Sunday, March 02, 2008 Bacolod comes full circle By Mike T. Limpag Of Sun.Star Cebu
BACOLOD City—It ended where it all started.
Cebu Country Club’s quest for a fourth straight crown in the Founders Division of the PAL Interclub crashed as the team struggled to its lowest score, limping to a third place finish at the Bacolod Golf and Country Club.
In contrast, Alta Vista Golf and Country Club saved their best for last as it overtook Iloilo to finish second in the Sportswriters Division.
“We did not really play well. The whole week, no one really stood out,” said Jovi Neri of CCC, which leaned on Mark Dy’s record 42 points for their three-peat last year.
Trailing the leaders by just three points, the CCC floundered to a 106 to lose second spot to Orchard by just one point.
CCC tallied 440, on rounds of 108, 107, 119 and 106, while Orchard scored 123, the best one-day tally in the division. Host Negros Occidental Golf and Country Club took the crown after scoring a 119 for 456.
“We were already down by 18 in the first nine holes and we just managed to narrow it down,” said Neri.
After losing sight of first place, the team failed to notice Orchard slowly creeping in for second.
“Nawad-an ug gana, mao wala mi kabantay. That is also a good wakeup call for the team,” said Neri. (We lost enthusiasm, that’s why we didn’t notice.)
Positive
Despite failing to perform the way they used to in previous editions, when they usually mount a final day surge to steal the crown, Neri sees a positive in their third place finish.
“We just didn’t perform. It’s been just a bad week, but we were still in contention going into the final day,” said Neri, who had a 26 and a 27 in the first two rounds.
CCC’s fourth-round score was only good for sixth among the top 10 in the division, with fourth placer Wack Wack scoring 114 for a 414, while fifth placer Riviera Golf tallying 110 to finish with a 411 total.
“You can’t win them all,” was all captain Montito Garcia could say after losing their title yesterday.
Jojo Tiongko was the only bright spot in the team as he tallied 31, while Nonoy Tirol improved on his 20 in the second day with a 26 yesterday.
Carl Almario, who scored a 31 in the third round at the Negros Golf and Country Club, scored a 23 yesterday, while Eric Deen, who fired a 32 in the third round, had a quiet 26.
Deen’s 32 in the first round was the best showing of the team, a far cry to Dy’s record last year.
From the rear
On the other hand, Chris Infante and Francis Gaston led Negros’ final day surge with a 34 and 33, while Maximio Javelona III and Jaime Yusay brought up the rear with a 27 and 25, respectively.
Orchard leaned on Dong Hwan Koo’s 32 and the 31 each from Wolen Superal and Remo Fueg. Peter Salvador added a 29.
With the end of their streak, CCC will pick up anew when the tournament hits Davao City next year.
“I hope we can do better and at least. We will be in neutral territory, “ said Neri.
Though there are four Davao teams in the Interclub, they are playing in the Founders and Sportswriters Divisions.
Mactan Island Golf and Country Club, which is playing in the division for the first time after finishing third in the Sportswriters Division last year, finished at seventh place after yesterday’s 104 for their 403.
Good start
Mactan started with a blaze in the division after opening with a 108, to tie CCC at second. However, they faltered in the middle rounds with a 93 and a 98 to fall out of contention for the top spots.
Ramon Morada led Mactan with a 28, while Fernando Monderas scored a 27. Oscar Cornelio also contributed 25, while Jonathan Dionson had a 24.
In the Sportswriters division at the Negros Golf and Country Club, Alta Vista scored 106, the best in the division, to steal second place from Iloilo. The team finished with a 410, four points clear of third placer Iloilo. Villamor, which scored a 120 in the third round, finished first with a 97 yesterday for their 423.
Enrico Solon, who scored a 36—the best of anyone from Cebu—in the second round, led Alta Vista to its best finish with a 29 yesterday, while Edsel Tan scored a 27. Victor Gocela and Dennis Canoy also had 25 each.
Meanwhile, in the Championship Division, a race that was finished as early as the second round, Canlubang formalized its sweep of the division with a 129 yesterday for a 536 for its third straight title, mirroring the feat of its seniors team just a week ago.
The team finished 36 points clear of second placer Southwoods, which finished runnerup for the third straight year, while Del Monte took third with a 490.
Jhonel Ababa and Paul Echaves had a pair of 33s, while Mark Fernando and Jessie Balasabas had 32 and 31, respectively for Canlubang.
On the other hand, Gene Bondoc duplicated his 35 in the first round with another 35 yesterday for Southwoods, while Jin Jun Jong Chun had a 31. Justin Lim Jap and Charles Hong had 30 each.
Jett Plete led Del Monte with a 37, while Park Jun Sub had 33 for their 123 yesterday. Yoyong Velez scored 129 and Julius Bautista scored a 24 for their 490 total.
