Pinoy Golfer Blog

Long hitting journey-man Arnold Villacencio leads the field at the 2011 Aboitiz Invitational presented by ICTSI with a 1-under par 69 after the first day of play. Marvelous Marvin Dumandan sits alone in second with an even par 70 and five golfers, last year’s winner Jay Bayron, Edgar Ababa, Cassius Casas, Elmer Salvador and Antonio Asistio are a stroke further back at 1-over par. The rock hard greens at Cebu Country Club seem to be giving the foreign contingent fits as only four of them Tommy Mansuwan (+2), Jonathan Moore (+2), Matt Docking (+2) and Chang Chen Chih (+4) are anywhere near the top of the leaderboard. Juvic Pagunsan’s withdrawal with an untimely foot injury means the... Read More

Cebu, Philippines, August 30: Promising Sri Lankan talent, Mithun Perera tees off in the Aboitiz Invitational presented by ICTSI starting on Wednesday determined to maintain his steady progress on the Asian Development Tour (ADT). The 24-year-old finished tied 34th in his ADT debut at the Clearwater Masters in Malaysia and then improved with a solid 12th place outing at the Impian Classic, also in Malaysia in May. An appearance in the US$65,000 Aboitiz Invitational, the first event in the Philippines to feature on the ADT, will present Perera with a timely opportunity to showcase his growing potential against a strong field. Filipino stars Juvic Pagunsan and Artemio Murakami along with the current... Read More

The 14th at Marapara It’s unusual for me to write about a golf course that I haven’t played but I’ve been victim to the unfortunate circumstance of having visited the Negros Occidental Golf and Country Club on two occasions as a journalist covering a tournament there instead of as a competitor. I did manage to play the more intriguing back nine during the 2005 PAL Interclub and spent three days on the course as a rules official on the recently concluded ICTSI Negros Occidental Championship so I’m not totally unfamiliar with the golf course. That disclaimer aside, my mother’s family has its roots in nearby Silay City and I later learned that my grandfather, Aguinaldo Severino Gamboa... Read More

Mhark Fernando stood up to the Philippine Golf Tour’s Order of Merit leader, Juvic Pagunsan and matched 3-under par 69′s with him to win the 2011 ICTSI Del Monte Championship by 3 strokes. Pagunsan and Fernando got off to contrasting starts; Juvic Started fast touring the outward nine in two under par while Mhark seemed to take a while to find his tournament legs and went out in 36; even par. On the back nine, Fernando found his stride with birdies on 11, 14, 15 and 16 while making bogey on the difficult par 3 12th. Pagunsan started the back with a birdie then cooled off and parred in all but handing the win to a jubilant Mhark Fernando. Fernando is the second of the Calatagan boys... Read More

Juvic Pagunsan coasted home with a two under par 70 to take the ICTSI Apo Invitational handily with a three day total of 202. This is Juvic’s fifth win of the year putting him a country mile ahead of his closest competitor in the Tour’s Order of Merit. His performance in this first half of the season has turned the Order of Merit into a race for second. Elmer Salvador shot the round of the tournament, a 6-under par 64 to leapfrog Jhonnel Ababa to finish second on his own four strokes behind Pagunsan. Ababa finished solo third three shots behind Salvador and seven behind Juvic. Miguel Tabuena continued to prove his mettle tying Elmer Saban for fourth at 211 with Tony Lascuña in sixth... Read More

Juvic Pagunsan went on a tear today at the Apo Golf Club with a second consecutive 6-under par 66 to extend his lead over Jhonnel Ababa who couldn’t keep pace and faltered with a 2-over par 74. Pagunsan now leads the ICTSI Apo Invitational by a massive 8-strokes going into the last day and seems to be the prohibitive favorite to record his 5th win of this season. Mike Bibat and Jerson Balasabas are tied for third a stroke behind Ababa. Young Miguel Tabuena moved up the leaderboard with a 3-under par 69 but is 10 behind the red hot Pagunsan and tied with Elmer Salvador, Elmer Saban and Danny Zarate in fourth. Juvic squandered a slightly smaller lead in Bacolod to finish third but it seems... Read More

The win in Iloilo seems to have boosted Jhonnel Ababa’s confidence; he co-holds the lead after the first day’s play at the ICTSI Apo Golf Invitational at 6-under par with the Philippine Golf Tour Order of Merit leader Juvic Pagunsan. Pagunsan and the rest of the Tour’s big guns are back from a tournament in Malyasia. This means the tour is back to full strength this for this leg. This hasn’t fazed Ababa who’s still on a high after his win in Iloilo. Hot on their heels are Jerson Balasabas, Elmer Salvador and Paul Echavez all three strokes back at 3-under par. Veteran Tony Lascuña is tied with Elmer Saban and Eddie Salvador a stroke further back. It’s early... Read More