A brand-new golf haven

As tournament director for the upcoming 2005 Ayala Greenfield Invitational, your columnist is looking forward to this much-anticipated event! The exclusive tournament, presented by Ayala Greenfield, The Bellevue Manila, Smart Infinity, and Sony Ericsson and in part by Petron Phils., takes place at the Ayala Greenfield Estates’ newly completed, all-weather, 18-hole championship golf course designed by Robert Trent Jones, Jr. this Oct. 16, 2005 in Calamba, Laguna. The event also marks the official opening of the Ayala Greenfield Golf and Leisure Club.

I’m expecting an enjoyable and memorable tournament, as the player list includes prominent business leaders and executives such as Pilipinas Makro President Bunny Khurana, Sony Ericsson General Manager Dennis Manzano, Petron Industrial South Luzon area sales manager Conrado Rivera, Analog Devices managing director Edmundo Fortunato, Citadel Lines general manager Gemma Sadiwa, SMART KRMD head Julie Carceller, Citadel Lines sales and marketing manager Carlos Tuason and Rotary Club of Paranaque Centennial president Eric Tensuan, among many others. Afterwards, the tourney concludes with a dinner and awards program at The Bellevue Manila, Alabang, the finest business hotel south of Metro Manila, where prizes like gift packages from Escada, PCSO, HSBC, Franck Provost, Palms Country Club, Rustan’s Essenses, Jewelmer and BreadTalk await the winners, while Titania Wine Cellar and Johnny Walker provide the drinks.

"The exclusive tournament will introduce golfers to the picturesque championship-level golf course of Ayala Greenfields Estates. We expect that the course will become a favorite for veteran and novice players alike," said Ayala Greenfield Golf and Leisure Club general manager Laurent Lamasuta. "We are honored to be a part of one of the biggest golfing events of the year. The prizes are definitely exciting — tickets to Germany from Lufthansa, business-class tickets to the US from PAL, and domestic flights via Asian Spirit," said The Bellevue Manila general manager Patrick Chan. "It definitely is one of the best golf courses I’ve seen in the country. I’d like to win some of the prizes, like the vacation packages from Fridays Boracay, Pearl Farm Beach Resort, Taal Vista Hotel, Boracay Regency Beach Resort and Fairways & Bluewater," Smart Infinity product manager Tom Valderrama added. The hole-in-one prize is a car from Diamond Motors Corp.

There won’t be any golfing widows on the day of the tournament — the golfers’ families are also in for a treat — an Open House activity where they can enjoy the first-class amenities of Ayala Greenfield’s Village Clubhouse and Nature Park. While the golfers compete, their families can enjoy swimming at the pools, playing at the basketball, tennis, and badminton courts, fishing at the lagoon, kite-flying, mountain-biking, or simply walking along the nature trails.