Of Golf, Greens and Glory
As a former jungolfer (junior golfer) who spent many summers of her childhood swinging clubs on the sunny fairways of the golf course, I have a not-so-secret secret: there was never a time when I took any tournaments seriously. Golf was merely a hobby. It was a place in my life that I packed into a box labelled “leisure.” Where others would toil away and have their days ruined by what they thought were “bad shots,” it was a place where I would meet new friends and catch up with old ones while enjoying the fresh air and the sounds of nature.
When I grew up and got into the university, I joined the golf varsity of Ateneo de Manila and found myself in a more serious setting—with trainings in the range at least twice a week and annual intercollegiate golf games. Though I had learned to take it a little more seriously, I once again found myself happily enjoying the fairways and being (pretty much) the unofficial team cheerleader—as I was never drafted outside of the ladies’ tournament. I had stopped playing any golf after I graduated in the summer of 2015.
Four years later (about two weeks ago), I found myself signing up for Philippine Airlines’ PAL Interclub (Media) Tournament. My dad, an avid golfer, urged me to practice and play a few rounds to at least warm up before my unofficial “comeback.” After the first round I played in years, I strained my wrist. A day later, I missed a step in the stairs while gravity—mixed with the force of my weight—had me land smack on my ankle with a crackly click.
The coincidence of these circumstances happening at that time were unbelievable! It was like the universe was showering me with signs that pointed toward me sitting the PAL tournament out. Yet I felt a silent force inside urge me to push on.
I ended up playing the tournament with a strained wrist and sprained ankle—and, perhaps God-willing, survived somehow! I walked around the fairways hitting hazards and sandtraps with an aircast boot on the left foot (where all the weight transfers to at the The Interclub was a place of reprieve. It was a place where new friendships could be made and old ones were reinforced.
end of the swing or during the follow-through). Luckily the players were entitled to golf carts, so the experience was not at all too brutal—save some minor difficulties climbing up the small hills when my ball was on an uphill lie.
Those two days, I admit, I was a stubborn and determined girl. My actions were the perfect manifestation of how I dared to tread between the lines of bravery and foolishness. The doctor would have definitely flipped out if he knew what I had done. (Kids, please don’t ever try this at home— or anywhere, really. Rest is rest— though I wouldn’t have done it if I really thought I couldn’t.)
Beyond what I physically went through, my experience was definitely one for the books. Had I known that PAL organized media tournaments—where small fry like me could actually dream of joining—I would have joined a long time ago.
The PAL Interclub has been the highlight of the Philippine golf community for over seven decades—one of the longest running golf tournaments our country has ever seen. Though the media tournament only started a number of years back, the tournament definitely showed me a glimpse of why the Interclub had come to last so long.
Other than actually winning, there were others like me who instead saw the Interclub as a place of reprieve. It was a place where new friendships could be made and old ones were reinforced. Kinship, sportsmanship, and love for the game were the ties that bound all these people (who flew in from all around the world) in that one place. Through the PAL Interclub, PAL has built its own family of golfers and has given each member something to look forward to every year—something that connected us.
I’m so privileged to have met so many greats in the airline and media industries such as Jaime Bautista (PAL president), Jake Ayson (PAL Media Tournament director), Jonathan Gesmundo (PAL editorial consultant), Paeng Evangelista (PAL internal communications specialist), Cielo Villaluna (PAL spokesperson/head of external communications), and my constant flight-mates, Tito Al Mendoza (Sunstar Manila Writer) and Tita Imee Garcia (SunStar Davao columnist) among many others. More than that, I thoroughly enjoyed representing the company I love (SunStar Cebu) and bonding with my dad through the game.
After the last day, we gathered for a small celebration at Circa Dos where the winners were awarded and raffles were drawn. It was an intimate gathering, and one of the defining moments that made me stop, look around, and truly feel that I found a (golf ) home.
On the night of the last day of the tournament, I slept soundly and drifted off to a land of dreams—of golf, greens and glory.