Anthony See carded a 73 while Renie Floro shot a 75 as they grabbed the early lead in their respective divisions in the Chairman’s Charity Cup, which got going at the Legends and Masters courses of the Manila Southwoods in Carmona, Cavite yesterday.
See’s one-over par round was worth 35 points under the Individual Net Stableford scoring system as he set the early pace in the men’s overall gross race with a slew of others still to complete play in the first of the two-day tournament marking the return of Southwoods’ premier Members/Sponsors-Guests tournament after a long hiatus due to pandemic.
See took a five-point lead over HongZheng Lu, who posted 30 points from a gross 79, while Lucas Aldeguer also turned in a 79 worth 29 points.
Floro, on the other hand, came away 33 gross points as he led Fred dela Cruz and former Senate President Tito Sotto, who scored 31 and 30 points from grosses of 77 and 78, respectively, in the Seniors’ gross competition of the event backed by Platinum sponsors The Turf Company, Inc., Agrexplore Corp., Malveda Properties & Development Corp., Starlux Airlines Co. Ltd., Newport World Resorts, Mit-Air, Inc., Klio International Marketing Corp. and HBW Enterprises Co.
Kristine Sison, meanwhile, fired a gross 84 worth 24 points to seize control in the Ladies division, three points ahead of Florence Okiyama and Vicky Herrera, who matched 21 points from a pair of 87s, while Soon Ja Park put up an 89 for gross 20 points, the same output put in Sun Hee Hwang and Archie Pelkonen, who carded 88 and 90, respectively.
In the Sponsors/Guests class, Camp John Hay’s Judson Eustaquio sizzled with a net 68 from a gross 73 as he led Forest Hills’ Raymond Bunquin and Ryu Suzuki, who posted identical net 70s from grosses of 77 and 78, respectively, under the System 36 format.
See also led the men’s Division I with 40 points, two points clear of Lucas Aldeguer, who shot a gross 79 worth 38 points, while Lu was at joint third with 35 points with Ian Laurel, who carded a gross 84.
Other division leaders were Gerard de Castro (II), who had 40 points from a gross 83; Stefano Tami and Ronaldo Hernandez, who shared the Division III lead with 37 points from grosses of 88 and 89, respectively; and Shambu Kumaran (IV), who posted 41 points from a gross 88; while Herrera also took command of Ladies I with 33 points from a gross 87; Sandy Dong shot a gross 94 worth 28 points (II); and Sison scored 42 points from a gross 84 (III).
Sotto, meanwhile, took charge in Seniors I with 38 points, one point ahead of Floro, with Julius Santos at third with 34 points from a gross 81; Dela Cruz also grabbed the Seniors II lead with 42 points, three ahead of Artie Zuluaga, who scored 39 from a gross 82; while Gus Molina made 42 points from a gross 84 for a two-point lead over Alfred Gonzalez, who also shot a gross 84 worth 40 points, in Seniors III.
In Seniors IV, Ramon Dayrit scored 37 points from a gross 92 for a one-point lead over Francis Puzon II and Yukio Okiyama, who matched 36s points from grosses of 95 and 99, respectively.
Meanwhile, action resumes today (Saturday) with another shotgun start at 7:30 a.m. at the Legends and at 8 a.m. at the Masters.
Fabulous hole-in-one prizes are at stake in the two-day event supported by Abomar Equipment Sales Corp. (Gold sponsor) and Silver backers Hydrotech Irrigation & General Services, Le Chef, Inc., MRT Development Corp. and Suzuki Clubfitter, including a Mitsubishi Strada and an Xpander.
Gran Sportivo is also offering a golf cart, while Newport World Resorts is staking a villa accommodation with food & beverages for 10 pax, and Srixon a Cobra LTDx iron set for aces on designated holes, along with a four-night Southeast Asia cruise for two, including of round-trip Manila-Singapore-Manila tickets, courtesy of the Royal Caribbean and Baron Travel.
The Xpander MPV (multi-purpose vehicle), the Royal Caribbean’s Southeast Asia cruise and Newport World Resorts’ villa accommodation will be raffled off if no one makes a hole-in-one during the face-to-face awards rites and raffle program at the Southwoods Veranda over a gala luncheon in the afternoon.
Other sponsors of the event are (Bronze) BDO, Camp John Hay Golf Club, Castillo Laman Tan Pantaleon & San Jose Law Firm, Club Leisure Management Corp., Escala Tagaytay Hotel, Federal Management & Maintenance, Inc., Forest Hills Golf & Country Club, GG&A Clubshares, G&W Clubshares, Mega Manila Pest Management Specialists, Inc., Manila Southwoods Manor, Srixon, Puma, Cobra; Mr. Freeze Tube Ice, Inc., Poblador Bautista & Reyes Law Offices, RFM Corp., Smart Probe, Sojitz FUSO Phils. Corp., Stelsen Integrated Systems, Inc., The Manor & Forest Lodge at Camp John Hay, Timecargo Logistics Corp., Tri-Frame, Inc. and Warbird Security & Investigation Agency, Inc.