Filipino Alex Arellano won his second straight Best Gross title; Korean T.W. Kim, not to be confused with B.J. Kim and the +1 handicap taekwondo master M. S. Kim, took the Division A (0-14 handicap) crown and Indian Anjum Mulla was the Division B (15-21) winner.
Also on the list was New Zealander John Palalagi, a lumbering giant of a golfer whose presence at the golf course could not be missed and more so because on Friday he notched his first victory as a 24 handicap.
A total of 110 players teed it up in calm weather conditions. Pepsi Company sponsored the 18-hole stroke play competition, according to RGC Director of Golf V. T. M. Rafi.
Arellano, with a 6 handicap, fired a winning 2-over 75 on the rolling layout as he edged out club captain New Zealander Julian Bennett (76) and Pakistani Omar Khan (78).
Arellano had nines of 37-38 and dropped just two shots on par-3 No. 7 and No. 10.
Kim played one of his best rounds since taking out a membership at RGC two years ago to shoot a 67 from a gross score of 80 (43-37). A general manager at Hamni International, the 13-handicap Kim rolled in consecutive birdies on 13 and 14 to stay even par following bogeys on the 12th and 17th holes.
Three strokes back on 70 were three players and Filipino Tony Lizardo was the unlucky one to miss out on the prizes after the countback, with B. J. Kim taking the first runner-up spot and Lizardo’s compatriot and his staff at Hacienda Restorante Joe Pacatan the second runner-up position.
Mulla, who works at Saudi Telecom Company, showed why he is regarded as the most improved Indian golfer, carding nines of 42-41 for an 83 and a net 67 that gave him the Division B title.
Another Filipino, Howard Laurente, took first runner-up honors on 68 from a gross 88 (46-42), while Korean Shin Seun-hae clinched second runner-up on 69 from a gross 84 (42-42).
Palalagi played disciplined golf, keeping the ball in the fairway and avoiding trouble as he ruled the Stableford format Division C with 45 points, the equivalent of 9-under in medal play.
Palalagi’s score could have been better had he not made four putts on 11 and three putts from eight feet for a bogey on the par-3 fourth hole.
Warren Cole from the UK was first runner-up on 43 points and Mohammed Yuris, a diplomat from the Indonesian Embassy, second runner-up on 42 points.
The Ladies Division winners were Younk Young with 35 Stableford points, Teresa Walker 34 and Paromita Mukherjee 34.
Up next at RGC is the FGA Kalayaan Cup tournament on June 18.
