PGT Canlubang Recap

Written: November 11, 2011

            Another challenging week in the books.  It was a stern test of hanging in there mentally and through physical pains.  The mental test being that I haven’t found momentum in my game over the past 7 weeks since returning to playing form since the bulging disc in the back healed up.  The physical pain was something new.  This time, the pain came from the left middle finger, which extended down to the center of my palm.

Fishing in Montecito

Introducing Olga to the life in the house

Cocah Nes, Marco, Chuck, and I bonding

            It was difficult to swing as the pain felt like needles stuck in the hand everytime I made contact with the ball.  The driver swing was weak and same with the irons.  At least for the irons, I could drop the club down and let the weight of the club make contact on the ball and the ball would go the same distance.  With the driver, it required a lot more strength and since the left hand had barely a grip on the club, this wasn’t possible.

            With drives that carried 220 yards and with constant pain lingering in the left hand, it was up to will power to carry on and to find a way to score.  With two rounds in the books and a 4 over total (75-73), making the cut was a feat in itself.

            For the final round, Olga and her cousin Maanne were supportive in coming out to watch the day’s action.  With a bogey, birdie, birdie start and the ball striking looking as crisp as ever despite the intense pain, I felt that I not only could play through it, but could play through it shooting a good score.  But things after that point went south.  For whatever reason, the ball didn’t go the right spots and the little mistakes caused immediate bogeys and doubles.  The final score for the day was a 6 over par 78 for the final round. A 10 over par total was good for 36^th place.

Grabbing the hand and easing the pain

            I’m entirely grateful for Olga and Maanne to come out and support from the morning range session to the end of the round.  Upon leaving Canlubang, we went to Paseo in Nuvali to grab a bite in a Japanese restaurant.  Thanks to their company, it eased the disappointment of finishing the tournament in that fashion.

            In the coming days, only one strategy is needed and that is to both reset and rest the physical pain that’s lingering and do the same with the mental state.  Going 3 weeks in a row playing Caltagan, the Sabah Masters in Malaysia, then in Canlubang took a toll because of an inner battle against my own game through those golf rounds.  Things ought to turn around for the better with less worry and going back to playing the game with enjoyment.

Sabah Masters 3rd and Final Rounds

To leave you with a few pictures of the last two rounds... It didn't go as well as I continued to search for consistency with the ball striking. A 40th place finish after four days.  It will be best to accept and look forward. To stay into process and let the results follow.

Here's a list of a few of the top guys. Congratulations to good buddy Anthony Fernando for a strong finish, just one short of the win.

After the third round

Sutera Habour Golf Club .. 3rd - 6th November 2011

Final Results Report

Pos.	Player Name	Total (USD)	-Par+	Score	R1	R2	R3	R4
1	Wisut ARTJANAWAT (THA)	9,750.02	-2	278	72	68	72	66
2	Nicholas FUNG (MAS)	5,259.48	-1	279	70	68	72	69
2	Anthony FERNANDO (PHI)	5,259.48	-1	279	68	70	71	70
4	Rory HIE (INA)	2,760.73	+1	281	71	71	71	68
4	Tanatchan PUAKTES (THA)	2,760.73	+1	281	68	73	71	69

40

Carl SANTOS-OCAMPO (PHI)

456.96

+18

298

73

73

74

78

ASEAN Tour Sabah Masters 1st and 2nd Round

Written: November 4, 2011

            Two rounds are in the books here in Kota Kinabalu’s ASEAN Tour Sabah Masters.  Not having played a practice round prior to the start of event, I teed it up yesterday for the first round.  The good thing was that upon arrival two days ago on Wednesday evening, Quino, Jet, and Glenn accompanied me to check out the course.  Since it was 7:30pm and dark already, I thought we going to eat dinner at the clubhouse so I wondered why they told me to bring my golf clubs.  After the short shuttle ride from the hotel to the golf course, I noticed there were lights all over.  Sutera Golf Club has night golf!  We even asked to play a few holes which would have been great but they said they had closed the course already.  Instead, we spent quality time practicing our short games on the well-lit practice green.

            The following day on Thursday, it was time to tee it up, first off at 8am.  Unfamiliar with the course, reliance on the course guide was essential.  Thanks to the detail of yardages and slopes, it didn’t feel like I was losing out by missing a practice round.  The struggles on the first round came with the full swing.  I didn’t hit a single green on the front nine and shot 4 over par.  Finding my timing was very difficult but the good thing was that it didn’t get to my head and I remained calm.  After staying patient and finding the right swing thought that would get me through the round, it clicked on the back nine.  Hitting most of my fairways and 7 greens, I turned it around to shoot a 1 under 35, a total of 3 over 73.  The course played to a par 70 since two of the par 5’s were converted into extremely difficult par 4’s.

            For the second round today, Friday, I drew a later tee time of 8:54am.  The swing was a little better than yesterday for the most part, but there’s still some work to do.  The short game had its moments with some good shots around the green and a few holed putts especially on the back nine.  Nines of 39-34 to turn in another 73.  Tied for 12^th place, cleared the cut by 10 shots.

            Right after the round, Glenn, Quino, Jet and I got some good practice on the range and the putting green.  Tee time for the third round is at 8:20am.  The goal of making the cut: check.  On the range this afternoon, I found something that helped my ball striking tremendously.  Planning on taking it to the course and going low tomorrow folks!

            Time to get a good dinner in with the boys.  We’ll check out the mall this time.  Maybe some KFC or Kenny Rogers.

PGT Calatagan Recap

Written: October 28, 2011

            I’m going to leave it to the pictures and the videos we took in Calatagan to get a glimpse of the week which began with a morning drive on Monday.  Got two practice rounds in prior to the start of the tournament on Wednesday.  Shot rounds of 73-73 to make the cut comfortably.  On the last day, just couldn’t hold it together down the stretch and shot a 77 for a tied for 27^th place finish. 

            There is still a lot of work ahead in finding more consistency with the swing.  Hopefully it could come around soon.  Next tournament will be next week.  Flying to Kota Kinabalu for the ASEAN Tour Sabah Masters. Nov 3-6.  Enjoy the pictures and videos below 

Skipping balls through the water on our practice round

Since there's no driving range, these guys decided to hit it out to the ocean

View from outside our hotel room, our cars parked conveniently outside

Painting of the course map

Practice round buddies

Lago De Oro dining

Final results. Congrats to Jhonnel for a 3rd win of the year

24th Birthday Celebration

Written: October 22, 2011

            You get older during your birthday but birthdays never get old.  This birthday weekend was definitely one to remember.  It began on the day of my birthday, on a Friday, October 21, 2011.  24 years old! 

Golf in Country Club with Ryan Lam then for the evening, a Friday night date with Olga to watch the Sound of Music play in Resorts World.  Watching the Sound of Music brought back childhood memories with songs like “Hills are Alive” “16 going on 17” and “Favorite Things”.  When I was a kid, I would ask my parents to play the movie over and over again.  Something about the movie got a 4 year old like me fixated.  After the play, we grabbed a Japanese dinner at Resorts World then went to 7^th High.  I can’t quite remember when the night ended.  All I can say is that a birthday evening spent with your best of friends is a birthday well spent.

            That was just the first part. The following day on that Saturday evening, our Paras side of the family had our usual dinner in Magallanes.  Little did I know that Mamita quite the birthday dinner together.  Thanks to mom who advised her on what food to serve.  It consisted of some tender juicy rib eye steaks and for dessert, Haagen Daaz ice cream! Favorite flavors of strawberry and coffee.

            That wasn’t the only surprise though.  Tita Bernie came out of the kitchen after dinner taking out these chocolate cupcakes and get this – with Titleist golf balls on top of them!  Very creative and very thoughtful of them to do.  At that point, it really hit me that even though mom, dad, and Casey wasn’t there to celebrate, it was touching to find that there was the family spirit in Lolo, Mamita, titos, titas, and cousins.  Thanks to all the loved ones for making it so memorable.

 Check this video out, made this for mom

Yoga Fitness

Written: October 15, 2011

            There are two ways I know of how to stay fit.  One is to eat healthy and the other is to go to the gym.  By gym I mean the usual cardio workout, stretching, and weight lifting.  Recently, I was introduced to another form of fitness training thanks to Misha’s persuasion to go with Olga and her to join in her yoga class.

            This one and a half hour session was unlike any type of fitness workout I had ever been.  You needed only a mat and to follow the instructor explain the positions of each yoga pose.  The room was hot and I mean steaming hot.  36 degrees Celsius and extremely humid.  The sweat poured down the very minute I stepped in.  Now I knew why all the guys had their shirts off even before coming into the classroom.  I had mine off 5 minutes later. 

Much of the poses targeted both flexibility and core strength.  At the same time, the instructor teaches you breathing exercises as if you’re meditating.  It’s a whole sensual and calming experience on top of the workout itself.

Final verdict: Yoga is a great exercise for golf.  One may supplement their strength training in the gym with their core and flexibility training from Yoga.

            Check out videos over here.

            Here's a link which explains how golfers would benefit from yoga:

           http://www.yogajournal.com/lifestyle/194 

PGT Sherwood Recap

Written: October 1, 2011

The first time I would be attempting to complete 18 holes in a month and a half would be for the first round of the PGT Sherwood tournament.  Nerve-wracking in two aspects: the thought of whether my back would hold up and the thought of whether my game will hold up.

Fortunately, I had one exceptional blessing going for me.  That is, I was excited to be on the golf course no matter what.  I was excited to be playing, to be feeling healthy, and whatever may come during that week, I wouldn't mind.  If there's one thing that my break has taught me is that golf is still a game.  Playing it professionally or playing it as a weekend golfer is besides the point.  Golf is a game that we enthusiasts play because we love it.

Being free of any expectations made me play as best as I could that windy first round.  Shooting a 3 over par 75 under windy conditions was a score I would be satisfied with.  I followed it up with the exact same score during the second round.  3 over par.  The last round, as another typhoon made landfall in the Philippines, it was another gusty day.  That round was almost salvaged as I birdied holes 11 and 12 to get back to 2 over par for the day.  But a 7 over par finish in the last 6 holes wasn't pretty at all to finish with an 81 for a 31st place finish.

All in all, tough breaks and some lack of practice kept me out of contention for the tournament.  The good thing is that the health has returned and I can once again, go back to playing golf full time.  3 weeks of practice before the next tournament in Calatagan October 26-28 should give ample time to return into a solid practice routine.  There's a lot of work ahead, but if I stay out of my own way, worry less and put the necessary preparation in, success will come again.

1 SALVADOR, ELMER 68 67 135 -9 3 2 3 5 5 3 4 4 3 32 4 3 5 5 3 5 3 4 4 36 68 203 -13
2 PUCAY, MARS 68 74 142 -2 4 4 4 4 5 4 3 4 4 36 3 3 4 5 4 5 3 5 5 37 73 215 -1
MURAKAMI, ARTEMIO 75 66 141 -3 4 3 5 6 5 3 4 3 5 38 3 3 4 4 5 6 3 4 4 36 74 215 -1
4 BONDOC, GENE 68 76 144 0 4 3 4 5 4 3 4 4 5 36 4 3 5 5 5 4 3 3 4 36 72 216 0
CASAS, CASSIUS 70 69 139 -5 4 3 4 9 4 4 5 4 5 42 4 4 4 4 5 4 3 3 4 35 77 216 0
6 BIBAT, MICHAEL 75 69 144 0 4 4 4 5 4 3 4 4 4 36 4 3 6 4 5 4 2 5 4 37 73 217 1
7 SINFUEGO, RICHARD 74 71 145 1 4 4 3 4 5 3 5 5 4 37 4 3 4 4 4 7 3 5 3 37 74 219 3
8 MAGADA, BENJIE 72 75 147 3 5 2 4 5 5 3 3 5 5 37 4 3 4 4 4 5 4 4 4 36 73 220 4
ROSALES, GERALD 77 69 146 2 5 2 4 5 4 3 4 5 4 36 4 3 6 4 5 5 3 5 3 38 74 220 4
ZARATE, DANNY 70 74 144 0 5 4 4 6 5 4 4 5 4 41 3 3 3 5 4 5 4 4 4 35 76 220 4

Last Day Look

Typhoon Pedring Holds Back PGT Sherwood

The PGT Sherwood event, a tournament I've much been looking forward to after taking a month and a half off from golf to rest and rehab the back was postponed a day due to Typhoon Pedring.  Instead of starting on the usual Wednesday slot on September 28, the tournament was moved to Thursday, September 29.  That proved to be a good decision as typhoon Pedring pounded the entire Manila with winds and rain on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Take a look at this video of how strong the winds were from outside the window of my grandparent's house.

PGT Sherwood Preview

Arrival from Dubai was Saturday morning, September 24th.  An hour and a half flight from Dubai to Doha on Friday afternoon. Then an overnight flight from Doha to Manila, which was about nine and a half hours.  You would think that sitting down the whole time on the plane will get you recharged.  After all, you didn't do anything on a flight.  However, the opposite occurs.  The body becomes lethargic and in need or rest.  Especially when you fly on the way back since there is no excitement factor in going to a new destination.  You're simply, well, going home from the adventure.

While Olga and I did rest that day to regain our strength from an epic journey to the Middle East, there was not much time to ponder and reminisce.  A new task awaited.  That was, teeing it up for a practice round on Monday, September 26th in Sherwood Hills Golf Club in Cavite for the PGT Sherwood Classic.  After withdrawing from Cebu back in August and skipping the tournament in Riviera, I was looking forward to this tournament with excitement and possibly some anxiety as well.  One and a half months out of golf doing nothing but rest and rehab and of course the travel made me wonder if the back was truly set for the demanding tournament and training schedule.  Was the ball striking and feel still there like the past or had I regressed a lot in a few months? With several scenarios boiling up in my head, I was anxious to tee it up on Monday and see for myself what the game would throw at me.

Check this video out as I drive to the course on Monday, September 26th:

Ski Dubai for the last day

The last main attraction of our epic trip to Dubai was Ski Dubai.  This is an indoor ski resort with 22,500 square metres of indoor ski area. It is a part of the Mall of the Emirates, one of the largest shopping malls in the world, located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It was developed by Majid Al Futtaim Properties, which also operates the Mall of the Emirates.

Bought gloves prior to entering Ski Dubai

That's her "it's frigid!" face. Going up the ski lift. "I think we can do this!"

Our friends that we met. 

Yummy hot chocolate. Definitely a must up top at Avalanche Cafe

View from above

Opened in November 2005, the indoor resort features an 60-meter high indoor mountain with 5 slopes of varying steepness and difficulty, including a 400-metre-long run, the world's first indoor black run, and a 90-metre-long quarter pipe for snowboarders. A quad lift and a tow lift carry skiers and snowboarders up the mountain. Adjoining the slopes is a 3,000-square-metre Snow Park play area comprising sled and toboggan runs, an icy body slide, climbing towers, a snowball shooting gallery, an ice cave and a 3D theatre. Other attractions include a mirror maze and a snowman-making area. Winter clothing, ski and snowboard equipment are included in the price of admission.

An extremely efficient insulation system helps the facility maintain a temperature of −1 °C during the day and −6 °C at night when the snow is produced.

Olga was iffy about going to Ski Dubai since she went inside the indoor Ski Resort a few days prior to my arrival in Dubai.  However, she did not ski.  She went up the ski lift with her mom and had hot chocolate at Avalanche Cafe.  I told her, "we must try out the skiing. we're already here!" Yeah we're novice skiers but we'd probably figure it out.  I was half right about that statement.  While I never quite got the hang of it like skiing when I was 5 years old, I still managed to stand up and ski down the slope.  What a thrill it is when you have the cold air blowing through your face.  Good thing there were no serious crashes or that might have delayed my recovery from my back injury.

Olga on the other hand, well, lets just say she enjoyed it much better from the viewing deck at Avalanche Cafe.  She attempted one ski down the slope but after that, she figured it was better with her feet planted on the ground, ski-less.  At least she could say that she gave it a shot.

That goes for everyone visiting Dubai and the Mall of the Emirates! That last attraction concluded our visit in Dubai.  The rest was family time with Olga's mom and uncle.  This was a trip I would never forget. :)