LET’S GET IT ON – Missing the PAL Interclub

By Neil Bravo
Boredom and monotony is every writer’s woes. Having spent more than half of my lifetime as a sportswriter, I look at those little breaks in between and some travels on the side to get that engine some rest and keep it chugging.
The wear and tear, I swear, slows me down too.
The PAL Interclub, the most storied team golf event in the country organized by the Philippine Airlines, provides the needed respite while at work year in and year out. It also becomes the avenue for the reunion of sports scribes in the country especially those covering the golf beat.
The PAL Interclub has given me such breaks-in-between every year. Thanks to the country’s flag carrier, we get to travel to the PAL Interclub cities and get to play golf—that along with working the coverage.
The Interclub has given me fond memories from the time of Rollie Estabillo and his reliables Eugene Labadan and Jun Canton, to Jonathan Gesmundo and his back-up Lito, to Pinky Dimagiba, Eya Prospero, Tini Rosales and Cielo Villaluna, and to the current president Jimmy Bautista.
It’s also in this event that I get to meet in person and become good friends with those I hold high respect in sportswriting like Al Mendoza (who became my kumpadre), Lito Tacujan, Ding Marcelo, and my boss at Malaya Jimmy Cantor. I got to play and down some bottles too with Jake Ayson, Rey Bancod, Jun Engracia, Musong Castillo, Jong Arcano, Doods Catacutan, Adrian Flores (and his late father too, Roger), Noli Cortez and Abac Cordero. It’s also in the Interclub that I renew ties with my kumpadre from Cebu Nimrod Quinonez who is now the manager of Alta Vista Golf although still active in sports through his blog and television talk show Full Point.
Of course, the PAL Interclub will not be complete without the voice of Charlie Erojo of PAL Davao, the resident crooner-rock star rolled into one.
I will miss this year’s Interclub after having played in Davao, CDO, Cebu, and last year in Bacolod (in succession). For sure, the Davao boys Jon Develos, Lito delos Reyes and Tom Inigo plus our top bet and lone rose Imee Garcia will be having the time of their lives this time in Cebu for the PAL Media golf tournament. This two-day event is a much-awaited event among Interclub media and is silently the biggest sideshow of the tournament.
That means the streak of memorable action photos courtesy of Boy Lim of my magical putts that otherwise saved a bad day at the course will come to a halt. Those images captured in bursts of photographic creativity will forever be in my archive of Interclub memoires.
It is in this PAL Media golf tournaments that many stories are shared among the members of the coverage team. Stories that linger even when the years pass by and some of us also leave this golfing event permanently like Tony Siddayao, Roger Flores, Peter Alegre and Iking Gonzales. Count in that list too our very own Batman Lintuan, my photog with the Mindanao Daily Mirror Gene Boyd Lumawag, and my editor-consultant at Edge Davao Ram Maxey.
The stories will be there in the imaginary pages of PAL Interclub’s coverage team. Names and faces that have made this event extra special.
As we jokingly put it as word of the year in the Cebu edition in 2012, the PAL Interclub is always a “winner!”
This year, I leave it to Jonathan, Eya and Charlie to pick the word of the year.
Cheers, until then.
Postscripts: Listen to “Let’s Get It On with Neil Bravo” on 105.9 Balita FM every Saturday 8-10 a.m.