Its already 6 in the morning but my regular caddie has not yet reported on the tee mound of Hole No.1 . Way past our tee time of 5:45am thus the starter assigned a replacement caddie.
After hitting my first ball and while walking on the fairways I asked his name. Budot ,is my name sir he answered. Budot what? I queried. Budot Ababa sir. And how are you related to the Pro golfer Edgar Ababa. He removed his face mask and said, Sir,ako po iyon.
And that started our conversation as we walked the fairways and in between greens. He confided to me that he is now caddying to earn a living and his spare time he devout at the range teaching young Junior Golfers at the range of Apo Golf. Let’s continue our talk after this round.
“Medyo may edad na ako Sir,58 na, tapos wala ng Pro circuit ngayon” Ababa started as I pulled a chair at the range one cool Wednesday morning at the Apo Golf Driving Range. “Naawa lang din ako kasi interesado kaya
tinuturuan ko na lang ang mga bata every weekend or holidays basta punta lang sila dito sa Range” he added.
The NGAP used to support the Junior Golf in Apo years ago but it stopped during the pandemic. There are talks that it will soon continue but no official announcement yet. Luckily pros like Budot Ababa ,Budok Alferes,and Emer Salvador share their time and talent to hone and develop these young golfers mostly sons and daughters of Apo Caddies and employees who lived in Brgy Baliok and the nearby community just outside of Apo Golf property. Salvador and Alferes train Junior golfers in South Pacific Golf while Ababa is taking charge at Apo.
Ababa doesn’t receive any compensation, allowances nor any form from NGAP . His teaching services is purely voluntary but he is fully supported by the management of Apo Golf in terms of use of facilities and some members lend support for these kids in some way in terms of equipment and logistics.
Eli Bisera and Edison Tabalin are just some of the few upcoming young golfers now making waves in National and International competitions. “ Dumaan sa akin iyan mga iyan,ng maliit pa sila” Coach Ababa continued
These young boys honed their skills and talent at the famed Apo Golf but are now training and playing under Manila clubs in preparation for more international exposure through tournaments.
Professional golfer Jhunnel Ababa is Coach Budot’s nephew and Lady pro golfer Sarah is his daughter.
Coach Budot as of now have 14 regular junior golfers training every weekend since they are also schooling during weekdays. These kids make do of what available golf sets they have at the range during training. When they play and during tournaments they share the available sets among themselves and improvise what sets they can avail in selecting their shots. Not the most ideal situation but they are learning to improvise.
“Sana Sir,bumalik na ulit iyong support ng NGAP sa Junior Golf kasi nagkawatak watak na ang mga bata during Pandemic, kaya itong naiwan iyan ang tinututukan namin” Coach Budot concluded.
Most of the top pro golfers we now have in the pro circuit once trained and played at the Apo Golf made famous by its length, narrow fairways and sleek greens. Tony Lascuna, Marvin Dumandan, Jay Bayron, Elmer Salvador ,Cassius Casas to name a few.
With the activation of NGAP and the Junior Golf program, its not farfetched that more and more young talents will be following the footsteps of Tabalin and Bisera into national and international amateur level of play.
Here I am again facing my laptop pondering on what to write this week so I ask the wife for some suggestions. She took a deep breath and gave me that quizzical look. Okey, Okey I said. I got the point. Am not forcing you as I sip my coffee and started to pounce on my key board .
“ Dad, am just wondering and expressing my observation”, she started. Why are you golfers prefer to hit those shots into the woods, into the water when the easier path should have been the wide fairways ?” All the coffee spurted out of my mouth as I tried to stop from laughing.
That is the dream. That is the goal of every golfer. To hit that ball long ,pure and straight but golf is hard. No human being have yet perfected the art of swinging, of hitting those dimpled balls. As an old saying goes ,” If the ball goes to the left, it’s a hook, if it fades to right, it’s a slice and if it goes straight ,it’s a miracle “.
The year was 1995 when it all started. While driving on the way to my in laws in Toril,Davao City, I noticed the unusual number of vehicles parked at the highway along the Bago area. I learned later after asking some bystanders that it’s the final day of the Philippine Open being held at the Apo Golf and Country Club. .
Out of curiosity, I parked my car and join the gallery and watched the biggest golf spectacle in town. I watched the golf pros hit those easy unforced shots in a graceful way thereby made me conclude, this sport is so easy. So I watched Frankie Minoza, Carlos Espinosa ( the eventual winner) and the other golf stars as they walked the fairways and followed them literally just like the Pied Piper. I was enthralled by the mystique of the sport that I hardly noticed the searing heat as we finished on the 18th hole. And that’s how my love hate relationship for this sport started.
So after few inquiries from friends, I went straight to the driving range in Lanang golf to test this golf thing, bringing along an old golf set . A friend lend me a set he said was just lying around unused in their garage. Was I proud walking and carry those clubs from parking area into the range? You bet. So I proceed to hit some shots imitating those people around me without consulting a pro.
What’s noticeable after hitting those balls was, I can’t carry some distance. I swear I hit them respectable enough, not so solid but almost squarely in some shots but my 9 iron won’t carry more than 50 yards. One thing I noticed also was the grips seem so small, the shafts were shorter and the color of the grip is green. My suspicion increased further when I noticed the giggle and subtle laughing of the Tee girls. Eventually one of them got the enough courage to tell me. “Sir you are using a lady golf set”. Hahaha…
As proud as I am when I arrived, I left the driving range in a huff avoiding eye contact and took the long route away from the crowd. Golf is hard. Especially when you use the wrong equipment.
It was a great learning experience though. Golf demands concentration, perfection and full attention. You need to have the right equipment, proper swing lessons, create that character of humility and patience and above all give due respect of the sport.
Golf shorts : from my friend Jun Galindo
My boss, who’s on vacation, called up. He said, “Is everything OK at the office?” I said, “Everything is under control. It’s been a very busy day; haven’t stopped to take a break yet.” “Can you do me a favor,” he asked. I said, “Yes Sir, of course, what is it?” He blurted out “Pick up the pace a little. I’m in the foursome behind you.”
