SAN PEDRO, Laguna - Professional senior golf play will have a new face starting Monday when the Stronghold Insurance Senior Open gets off the ground with a star-studded field playing a multi-round event for the first time with the biggest prize money in recent memory staked at Hallow Ridge Filipinas.
Former PH Open winners, PGT Order of Merit champions and multi-leg winners on the regular ICTSI circuit will banner a foreigners-laced field that sees action in three divisions, with Antonio Lascuna leading a 33-man field in the centerpiece Senior (50-59) bracket chasing the P150,000 winner's check.
Seniors' moment
"This is the birth of hopefully how senior pro events are handled (in the future)," Lascuna as he fine-tuned his short game at Manila Southwoods on Sunday, said in Filipino. "A lot of us (senior pros) are very grateful.
"We've never had a tournament as big and handled as professionally as this."
Lascuna won the PGT's OOM a record five times and at 54, is campaigning in senior events more and more. He is the favorite in his division together with Mars Pucay, Elmer Salvador, Orlan Sumcad, Rico Depilo and five foreigners led by Australians Matt Blundell, Karl Russell and American Nik Banchoff.
Robert Pactolerin and Mario Manubay are former Open champs headlining the 60-69 (Super Senior) bracket that drew the participation of Asian Senior Tour president Chuan Campbell and Tanaka Kosuke of Japan. Their division dangles P100,000 to the champion.
A two-man, 60-team Pro-Am gets action going at 7:30 a.m. Monday, with the amateur players seeing action belonging to a big group of Stronghold Insurance president Romulo delos Reyes Jr.'s clients and friends, as his company continues to give the country's senior pros something big to play for.
Hallow Ridge, meanwhile, has been spruced up to championship shape even as the third division, the 70-and-above (Legends) will play 18 holes on Wednesday for a handsome championship trophy and P50,000.
Scores of the pros in the Pro-Am will carry over to the second day, where a 36-hole cut among the top 50% of scores and ties will be made.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
