Wack Wack (East)

An interesting story surrounds the formation of the Wack Wack Golf & Country Club by an American named William J Shaw back in 1930. Bill Shaw – an official at Manila Golf Club where the Philippines Open had been held since its inauguration in 1913 – was appalled when Larry Montes, the first Filipino winner of the competition in 1929, was asked to leave the clubhouse during the awards presentation because, as a caddy at a local club, he was prohibited from entering the clubhouse in the first place.

Disgusted at this attitude towards a local golfer – who also happened to be the first professional to win the event in its 17th year – Shaw left the club to establish one that would be free from any discrimination. And so, the Wack Wack was inaugurated the following year.

Incidentally, Montes would demonstrate the full extent of his golfing prowess by winning half of the next twenty national Open competitions that were held between 1932 and 1954.

The course first came to international prominence in 1962 when one of the earliest “Shell’s Wonderful World of Golf” series of challenge matches was played here between Dave Ragan and Celestino Tugot.

The East is the main course at Wack Wack and its par three 8th, with its upturned bowl-shaped green, is the signature hole, but the long one-shot 16th has been known to spoil the card of many a golfer with a good score up to that point in the round. The newer, shorter West layout attracts juniors and seniors away from the big course for a more leisurely round.

The annual World Cup of Golf was held on the East course in 1977 and the home pairing of Rudy Labares and Ben Arda performed superbly well, beaten into second place by the Spanish team of Seve Ballesteros and Manuel Pinero – such was the strength of Iberian golf at the time, Spain had won the previous year in Palm Springs with Seve and Manuel Pinero lifting the trophy.