SENIOR MOMENTS: Rounds at Marapara critical in title hunt

BACOLOD — Senior play, which takes the lid off of the 76th edition of the Philippine Airlines (PAL) Interclub on Monday, will have the Championship division playing the tree-lined Marapara on the first and last rounds and Binitin in the middle two with lift-clean-and-place in effect because of rains the past few days.

And this comes as no surprise to Luisita non-playing skipper Jeric Hechanova, with Marapara the more difficult course owing to its length and trickiness, that’s why the team has a plan of playing its long hitters in the first and final rounds.

“I have no choice but to play my longer (hitting) guys at Marapara,” Hechanova said while refusing to say which of his players he has told of this ploy. “The length of the course will just demand a lot from the players, while the Binitin now is a thinking man’s course.”

Del Monte will be defending its maiden Senior crown, and Hechanova believes that the Bukidnon club is still the team to beat, with the Del Monte course in Bukidnon playing slightly similar to Marapara.

“And they have an intact line-up,” Hechanova said. “So there’s no doubt that they are the favorites.”

Del Monte ran away with its breakthrough title last year in Cagayan de Oro, winning by 17 points over Canlubang. The Yoyong Velez-skippered squad took an 18-point lead into last year’s final round and was never threatened, and that’s something that Hechanova feels will be key again this year.

“If we are going to contend for the title, we need to have a sizeable lead going into the final day at Marapara,” he said. “Otherwise, catching up on this course will be very hard to do in the final round.”

Canlubang is the third team seen as a force for the title. Led by Abe Rosal, the Sugar Barons have the second-most number of titles in the 55-years-old and above category after the Luisitans.

“It’s a very wide-open tournament from where I see it,” Rosal said. “It’s such a balanced tournament that I see that team making the least mistakes as the team that wins it.”

Men’s action will follow next week starting Tuesday, with Manila Southwoods seeking another ‘four-peat’ with a team built around hotshots Shinichi Suzuki and reigning PH Am champion Zeus Sara and ex-pro Jerome Delariarte.

The 76th staging of the PAL Interclub is supported by Platinum sponsors PRIMAX and Asian Journal.

Mastercard is a gold sponsor while RMN is a silver sponsor.

ABS-CBN Global is joining as a bronze sponsor while VISA, Philippine National Bank, SM Bacolod, Tanduay and Asia Brewery are minor sponsors. Citadines is a hotel partner.