THE ATENEO Golf Team settled for a first runner-up finish after falling to the Lyceum of the Philippines University (LPU) Pirates on the second day of the 2018 Intercollegiate Golf Championship Finals on January 28 at the Eagle Ridge Golf and Country Club in Cavite. Lyceum’s runaway victory secured them their third straight championship in the prestigious tournament, which also featured the De La Salle University (DLSU) Green Archers and the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons in the elimination round.

The Pirates sealed the win early in the day when the duo of Migs Guerrero and Rupert Zaragosa bested the Ateneo pair of Marc Salandanan and Nikki Bruce in the best ball format. Upon hearing of their teammates’ result, Blue Eagles Enrique Diaz and Sebastian Lorenzo were forced to end their hi-lo game against Lyceum’s JP De Claro and Dan Cruz on the 12th hole, with Ateneo needing a sweep of both games in order to force a third day of competition.

There were still several bright spots throughout the final day of competition for the Blue and White side, with one in particular coming from rookie Enrique Diaz. A massive drive on the 12th hole helped him push onto the green of the par five on just two shots. Diaz was the only golfer that day to achieve the feat. He then managed to sink a long left to right putt to secure an eagle, cutting his pair’s deficit to just two.

“The atmosphere was so electric that even the Lyceum gallery was celebrating in awe and wonderment,” Team Captain Adrian Romero said of his teammate’s highlight play.

In spite of failing to dethrone the defending champions, the young Diaz, along with the notable improvement of the entire team in the tournament, was a welcome sight for the Blue Eagles. Overall, Ateneo exceeded expectations with their first runner-up finish, jumping up one spot after missing the finals last year.

In the elimination round, all teams faced off in a double round robin format, totalling six games each in an attempt to accumulate points. Each win was worth one point while a draw gave both sides 0.5 points. Ateneo racked up 5.5 points in total in order to edge La Salle, who finished with just 5.0 points. The Pirates ran away with first place with their 8.0 points, while the Fighting Maroons finished in last place after tallying just 3.5 points.

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