DAVAO CITY — Former champions, veteran campaigners and fast-rising talents converge Tuesday as the much-anticipated Philippine Golf Tour comes off the wraps with the staging of the ICTSI Apo Golf Classic at the challenging Apo Golf and Country Club.
The P2.5 million tournament boasts an impressive cast, including past Order of Merit winners Tony Lascuña, Clyde Mondilla, Jobim Carlos, Elmer Salvador and Jay Bayron, and reigning titlist Jhonnel Ababa, and recent PGT Q-School graduates.
The Apo layout, renowned for its narrow fairways and undulating greens guarded by water hazards, is set to test the players’ skills and precision over the next four days.
Local favorites Lascuña, Salvador, Bayron and Ababa, all armed with their knowledge of the course at the foothills of Mt. Apo, are eager to make an early impact.
Lascuña, the only four-time OOM winner, acknowledges their slight advantage at Apo, which hosted the 1995 Philippine Open, but emphasizes the competition’s intensity with many skilled players and promising young talents, including PGT Q-School topnotcher Aidric Chan.
“We have a slight edge, but there’s a lot of strong players, including the young ones,” said Lascuña, who reigned here when Apo last hosted a PGT event in 2019.
“I was younger then, now I’m old,” said the 53-year-old Lascuña during Monday’s pro-am. “I will just focus on my game. Everyone has a chance here, so it’s about who will play well all week.”
Apo, with its rich history and challenging features, ensures a captivating start to what promises to be another flourishing year for Philippine golf.
Mondilla, a noted long hitter, plans to keep his driver in the bag, opting for a more conservative approach due to Apo’s tight fairways and undulating greens.
“I’ll be using 4-iron off the tee, so lesser mistakes,” said Mondilla, who is using the first two PGT events to fine-tune his game in preparation for his campaign in Japan next month. “I can’t attack here, the fairways are narrow and the greens are also difficult to read.”
Multi-titled Guido van der Valk, meanwhile, said the course is firm and playing fast, emphasizing the need to focus on ball control and strategic course management.
“It will be interesting but quite tricky to score because it’s not easy to hit the fairways and greens since the ball bounces a lot. If you can play it safe, you’ll be alright,” Van der Valk said.
Despite the challenges, he acknowledged the advantage of homegrown talents at Apo.
“The main thing about Apo is that all the top golfers in the country come from this golf club and they’re all here. So my chances are quite difficult but will give it a try,” said the two-time The Country Club Invitational champion.
The field also features notable names such as Dino Villanueva, Michael Bibat, Marvin Dumandan, Albin Engino, Korean Hyun Ho Rho, Nilo Salahog, Mars Pucay, Gerald Rosales and Dan Cruz.
The Apo Classic serves as the first of two legs in Davao, followed by the ICTSI Palos Verdes Championship from 19 to 22 March at the Palos Verdes Golf and Country Club.
