Babauta, Liwag top Man’Amko Ground Golf

Coral Ocean Resort and Office on Aging staff are joined by the senior citizens who participated or spectated in the Man’Amko Ground Golf Tournament last Monday at Coral Ocean Point Golf Resort. (Contributed Photo)

Joe Babauta and Eden Liwag won the men’s and women’s divisions of the Man’Amko Ground Golf Tournament last Monday at the Coral Ocean Point Golf Resort.

It marked the first time the Obyan golf course again hosted the ground golf tournament for Saipan’s senior citizens since its closure in 2018 due to Super Typhoon Yutu.

Babauta beat Jesus Pangelinan, O’Brien Tudela, Lito Asuncion Felipe Serrano, and Diego Pua to top the men’s, while Liwag won over Helen Ramos, Rafaela Perry, Rosini Reyes, Sitae Terry, and Dolores Agulto.

The tournament this year was downscaled compared to the ones held pre-COVID-19 pandemic, only featuring two holes. In hole No. 1, for both men and women the lowest score was two strokes, with Babauta, Serrano, and Liwag all tied. In hole No. 2, Babauta and Serrano, were tied again, this time holing in three strokes. As a tie-breaker for the men’s side, Babauta and Serrano agreed to go with who got the ball the closest on their second stroke.

Coral Ocean Point Golf Resort general manager Calvin Park was happy that the golf course was able to host the tournament again, and admired the senior competitors’ energy and enthusiasm.

“We are very happy to bring this tradition back. We are glad for this opportunity to serve them, because they are the community’s valuable members who we can look up to. Myself and our team deeply admire how energetic and cheerful the senior citizens are,” he said.

The event was sponsored by real estate company E-Land Group, which currently manages the Coral Ocean Golf Resort, the Pacific Islands Club Saipan, and Kensington Hotel Saipan.

Ground golf was invented in Japan in the 1980s to serve as a more accessible way for Japanese citizens to play golf, spend more time outdoors, and get some exercise. The sport visually resembles croquet, as players use large, wooden golf clubs to strike wooden balls toward a metal post that acts like a hole in traditional golf.

Office on Aging executive director Walter Manglona was ecstatic to give the elderly an opportunity to have fun outdoors. “I like to bring them out of the center, enjoying some fresh air and sunshine. Because of the pandemic, we are going through hard time, but in a way it can also be a blessing as it gives us time to think about what really matters in life and what we are grateful for. Before the pandemic, people tend to take things for granted, but now we know being able to have this kind of outing day is so precious,” said Manglona.