Focus on Davao pros as ICTSI Apo leg begins golf invit'l gets under way

The local talents will have the inside track but the chase for top honors remain wide open when the ICTSI Apo Golf Invitational fires off today at the Apo Golf and Country Club in Davao City.

Tony Lascuna, Cassius Casas and Jay Bayron, who honed their skills and talent on the hazard-laden layout with huge, flat but bunker-guarded greens, will be the players to watch in the P1 million event, which serves as the third leg of the revival of the pro golf tour sponsored by the International Container Terminal Services, Inc.

But the troika will not only bank on their familiarity with the tree-lined course as Casas, Lascuna and Bayron will be coming into the event in top form, having been competed in a series of tournaments abroad, including last week’s Thailand Masters.

Lascuna, Casas, Bayron and Juvic Pagunsan were among the Filipino golfers stranded in Thailand and airlifted from Bangkok the other day although they missed the pro-am tournament yesterday.

Elmer Salvador, runner-up to second leg winner Robert Pactolerin last month, is also tipped to contend for the crown worth P164,000 along with fellow Davaoeños Ramil Bisera, Elmer Saban and Renato Casas.

But a lot of others will be out to spoil the local bets’ bid, including Pactolerin, back on the winning track after that two-shot win at Sherwood Hills, Rey Pagunsan, who finished tied for fourth in Thailand last week, and Pagunsan, who tied for ninth in Thailand.

Also fancied to crowd the favorites in the three-day event, sponsored by the International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI), are Benjie Magada, Peter Miñoza, Richard Sinfuego, Edwin Sanchez, Dan Cruz, Jun Bernis, Ruben Sasutil and Cookie La’O.

A long-time patron of RP golf, ICTSI is playing a major role in reviving the pro circuit along with promoter World Sport Group and backers Srixon, Callaway, Maruman, Gatorade, MJ Carr Golf Management Inc., Inquirer Golf, Golf Digest, Golf Punk, Motorola, Samsung, Maya Ads and MJCarr Golf Management, which also manages some of the top golf courses around Manila.

World Sport Group is the leading promoter of golf tournaments in Asia with their portfolio of events including the Barclays Singapore Open, the Hero Honda Indian Open and the Volvo Masters of Asia. The Singapore-based company is also responsible for the Mercedes-Benz Tour and the Omega China Tour.