Davao City , Philippines – Kiyofumi ‘Kiyo’ Takahashi became some sort of instant celebrity among us Cebuanos here for the 62nd Philippine Airlines Interclub when he scored even-par 36 points at the lengthened Rancho Palos Verdes course last Thursday.
Kiyo came to Davao as an alternate for Cebu Country Club but was asked to play when Clifford Celdran sustained an injury.
“We brought him here to be our water boy,” CCC skipper Montito Garcia joked. “He was ready to carry the bottles of water and bananas.”
Kiyo delivered the goods, but not the water and the bananas. He finished with the best score among the Cebuanos at Palos Verdes that looked very much like a different golf course when the tee boxes were pulled so far back.
Alex Yeo of the Alta Vista team told me that one of those in high flight, a member of Palos Verdes, said that he was surprised to learn that there were tee boxes where some tee mounds were set up.
The length of the course plus the fact that it was designed to be played with a golf cart a must for players, made Thursday’s rounds so much longer. It took about six hours to complete a round.
The distance did not seem to bother Kiyo and today, his team is looking forward to another big performance from their ‘Water Boy.’ This reminds me of the movie starring Adam Sandler.
Go, Kiyo!
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This is probably the wettest PAL Interclub that I have covered with rains causing floods in many areas around Davao City last Thursday.
The rains also forced organizers to rule that the tournament for the Friendship Division, which is the fourth-ranked category, be cut to 54 holes instead of 72.
This saved those who teed off late morning last Thursday in Palos Verdes the heartaches and shame of scoring very few points.
I’m sure this also makes the battle for the top honors in the category exciting. Club Filipino Incorporada Cebu is bracketed in this class along with the Cotabato team led by my cousin Greric Tocao Santos.
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Many people here continue to ask me the question, “How come we won’t be visiting your beloved Cebu next year?”
Some ask further questions that sometimes sound a bit odd. These are the non-golfers though, but those who know golf and have been to Cebu want to desperately have a reason to come back.
One organizer told me, “We’re not asking for one week a year, just one week every four years.”
Just like the many aching to see the PAL Interclub in Cebu, I too continue to hope that this will happen soon.
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MILESTONES: Happy birthday to Anabelle Lumapas of Marco Polo Plaza Hotel, who turns a year older this weekend. The same goes to my classmate Carmina Jumamoy.
More power! (THE FREEMAN)