Malaysian quartet wins Bangon Marawi Golf for a Cause tournament
RIYADH: The Bangon Marawi (Arise Marawi) Golf for a Cause tournament at Dirab Golf & Country Club struck a social chord among golfing communities in Riyadh.
In a show of support, close to 70 players braved the hot sun on a windless Saturday morning and teed it up for the fund-raising event to benefit the people displaced by the Marawi crisis in southern Philippines.
When the dust settled, the Malaysian quartet of Ambassador Datuk Zainol Rahim bin Zainuddin, Azman Syukri, Nor Halim and Mohamad Nasir emerged winner in the four ball Texas Scramble format competition.
Ambassador Rahim’s team posted the winning net score of 57 from a gross of 66 and handicap of 9 in a 34-32 round highlighted by an eagle two on the par-4 14th hole as well as birdies on Nos. 1, 8, 9, 15 and 16. They parred the rest of the 18 holes with a bogey on No. 7 the only blot in an otherwise immaculate round.
Another Malaysian trio of Mohamad Fuad, Arimi Arifin and Rashim Rashid teamed with Filipino Sonny Acance to take second place on 58 from a gross score of 69 and handicap of 11. They enjoyed a bogey-free round of 34-35 with birdies on the third, ninth and 14th holes.
The third and fourth places were decided after a countback that involved six teams.
The team of Resty Sibug, Rene Layug, Jun Nacion and Chito P. Manuel, who missed the shotgun start due to bad back, clinched third with the foursome of Jun Bantug, Alan Malawanda, Muamar Ayo and James Schuler in fourth position. These two teams along with four others were tied on 59.
Sibug’s team carded 32 and Bantug’s 34 when the back nine scores were compared to break the ties. The quartet of Julian Bennett, Doy Vicera, Willie Querida and Al Gatbonton also had 34 but then lost in a further countback to the last six holes.
Also on 59 but missed out on the podium places like Bennett’s team were: Korean husband-and-wife team of Dong Soon Kang and Chan Hwi Lee, Michael Redmond and Declan Reilly; Oscar Domingo, Boiet Carigma, Ricardo Villa and Ramon Tomista; and Mar Vera Cruz, Aries Ramirez, Deo and Willy Tamonte.
The skill prizes for longest drive on No. 1 went to John Kirwan, perfect drive on No. 10 to Bantug and closest to the pin on No. 7 to Bennett, a New Zealander married to a Filipino.
The tournament is a project of Knights of Rizal Central Region Chapter Saudi Arabia under the leadership of Commander Sibug with Sir Knight and FGA President Malawanda, a native son of Marawi, as the tournament chairman. It was held in cooperation with Filipino Golf Association, Dirab Golf & Country Club, ANB Telemoney, Philippine Embassy in Riyadh, TFC (The Filipino Channel) and Alharam Center.
Sibug and Malawanda in their speeches during the awards ceremony thanked the participants, donors and sponsors for helping make the event a big success. Ayo, a representative of the Philippine Embassy and from Marawi like Malawanda, also spoke at the ceremony.
For his part, Dirab Golf Committee Chairman Tariq Javed said the international golfers – Pakistanis, Koreans, Irishmen and ASEAN, among others, — showed the level of support of an event for a great cause.
“We feel for what happened to Filipinos in Marawi. What happened to them could happen anywhere in the world,” Javed told TFC in a taped interview.