Salvador seeks title defense in site of first Tour win

It will be a homecoming of sorts for Elmer Salvador when he returns to the scene of his inaugural triumph last year in this year’s Philippine Golf Tour-ICTSI Sherwood Hills Golf Classic. Salvador will try to beat more than 60 players that will compete for the P1-million in the tournament set next week at the Jack Nicklaus signature course of the Sherwood Golf and Country Club in Trece Martires, Cavite.

The former lake boy from Davao engineered a five-stroke victory at the challenging Sherwood Hills which led to another triumph in the ICTSI-Valley Golf Classic in the revived circuit. He capped 2009 by winning the Philippine Open at Mount Malarayat that earned him the distinction as Order of Merit champion in the circuit and an awardee in the recent Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) awards night. “I was fortunate to have three the previous year. I’ll be aiming for four or more if I can," Salvador said in Filipino. That successful campaign boosted Salvador’s confidence, which he owes to a change of swing that added to distance and accuracy. Angelo Que, who placed 10th in the just-concluded Maybank Malaysian Open in Kuala Lumpur, plus fellow Asian Tour campaigners Juvic Pagunsan, Mars Pucay, and Antonio Lascuna will be among those aiming to bring home the P200,000 top prize at stake. Also in the hunt for the P200,000 purse are Jun Bernis, Ferdie Aunzo, Jerome Delariarte, Orlan Sumcad, Michael Bibat, Marvin Dumandan, Rey Pagunsan, Danny Zarate, Robert Pactolerin, Jay Bayron and Benjie Magada. Meanwhile, the traditional pro-am tournament, featuring ICTSI officials and their guests from the government and private sectors, will be held on March 16 with fabulous prizes and raffle items to be raffled off. The country’s leading amateurs, headed by ICTSI-The Country Club mainstays Peter Villaber, Erwin Madrileno and Dante Becierra, will also see action in the event as part of their buildup for various international competitions. – Adrian Flores, GMANews.TV