Que hopes to join Tabuena in Rio golf

MANILA, Philippines – Angelo Que has vowed to give it his best shot and make the country proud as he toughens up for a possible team-up with Miguel Tabuena in the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil this August.

While Tabuena is assured of a spot in Rio with an Olympic ranking of 38th, Que is down at 52nd but remained confident of making it to the elite 60-player cast, saying it’s an honor to represent the country on the world golfing stage.

“Representing my country is always an honor and a privilege as an athlete especially on a big stage like the Olympics,” said Que, a three-time Asian Tour leg winner who had played for flag and country in the Asian Games and Southeast Asian Games.

But the former Philippine Open champion is doubly thrilled over the rare chance of competing and proving their worth against the world’s best in Rio.

“I just want to give my very best as a good performance will definitely show that we, Filipinos, can also compete against the rest of the world at the highest level,” he said.

Que, 38, also looks forward to teaming up with 21-year-old Tabuena, stressing their age difference won’t matter in their pursuit of Rio glory.

 “I’ve played with Miguel in team events at home and I think it would be great for Philippine golf to see two golfers from different generations playing alongside each other at the Olympics,” said Que.

Tabuena is currently competing against the world’s elite players in the US Open in Pennsylvania.

The Philippines earned two seats in the Olympics because of the rankings of its players. Golf superpower US has four players eligible by virtue of its having six pros in the top 15.

Only 60 players will vie for the first Olympics medals in golf since Canadian George Lyon won the gold for Canada in the 1904 Summer Games in Missouri.

With host Brazil assured of one entry and the US four, the other 55 slots were allotted by selecting a maximum of two players per country following the Olympic Golf Rankings. There is also a requirement that all five continents must be represented.

The deadline for the official ranking is on July 11.