipper Gimo Asuncion said at Negros Occidental Golf and Country Club (formerly Marapara) here.

Ronel Taga-an fired a three-under-par 67 worth 39 points to pace Eastridge’s closing 106 points that also counted Jeff Lumbo’s 35 and the 32 of Edison Tabalin, and the Binangonan-based crew tallied 415 points to post the win running away.

“The boys performed so well,” said Gary Sales, the ex-tee boy turned businessman who helped put this team together in 2021.

Southwoods struggled at the tree-lined, bending layout, tallying just 99 points with Perry Bucay’s 35 leading the way.

Together with the 32s of Zeus Sara and Santino Laurel, the Carmona-based squad that was denied a sixth title in the last seven years amassed 394 points and finished in second spot.

Tagaytay Highlands-Team IMG wound up third, 40 points off Eastridge after tallying a closing 95.