Cangolfers savor sweet taste of three-peat

CEBU CITY , Philippines  â€“ Saving its best for last, Canlubang shot its highest output of 148 points in the final round against a Luisita rival that sputtered at the finish again as it completed a three-peat in the 66th Philippine Airlines Interclub seniors’ golf tournament yesterday at the Alta Vista Golf and Country Club here.

The Sugar Barons, who had 145, 135 and 140 in the first three rounds, finished with 568 points to beat Luisita (562) by six points and capture their seventh title in the last eight years.

Rolly Viray turned in 51 points, beating Luisita flightmate Bong Sison (47) by four, to key the romp for Canlubang, which also gained from a similar 51 from Dave Hernandez and the 46 of either Luigi Yulo or Philip Brodett.

That they did it without ace gunner Tommy Manotoc made this feat sweeter.

“This is very sweet, this is most gratifying,” said team owner Yulo, who even playfully lay down on the grass as the Sugar Barons celebrated this latest triumph.

“We had to play hard. After nine holes, everything was tied but we managed to keep our games and Luisita did not,” he added.

Three points down at the start of the day, the Luisitans caught up with Canlubang halfway through but suffered some sort of replay of the fourth-round meltdown that cost them the crown in Davao last year.

Trouble started when Richie Garcia went out of bounds off the No. 2 to make the turn at two-over par. The PSC chairman dropped five more strokes from there to limp with a 47, a far cry from his 54 in the opening round.

“I thought I hit a good 5-iron tee shot. After that, I could no longer hit it cleanly,” rued Garcia.

Minieng Maravilla led the way with 51 points while Bong Sison carded the same score as Garcia as Luisita settled for runner up honors for the third straight year. In 2012, the Luisitans were on the threshold of the title when they seized a 12-point lead but faded in the last round.

“We’re satisfied with what we have and look forward to next year,” said Luisita team manager Joey Romasanta.

If Manotoc’s steady hands were missed by Canlubang, Luisita also had personnel woes, with PSC commissioner Iggy Clavecilla skipping this year’s action, too.

“Both teams are undermanned but they (Canlubang) played better and breaks went their way. We congratulate them,” said Romasanta.

Pueblo de Oro, the surprise leader in the first two rounds, settled for third place with 531 points. The bets from Cagayan de Oro closed out with a 130 behind Manuel Roa (46), Miguel Chiong (43) and Carlos Rubio (41).

Clifford Celdran, who anchored Pueblo’s two-day stay at the top, edged Cebu Country Club’s Ramontito Garcia by a single point, 100 versus 99, to cop the individual title.

Cebu Country Club closed out with a 142 as it took the Founders division with a 555 total. Ramontito Garcia led CCC with 50 points while Koichi Horii added 47 and 45 points, respectively.

Alta Vista, behind Akiro Hatano’s 50, Ramon Sebastian’s 47 and Agapito Suan’s 45, matched CCC’s 142 and wound up second with a 550.

Texas won the Sportswriters class with 460, beating SFO Crystal Springs, which had a 456, while Veterans finished third with a 453.