Pinoy Golfer Blog

The golf course was the clear winner here; no one in the field finished under par. 2nd day leader Ferdie Aunzo had a rough day and fell into a tie for ninth. Jay Bayron and Marvin Dumandan battled tooth and nail all day. The decisive moment came when Bayron birdied 17 to nose ahead by 1 stroke. Dumandan had a birdie putt on 18 to force of playoff, but he missed the tough downhill, right-to-lefter to hand Bayron the win. Next stop of the Philippine Golf Tour is the formidable South Course at Valley Golf Club. Hope to see you there! Chipping over the bunker on the 18th green was a common sight at the ICTSI Forest Hills Championships 15-year old Miguel Tabuena impressed everyone with solid play... Read More

I’ve taken a more active role in this leg of the Philippine Golf Tour. Instead of being just a spectator I’ve taken the plunge and volunteered to help in the event as a marshall. It’s been an enlightening experience and reinforced my knowledge and application of the rules. I spent most of the two days with Bobby Chico, an established rulesman and golf director of my home club Eagle Ridge working the more difficult back nine. It’s been a really fun experience thus far. The pros have been very easy to work with and have all been really friendly. Although I’ve played the course many times in the past, this is the first time that I’ve seen Forest Hills in real... Read More

The Petronas Twin Towers A unique opportunity came my way a couple of weeks ago. I got a phone call from the Tourism Malaysia station inquiring whether I’d like to fly to Malaysia and play Kota Permai Golf and Country Club. After recovering from the initial shock, I rushed to pack as I was to leave in two weeks. Soon I was on board a Malaysian Airlines Airbus A330 bound for Kuala Lumpur. My guide Adib, proudly showed off the new government city of Putra Jaya where the government had relocated all government offices in an effort to decongest Kuala Lumpur. The city is built around a series of man-made waterways spanned by bridges of varying designs. The government offices are a sight to... Read More

8th Active Group Mid – Am Open November 12 & 13, 2009 ENTRY ELIGIBILITY The Active Group Mid– Amateur Open is open to all male amateur golfers ages 30 years old and above. Only NGAP or IPI handicap index for the month of October 2009 will be a…ccepted, or as otherwise approved by the Tournament Committee. Registration shall only be confirmed upon payment of entry fee and submission of current handicap index. Entry is open to the first 130 participants. MANNER OF PLAY Competition is a 36-hole stroke play for all divisions. CLASSIFICATION Open Division – 30 years old and above, with a handicap index 9 or below Open Division II – 30 years old and above, with a handicap index... Read More

Ferdie Aunzo broke out as a professional at Royal Northwoods Golf and Country Club in quaintly named Coral-na-Bato, San Rafael Bulacan when he won the ICTSI Royal Northwoods Championships by one stroke over a hard charging Rey Pagunsan. Aunzo started the final round with a five stroke lead, but the veteran Pagunsan who started 5-strokes back of Aunzo, scorched the course with a closing 65. Aunzo admited being surprised when he found out that his lead was down to one. Still he managed his game and the course and had just enough left at the end to secure his first win as a professional. Aunzo was a member of the national team and was touted as the next amateur hope but decided cut short his stint... Read More

The 18th of the Mountain View Course Known to the rest of us as Mimosa, the CDC Golf & Country Club was built on the original Clark Air Base Golf Course. Redesigned in 1992 under Mimosa Leisure Estate chair Antonio Gonzales by Hawaii based course architects Robin Nelson and Neal Haworth, Mimosa now boasts 36-holes of delightful golf that exploits the differences in terrain of the vast property. The Mountain Course is the championship layout. It’s long; a whopping 7,303 yards from the Green championship tees. It’s a slightly unusual layout with three par-threes on the front and just one on the back nine. The first three holes take you around a hill that hosts the former communications... Read More

One of the unusual yardage markers at Fontana This one was a real surprise to me. I knew Fontana had plans to build a Graham Marsh designed golf course back when they were just starting out, but I also knew the plan was scuttled after the bottom fell out of the club share market in the 90s. There was a time that I worked for an IT company specializing in hospitality systems management that bid for the hotel front office and point of sale systems in the restaurants of Fontana. We spent long hours in Clark at the Fontana site, walking the skeletons of the unfinished buildings trying to determine work flow, operating systems and how to connect everything with the main servers. Our meetings with... Read More