Golf and friendships

As I write this week’s article, I am still aching from playing the Ateneo Challenge Cup at Forest Hills’ Palmer Course.

Due to the recent rains, the course was mostly “cart path only” and players like me who always ride a cart had to walk more than usual.

Forest Hills is known for being a hilly track, with constantly rolling terrain and virtually zero even lies.

If you ever want to practice hitting downhill, uphill, sidehill, and everything in between, then Forest Hills, especially the Palmer Course is perfect.

Forest Hills’ Nicklaus course may have a reputation for being one of the toughest tests in the country, but the Palmer Course is its unique challenge.

Every year, around this time, Ateneo alumni gather for our flagship tournament, the Challenge Cup.

The competition pits batches from the same decade against each other, followed by a showdown between decades for the overall crown.

I’ve been joining this tournament yearly for over 10 years and every year, it just keeps getting bigger and better.

This year’s edition drew 171 pairs or 342 players, requiring a morning and afternoon shotgun at the Nicklaus and the Palmer courses.

The format is as follows: form a pair with a batchmate, hit alternate drives (one player tees off on the odd, and one on the even holes), scramble from the second shot onwards until you reach the green, and then alternate putts.

The handicapping is computed by getting 20 percent from the higher handicapper of the pair, and 50 percent from the lower handicapper.

From there, each batch can field as many two-man teams as they can but only the top 3 will count. It may seem complicated at first, but this format has proven effective over the years in balancing the field and keeping sandbaggers in check.

Golf will always be fun, but there’s nothing more enjoyable than playing and competing as a team with the friends you grew up with.

My batch, HS 1996 (where teams are based on our high school graduation year), is made up of people who have known each other for 40 years.

Most of us entered Ateneo in 1984, some joined in 1992 during freshman year in high school, while others we met in college in 1996.

So at the very least, we’ve known each other for 28 years, and now that we’re in our mid-40s, our love for golf has made our bonds even stronger.

During the Challenge Cup, it is not uncommon to see players from as far back as batches in the 1960s still playing.

This year, the oldest team was from batch 1963, and if my math is correct, these gentlemen are in their late 70s, still enjoying golf with their friends who they could have met 70 years ago, just as they entered Ateneo as young boys. How awesome is that?!

The Ateneo Challenge Cup 2024 will always be memorable for our batch as this year, we were able to come back as Champions of the 90s decade once again!

With 12 pairs making up our team, our top 3 scorers clinched the championship with stellar play. Our top scorers were: Paolo Gregorio/Popoy Roderos. Mervin Yazon/Marco Angeles, and Ryan Gillego/Nickie Dichaves.

These six gentlemen played their best when it mattered and scored a win for our batch.

It’s amazing that not too long ago, our batch would only have 2-4 players joining the early editions of this annual tournament. We had zero chance of winning since we couldn’t even make the minimum of 3 pairs!

We grew from two teams to four, to six and now we’re at 12 teams and counting.

With more batch mates now playing golf, we can easily reach 20 pairs in a year or two.

But more than the competition on the greens, alumni tournaments like ours are a testament to the bonds created through the decades.

It‘s also evidence of how a sport like golf, which can be played into our later years, ensures these bonds strengthen further.

Congrats to Batch 96! Cheers to more decades of brotherhood and hitting the links.