Art Arbole’s confidence is soaring after finally ending a 14-year title drought and now seeks back-to-back titles as the Philippine Golf Tour goes to Iloilo this week.
The International Container Terminal Services Inc. Iloilo Golf Challenge gets going on Tuesday at the Iloilo Golf and Country Club, with Arbole eyeing a follow-up to his victory in the Negros Occidental Classic.
‘I’m still on cloud nine. My confidence is much higher now because before, I was always worried things just weren’t gong to work out for me,’ Arbole said.
The Del Monte native, now based in Canlubang, held a share of the lead in the first round and managed to hold on until the end.
Now he hopes to prove it was no one-week flash of brilliance, on a course that could demand an entirely different type of play.
The former Santa Barbara layout is tight and tricky, much like Marapara, but its quirks and stern challenges can punish even the slightest lapse in concentration. It is the kind of venue that can test patience as much as shot-making, with the premium likely to be on precision, course management and the ability to stay composed when birdies are hard to come by.
Among those looking to take the title are last week’s runner-up Ababa, five-time Order of Merit winner Tony Lascuña, Clyde Mondilla, Rupert Zaragosa, Reymon Jaraula, Guido van der Valk, Lumbo and Zanieboy Gialon.
Gialon, in particular, returns to a venue where he has already left his mark, having dominated the last Iloilo Challenge in 2024. He won by six strokes over Angelo Que and Ira Alido.
Que, meanwhile, will be eager to bounce back after finishing joint 13th in Negros. The reigning Order of Merit winner and a two-leg champion this season had entered the previous event with momentum after ruling the PGT stop at Summit Point, only to come away with a result below his usual lofty standards.
The chase in the P2.5-million championship organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc. and serving as the seventh leg of this year’s Tour is further deepened by Russell Bautista, Collin Wheeler, Michael Bibat, Dino Villanueva, Ryan Monsalve, Gabriel Manotoc, Arnold Villacencio, Elee Bisera, Kim Tae Soo, Nilo Salahog, Jay Bayron, Mars Pucay and Gerald Rosales.