NORCO, CALIFORNIA - Robert Lacson Clemente, an insurance broker and a resident of Glendale, carded a three-over par 75 to emerge Overall Low Gross champion in the recently concluded 10th Annual Philippine Arlines-Century Park Hotel Golf Challenge at the Hidden Valley Golf Club in Norco, about 50 miles southeast of Los Angeles.
Clemente, a 49-year-old bachelor who traces his roots from Bacolod, Negros Occidental, had two eagles, two birdies and one triple bogey, one double bogey and four bogeys in the 18-hole sun-drenched golf course that was intermittently caressed by gentle breeze.
“Although this was only my second time to play at Hidden Valley, the golf course is pretty challenging and am still not yet too familiar with the layout which makes it tough for everyone including me,” says the new champion with a handicap of 1.6.
Clemente of BIG Brother Golf Club also dethroned 15-year-old Andrew Galang of San Diego who did not play this year. Clemente who has played the game since he was 11 years old is the youngest of six siblings related to a political family of former Gov. Bitay Lacson of Negros Province.
Immediately after the game Robbie Clemente left in a jiffy for an urgent appointment, thus he missed receiving his championship trophy in person.
When asked in a phone interview if he had any inkling of bagging the overall championship, he told the media that he had no expectations, nor any idea. “Everybody had a chance to play well.”
The new champion who plays yearly in the PAL Inter-Club in the Philippines dreams someday to play with the professionals in the big-time PGA tours in the United States, He already participated in Pepsi tour and U.S. Open but narrowly missed his chance to meet the qualifying cut.
Other notable winner is Don Breganza of Back Tee Boys, himself a former Low Gross champion who romped off with Class A top plum. He fired a 76, only a shot over the new champion Clemente. Efren Bautista of Filipino-American Golf Assn. of Ventura County (FAGA) grabbed the Low Gross Runner-up honors.
Jun Bautista, another FAGA mainstay, bagged Class A Net championship while Manny Villamin of Club 1872, Class A was the runner-up.
Norman Avendano of BIG Golf Club, captured Class B Low Gross championship while Art Crisologo of Pinoy Golfers of America (PGA) was the runner-up.
Class B Low Net championship went to Edwin Bautista of Haven Golf Club with Efren Velasco of International Alliance Golf Assn. (IAGA) as the runner-up. .
Class C Low Gross championship was awarded to Ed Bigornia of Pinoy Golfers of America . with Robert Gudrud also of PGA as runner-up.
Class C Low Net championship went to Ponce Crisologo of PGA while Perla de Jesus of Haven Golf Club was the runner-up.
Closest to the Pin winners and their respective hole numbers are Pete Natividad, #5, Al Alferez, #8, Norman Avendano, #13 and Gerry Torres, #16.
Don San Antonio, speaking for Pinoy Golfers of America, which logged four winners, said, “the tournament was gratifying, good for the players, the sponsors and the community.”
Rey Luna, founder-president of Haven Golf Club with three winners, described golf in broad perspective, observing that “in this sport we all get together for game excellence and competitive spirit while assisting a charity cause.”
At the major raffle draw, PAL awarded two round-trip L.A.-Manila-L.A. business class tickets. Prizes from Century Park Hotel included gift certificates for a complimentary weekend accommodation at the five-star “golfers’ home away from home” in Manila.
Despite the economic slowdown and pinch of recession, 118 players (compared to 134 in 2008) from 20 California Southland clubs took part at Norco in the PAL-CPH tournament, the only annual and longest-running Filipino-American golf classic with a Northern California segment that this year was held earlier on Aug 2 in Hayward.
This year’s California Southland’s 18-hole “battle on the greens” gathered as young as 14 years old and adult golfers in a tournament that its prime host, business tycoon/philanthropist Dr. Lucio C. Tan of PAL and CPH, organized in the summer 2000 for competition, playing excellence, physical fitness, community empowerment and support for the major charity organization ASIAC Operation Rainbow Philippines. Justine Kyle Milan was the youngest participant at age 14.
Dr. Lucio C. Tan launched the Golf Challenge with a core committee composed of CPH executives and a group of name golfers from Southern and Northern California.
The beneficiary, ASIAC Operation Rainbow Philippines, funds the surgery and related medical treatment of indigent Filipinos with facial deformities, including cases of harelip among children. To date, the charity organization has helped more than 6,000 of these medical cases in the Philippines with proceeds from both the Northern and Southern California tournaments.
CPH is represented at the yearly U.S. competition by the hotel’s public relations manager, Steve L. Naguiat, with businessman-executive Marvin A. Caparros, of R.S. Caparros & Associates, assisting with corporate sponsorship liaison.
Tournament Chairman Bobby Milan issued a press statement “to acknowledge and thank the support of over 10 years of Dr. Lucio C. Tan, Steve Naguiat, Marvin Caparros, Pete Natividad, PAL’s Adrian M. Ingles, the Philippine Department of Tourism’s Annie G. Cuevas and Manny V. Ilagan, as well as the Philippine and Filipino-American media golf journalists.”
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