(Press Release) — With perfect golf weather conditions, 144 golfers hit the links at Coral Ocean Golf Resort last Saturday for the 2022 #WeBelieve Golf Tournament, the signature fundraiser for Rep. Angel A. Demapan’s bid to fill one of two Saipan senatorial seats in the upcoming general election.
First held in 2020, the 2nd Annual #WeBelieve Golf Tournament was cancelled in 2021 due to rising number of Covid-19 cases that year. As a result, this past weekend’s tournament saw over 150 registered golfers eager to claim the top prize in the second consecutive sold out 2-man scramble golf tournament. Unfortunately, the maximum number of players the course can take is 144, preventing nearly a dozen golfers on the wait list from entering the tournament.
At 8 a.m., Demapan and tournament director Joey C. Dela Cruz addressed the golfers before sending the teams out for tee off. They welcomed Team NMI Golf’s female gold medalist, Zhi Minjin, and the bronze medal men’s team members J.J. Atalig, Franco Santos, Joshua Atalig, and Zhi Li. They also recognized members of Team NMI Baseball’s gold medalists who were in attendance to support Demapan’s fundraiser.
“It was such an honor to have our hometown medalists in attendance to support the #WeBelieve campaign,” said Demapan. “What was also very humbling was to have players representing the islands of Saipan, Tinian, Rota, Northern Islands, and Guam.”
Demapan also thanked the forty hole sponsors for their support and generosity. “It was overwhelming to get so much support from our private sector partners and local families who signed up to be a hole sponsor,” added Demapan.
After four 4.5 hours of competition, the tournament banquet was held at poolside while scores were tabulated for low gross, double peoria, and the optional play contests.
The results are as follows:
Low gross winners
Surprisingly, the top three teams all tied with a gross score of 65. This forced tournament organizers to resort to a scorecard playoff using the lowest handicap par 4 holes to determine which teams placed first, second and third. As a result, the team of Franco Santos and Harry Nakamura bagged the top prize of the tournament. Kazu Dela Cruz and Dominic Kieffer came in second, followed by Jin Fenchun and Ma Zekang.
Double peoria winners
1) Joey Cruz/Bill Quitano (67.60)
2) Glenn Maratita/Joel Hocog (69)
3) Shayne Villanueva/Jess Ramon (69)
The prizes for low gross and double peoria were $500, $300, and $200 for the first, second and third place respectively.
Optional play winners
In the optional play contests, the following individuals took home the prize for coming closest to the pin.
Hole #3: Freddy Cataluna
Hole #7: Zhi Xingkai Hole #12: Patrick Fitial Hole #14: Shirlyn Jones
Ben Duenas bested all the other participants for Most Accurate Drive at hole #5 and Harry Nakamura went the distance to claim the Longest Drive at hole #18.
Sponsors and donors
The golf course was lined up with banners displaying the names of sponsors at each hole. At the banquet, Demapan and his campaign Chairman Dave Attao recognized the hole sponsors and donors for their contribution and support.
4EVER CNMI
#TinianBelieves
Five Star Builders
Aldan Family
Alex & Jolene Sablan
Atdit Clothing Brand
Benavente Family
Bridge Capital LLC
Children of Gov. Eloy S. Inos
Carl Hocog for Precinct 3
David Randy Sablan for Precinct 4
TJ Manglona for Precinct 5
Dennis Mendiola for Senate – Rota
Leepan Guerrero for Mayor of Saipan
Ralph & Vinnie for Gov/Lt Gov.
Demapan Family
JEM Co. Ltd. Mobil Stations
GOP Precinct 1 Slate
Helios Engineering Heather Stole
Hong Ye Construction
Hotel Americano
BeeGees LLC
Jesus I. Taisague
JET Holdings
M/M JJ Atalig & Family
Lanchun Jacq
Marianas Inflatables
Marianas Service Pros M
icronesia Holdings Co. LLC
Ray & Lynette Sablan
NorthPac Construction
Oh My Grill
Roil Soil
Roman & Ana Tudela
Seaside Restaurant
Stitched Hat Co.
Turnkey Solutions
United Equipment Rental
USA Fanter
Ralph Demapan Jr. & Roxanne
Priority Care
From left, 2022 Pacific Mini Games golf gold medalist Zhi Minjin of the NMI, seasoned NMI golfer Joe “Kamikaze” Camacho, Rep. Angel A. Demapan and Zhi Yun Li, a member of NMI national golf team.
