Eastridge

Set in the hills close to the town of Angono, the course at East Ridge Golf & Country Club was carved out of the limestone foothills of the Sierra Madre mountain range, approximately 20 metres above sea level. Designed by James Martell Junior, a former hired hand with Robert Trent Jones Jr., it’s an early 1990s layout that straddles a ridge with the more open front nine on one side and the tighter back nine on the other.

Stretching to 6,836 yards from the back tees, playing to a par of 72, the course is configured as two returning nines, with water coming into play on several occasions, most notably at the par three 3rd, par four 5th and par three 12th, where ponds next to the green protect par at each of these holes.

Highlights on the front nine include the 412-yard 4th, with the fairway dropping far below the tees before turning upward to the large, offset green. The 538-yard 6th winds around a ravine then up towards another difficult green. The 343-yard 9th is a spectacular and rather intimidating hole, with the ravine on the left and a tough, two-tiered green as the target.

On the back nine, the 410-yard 11th is a difficult nut to crack with a creek down the left, out-of-bounds on the right, and an elevated green that’s difficult to judge correctly with the approach shot. The 475-yard 13th is a great risk-reward hole, requiring a precise tee shot over a lake on the right side of the fairway. The right doglegging 17th is also a mighty par four, rated stroke index 2 on the card.