Manibusan is SGA Ace of Aces

Attorney General Edward E. Manibusan proudly raises the 2019 Ace of Aces Tournament championship trophy after winning the season-ending competition last Sunday at the Kingfisher Golf Links in Talafofo. (Contributed Photo)

Might as well change Attorney General Edward E. Manibusan’s acronym from AG to GA, as in golfing ace.

This, after the former Superior Court presiding judge won the Saipan Golfers Association’s 2019 Ace of Aces Tournament last Sunday at the Kingfisher Golf Links.

Like the first round last Feb. 2 at the Laolao Bay Golf & Resort, Manibusan judged pretty well the green and fairways of the Talafofo golf course en route to shooting a gross score of four-over par 76. His score minus his 7 handicap gave Manibusan the lowest score of the day at net 69.

Manibusan, who won last year’s May ace, actually started off slow with a four-over par 40 in the first nine holes last Sunday. He, however, more than made up for that in the last nine holes, as he tamed the course with a par 36.

Coupled with the net 73 he shot in the first round, the CNMI’s first elected attorney general wound up with a two-round total of 142, good enough to raise the 2019 Ace of Aces Tournament championship trophy.

Ten strokes behind Manibusan and in second place was Tony Deleon Guerrero. His 152 total was built around a 78 net on the first round and a 74 net on the second.

Coming in third is veteran golfer Jung Eun Teack. He actually finished in a tie with Deleon Guerrero but lost via scorecard tiebreak. His 152 net comprised of an 80 on the first round and a 72 on the second. The 12-handicap Teack shot a 44 in the front nine before improving with a 40 on the last nine holes.

Frank Castro (153), October ace Manny Alvarez (153), August ace Alex Tudela (155), round 1 runner-up and February ace Steve Balakrishna (155), and December ace Das Krishnan (155) make up the Top 7 of SGA’s two-day Ace of Aces Tournament.

Others who qualified for SGA’s season-ending tournament of monthly champions were Larry Deleon Guerrero (January), Joe Sablan (March), John “Nanni” Cruz (April), Rick Kautz (June), Juan Lizama (July), Juan L. Babauta (September), and Nick Sablan (November).

In the SGA Monthly Ace Tournament that coincided with Day 2 of the Ace of Aces, Manibusan was hailed the February winner with his aforementioned net 69. Teack was second with his net 72, while Alvarez was third with his net 73 (gross 85, 45-40).

In the longest drive of the February ace, Krishnan outdistanced everyone in hole No. 2, while Frances Sablan was without peer in hole No. 11.

Alvarez and Juan “Pan” Guerrero were the closest to the pin in holes No. 6 and 8, respectively, while Alvarez’s shots were on point in holes No. 12 and 15.