Cagayan de Oro City and Bukidnon are high on preparations for the 75th Philippine Airlines Interclub golf team championships next month.
Philippine Airlines has selected Cagayan de Oro and Manolo Fortich, Bukidnon as the twin venues for the Diamond Anniversary Edition of the Philippine Airlines Interclub golf team championships to be held on February 19-March 4, 2024.
Hosting the tournament are Northern Mindanao’s two premier golf course – Pueblo de Oro Golf & Country Club, situated on a 350-meter plateau in the plush Uptown Cagayan de Oro, and Del Monte Golf and Country Club, set within the famous Del Monte pineapple plantation in nearby Manolo Fortich, Bukidnon.
Acknowledged as the longest-running and biggest amateur team golf championship in the Philippines, the Philippine Airlines Interclub Golf Tournament (also known as the PAL Interclub) has previously been hosted four times in the past (2000, 2004, 2007 and 2011) by the two famous golf courses, a choice hailed by some of the country’s leading golf clubs.
The choice of PAL Interclub’s next venue was finalized recently during a meeting attended by tournament director Henry Arabelo and officials of the host clubs, Pueblo de Oro chairman Alan Sagrado and general manager Gil Velez, Del Monte chairman Robert Wapano, Mike Comique and Mark Ledesma.
Manila Southwoods captain Thirdy Escaño expressed delight over the prospects of defending the title it won last year in Cebu City.
Among the players Southwoods is expected to field are Asian Games-bound Aidric Chan and Carl Corpus, Ryan Monsalve, Luigi Paolo Wong and Shinichi Suzuki.
Southwoods bagged its first title in 1999 and has since won seven titles.
Joining the chorus over CdO’s selection was Cebu Country Club led by skipper Bayani Garcia.
Garcia said that CdO has been a favorite stop in the PAL rotation of hosts.
Del Monte won the 2011 edition, the last time it was held in CdO.
Jeric Hechanova, captain of defending seniors’ champion Luisita, also lauded the choice of venue which he said was long time coming.
