Tuesday, August 28, 2007 Imee Garcia: The lady golfer is a champion By Charles Raymond A. Maxey
IF SWEDEN has Annika Sorenstam and the Philippines takes pride in Jennifer Rosales, Davao City has a golfing gem in Imee Garcia.
Just like Sorenstam and Rosales, Garcia is also a champion golfer and has raked in numerous titles to her name. And because of her dedication to the sport, Garcia has brought countless honors to Davao and Philippine sports in general with her explosive playmaking on the golf course.
Garcia, 41, was a Class B winner in the Southern Ladies Tournament, an event participated in by top lady golfers from around the country.
She also won several titles in the Samsung Amateur tournaments and represented Mindanao in the Arafura Games in Darwin, Australia a few years back.
Not only that, Garcia had also scored a hole-in-one in her career and made the rarest shot in golf--a double eagle which she made at the Lanang Country Club four years ago.
Most people in Davao do not know about her double eagle, but Garcia did whack a 5-wood from some 180 yards out for her second shot on Lanang's hole No. 15, with the ball hitting the green and disappearing into the hole.
"I hit my drive straight and long and it was a little over the sandtrap on the left part of the fairway," Garcia recalls that memorable day.
"I used a 5-wood on my second shot. I hit it long and straight and the ball rolled all the way to the green and dropped into the hole. Wow," added Garcia, who had Dr. Manny Tan, Inday Tan, Jean Gotianse and Leni Hao as her flightmates and witnesses at the time.
Garcia made her hole-in-one at the Apo Golf and Country Club's hole No. 7. What made the day more remarkable was that Garcia's ace was one of two holes-in-one scored in just one flight.
"The distance was 134 yards, and I used a 6-iron, easy swing. What happened that day was super spectacular. It may not have happened before anywhere else in the world," Garcia said.
The other hole-in-one scorer of that flight was Pablo Arellano. It was an amazing feat--two holes-in-one on the same course, on the same hole, on the same flight.
Garcia, who is still single, easily fell in love with golf because her family plays the game. Her dad Antonio Garcia is an avid golder and her mom Baby is also into the sport.
Imee is also a member of three golf clubs -- Apo, Lanang and Ranchos Palos Verdes. She was also a former director of the Apo Golf and Country Club.
"Unlike most sports, golf is an intense sport and I like intense play. It's like chess, but with physical action. I like golf because I compete against myself, always trying to correct my game and becoming a better player. It's not all about power. To me, golf is 80 percent mental and only 20 percent power or strength," Garcia said.
Asked about her favorite golfer, Imee's reply showed another facet of her character: "My favorite golfer has always been Fred Couples because I find him handsome and gentle-looking. He used to play well during his heyday. I also like to watch Tiger Woods. I like to watch Tiger because he gets so intense when he plays. You hardly see him smile. He traeats every shot like it's the ultimate shot and I admire him for that," Garcia said.
Today, Imee rarely plays in golf tournaments because of her job. She is the general manager of Hotel Galleria and also writes for Sun.Star Davao as golf columnist.
But if her time permits, Garcia still heads for the fairways to play her favorite sport--golf--which she says brings her joy meeting more people, gaining new friends and allows her to travel to other places.
"I have had a lot of laughs, too. It's fun and entertaining. It's not always about competition," Garcia said.
