CARMONA - Manila Southwoods will be hosting the Philippine Open golf championship for the second straight year, and management of one of the most prestigious private clubs in the country is leaving no stone unturned and sparing no expense to make the 108th playing of Asia's oldest national championship at the Masters course a special one.
A little over P35 million will be spent to turn the Jack Nicklaus-designed gem into the best version of itself before the first drive is hit on Nov. 12 for the finale of the 2026 Asian Tour season, as the talented field will be challenged the entire week with roughs grown taller and fairways made narrower.
"The Masters will be the best version that this crack field will see come the second week of next month," Southwoods chairman Robert John Sobrepena said. "The Masters is our pride and joy, and that being said, we will make sure that the best players in the region are challenged fairly that week."
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Fairways will be tightened to an average of 25 to 35 yards in width in its landing spots, even as the course will play to a par-70, two strokes less than what members are used to.
From the black tees, it will be a risk-reward course that will be stretched out to around 7,300 yards, and with roughs to be grown to an average of three to 3.5 inches, errant tee shots will be punished.
Frenchman Julien Sale is the defending champion, even as the Asian Tour and the governing National Golf Association of the Philippines made sure that the prize money this year has been doubled to $1 million (around P63 million) with the help of the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC).
"We are just appreciative of the help the Asian Tour and the PSC have extended to make this Open a real memorable one," NGAP president Al Panlilio said as the Tour promised the participation of its top 20 players in the Order of Merit.
With the prize money as big as it is now, implications on the final OOM standings will be great in the tournament, as players on the bubble would need to finish well in order to keep their Asian Tour cards for next season.
Miguel Tabuena, Justin delos Santos and Carl Corpus, who represented the country respectably in the recent Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan, will banner the Philippine charge in the 72-hole championship.
Tabuena is still the highest-ranked Filipino in the field and he is itching to win another Open as a followup to his 2018 triumph at Luisita. Last year, his rally in the final two rounds just came short.
Delos Santos, meanwhile, was the top Filipino finisher in Nagoya and will be seeing action in the Open for the second straight year.
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