NGAP hopes PHL Open earns spot in Asian Tour

The National Golf Association of the Philippines (NGAP), the country’s governing body for the sport, is making the necessary measures to have the Philippine Open get its Asian Tour sanction. The NGAP and Asian Tour officials have had a couple of meetings already and the results have been positive. It is a good sign, considering that the recent 94th PHL Open at Valley Golf, though a local-run tournament, is filled with top-caliber Asian players from the Asian Tour roster. But here lies the danger. As in previous years, the Asian Tour is requiring the NGAP to raise $500,000 to nail the contract. Of the amount, $300,000 will go to the prize money ($47,550 to the champion) and the rest for operation expenses. The question is: can NGAP do it? “There’s enough time to look for funding. I think the NGAP should be able to raise it," said NGAP director Pablo Soon, who was part of the Asian Tour-Wack Wack deal for the PHL Open from 2005-2007. Since then, the Open was an-Filipino show, with just a prize fund of $350,000. Soon said that NGAP president Leandro Mendoza, together with Wack Wack (possible host venue), are trying their best to give the Open its rightful title as Asia’s oldest and prestigious national championship. The 94-year-old tournament had already been given a May 5-to-8 playdate in the schedule released by the Asian Tour last month. But it is not a guarantee unless it tees off on the said day. “As long as we are the NGAP Board, we will not stop until we achieve our goal," he said. Filipino followers of the sport are suggesting to the NGAP to also affiliate with Asian Tour rival circuit One Asia, an association based in the Asia-Pacific Region and a joint venture of the PGA Tour of Australasia, the China Golf Association, the Korean Golf Association and the Korean PGA. One Asia may have only half of Asian Tour in terms of number of events, but the former offers a whopping $1 million in each affair and as high as $2.5 million. That would not only give Filipino pros additional opportunities to earn more, but it will also keep them busy all year long. “We haven’t touched base on that. Maybe in the coming months, we’ll sit down and discuss it," Soon also said. – Adrian Flores, JVP, KY, GMANews.TV