Cameron Nicholas
Joseph Sasamoto Jr.
Joe “Kamikaze” Camacho
CAMERON Nicholas started his first year as a member of the Refaluwasch Golf Association with a bang by winning its two-day January Ace of the Month tournament at the Laolao Bay Golf & Resort west course on Saturday.
Nicholas’s best performance came in the qualifier round on Sunday, Jan. 14.
On the front nine, he cleared the fairways with great placements and a soft touch on the green to end with a gross of 43. On the back nine, he maintained his swing to earn a score of 44 for a gross total of 87. Sporting a handicap of 13, the newcomer led the first day of the tournament with a net score of 74.
The battle for second place ended in a tiebreaker with Tony Satur besting Patrick Fitial. Both shared a net score of 75. Satur shot a gross of 50 on the front nine and 46 on the back for a gross total of 96 while Fitial shot a gross of 44 on the front nine and 45 on the back for a gross of 89.
In the Ace round on Saturday, Joseph Sasamoto Jr. took the spotlight by edging Manny Mangarero in a tiebreaker.
Sasamoto shot an even gross of 37 on the front and back nines for a total gross score of 74. His handicap was only 2.
Mangarero also played well, shooting a gross of 42 on the front and 41 on the back for a total gross score of 83, which was aided by a handicap of 11.
Nicholas came in third with gross scores of 46 and 40 for a gross total of 86, which was reduced by his 13 handicap to a net score of 73. He also recorded two birdies on holes #12 and #18.
Moreover, Nicholas’s cumulative net score of 147 was enough to secure first place and the January Ace of the Month title.
In the optional play, Joe “Kamikaze” Camacho led the Closest to the Pin on holes #3 and #17; Zhi Yun “Venom” ruled hole #7; and Marco Peter, the newly elected RGA president, notched hole #13. Each hole was worth a $55 cash prize.
