Mizuno snares Fil Championship

BAGUIO, Philippines  – Mizuno nipped Seabridge in a final day shootout, 135-134, and snatched the Fil Championship crown by the quirks of a rule in breaking ties in a dramatic, controversy-hit finish of the Fil-Am Invitational golf tournament at Camp John Hay here yesterday.

The two teams finished tied at 512 but Mizuno won the coveted crown in a virtual match play through its fifth man, who did not count with 31 points but who beat his Seabridge counterpart, who had 30.

“It was a rule we determined five years ago – that the fifth man who did not count will determine the winner. Mizuno had two 31s, while Seabridge has three 30s,” said Shean Bedi, one of those who formulated the rule in breaking ties.

Seabridge, whose eight-point lead after 36 holes at the nearby Baguio Country Club was reduced to just one at the start of the final round at John Hay, had thought it won the match after its last player Louie Sunga charged home with a solid 38 against Mizuno’s Rodel Mangulabnan’s 31 points in the last flight.

But Mizuno emerged the winner via tiebreak – its first title in four years and third in the last eight years – as Jung Soo Park fired a one-under 68 worth 37 points, Richard Joson added a 35, King Stehmeier chipped in a 32 and Vince Lauron wound up with 31 for a 135-512.

Seabridge started hot with Mike Castro matching par 69 for 36 points but Karl Pangilinan, Ray Blas and Daryl Poe settled for similar 30s, one of which didn’t count for the team’s closing 134-512.

But Jung Soo Park made a one under 68 for 37 points, then a 35 from Richard Joson and a 32 from Stehmeier.  

CJH actually yielded the Seniors Fil Championship title to Maxima Komatsu via the same rule when Nelson Eslao lost by one point to Freddie Mendoza in the 60th staging of the annual event. The two teams ended up tied overall with Eslao and Mendoza failing to count for their respective teams.

For a while, Seabridge had argued with Fil-Am co-chair Steve McDonald regarding the tiebreak rule but Castro, Blas and the rest of the squad later congratulated Mizuno Superstars for the win. 

“It’s heartbreaking, but we’re good. We didn’t lose the crown on the course but on paper,” said Castro, adding that they might not play again next year.

“The gameplan was for us to play man-to-man. We were down by a point which is practically nothing so we have to match our respective opponents and we won,” said Stehmeier.  

“It was practically a match play and we’re happy that Vince scored 31 and Jung played a solid game,” Stehmeier said.

The Mizuno skipper, however, lost the individual title to Jun Jun Plana, who shot a tournament-best four-under 65 for 40 points for 137, beating Castro by two.

“It’s alright. It is the team that I wanted to win,” said Stehmeier, who won the crown last year.

Meanwhile, Camp Aguinaldo cruised to a 101 and a four-day aggregate of 450 to win the Am Champ title by 11 points over Mizuno.