All the Way Back: Caliraya Spring Golf Club is hale and hearty once again

When we last visited Caliraya Spring Golf Club two years ago, the club had just gone through some major changes. Atlanta Land VP David Du had just taken the reins then and he had his work cut out for him.

The course had been left in disrepair prior to his arrival at the club. The grass on the fairways was ankle high and the greens were all but dead. Nothing seemed to be growing right. Even the trees on the fairways were dying.

Being the can-do sort that he is, David rolled up his sleeves and went to work. As a former president of the Philippine Bonsai Society, David understood plants and made it his first order of business to have the soil at Caliraya Spring analyzed to determine what species of flora would thrive in this lush environment. Dozens of trees that weren’t doing well were uprooted and others were planted in their place. They haven’t stopped there; tree planting continues in designated areas.

The fairways had been overtaken by carabao grass. It was unrealistic to resod the fairways with imported turf grass as that would increase the club’s maintenance costs so no action was taken but to cut and water to provide golfers with an acceptable playing surface.

The greens were the hardest hit. David and his crew tried to bring the tiftdwarf greens back, but to no avail. The putting surfaces remained patchy and played miserably. At a crossroads, David stopped by a memorial park and noticed just how lush their lawns were. A quick conversation with the head of their maintenance crew brought Zoysia matrella, or Manila grass, to David’s attention.

A native grass, Manila grass was more resistant and infinitely better adapted for local golf courses. It was thick and hardy. It’s resistant to weeds and requires little care beyond cutting, watering and adding a bit of nitrogen from time to time to keep it green. It was serendipity for David.

Manila grass was perfect for Caliraya’s highly ferrous, clayish soil. Although it took a while to grow in, the resulting playing surface is instantly familiar to Filipino golfers, as it is this grass that is used at most of the local golf courses for their tee boxes and greens.

Two years on and the results of all their hard work is plain for all to see. The supports are gone from all but the newest of plantings. The older trees are flourishing. The fairways, once all but naked to the eye, are now lush and lined with trees. The fairways might have reverted to native grasses but playing conditions are consistent and good play produces good results. And the greens!

Although a couple of the larger green complexes still have patches that are still growing in, the more mature greens are a pleasure to play. Yes, they’re still a bit slow but they receive the ball well and, more important, roll well. They look a bit shaggy but play faster than they look. Our publisher, T. Anthony Cabangon, joined me for a game and was suitably impressed.

No matter its condition, Caliraya Spring has always been a fabulous layout. The front nine winds down to the lake and back, while the back nine meanders through the woods and wetlands of the interior. On a clear day, you’re treated to magnificent views of Mount Banahaw and Mount Cristobal in the distance.

The course is generous in some areas and requires precision in others. When the wind is up, the course becomes even more demanding. Any ball hoisted up into the air is directed not by your swing but the whim of the winds.

The lake is on full display on holes 5 through 7. It makes its first appearance when you crest the 5th fairway but it isn’t until the sixth hole that it comes into play. The sixth is the 1-handicap and for our money, it’s the club’s signature hole and the only par 5 in the country with an island green. Hurdle that and walk up to the par 3 No. 7, which requires a healthy carry over another inlet. It’s a tremendous setting and hugely satisfying when your golf ball finds dry land on this hole.

A further word of advice: beware of ball-snatching crows on holes 12, 15 and 16. The nefarious birds took a couple of balls off me on the first two holes and had me staked out on 16! Sending the caddies ahead took care of that, so be warned.

The course isn’t overly long at 6,788 yards from the tips. The member’s tees are an even more accommodating 6,306 yards and the ladies need traverse a mere 4,833 yards in the course of their round. Now, just because it’s short, don’t get the idea that it’s a pushover, because it’s not. Holes 4, 6 and 7 are strong, very striking golf holes that would rank highly compared to any you’d care to name. 18 is simply a beautiful golf hole; short but devious, fronted by water and with a devilish green and the luxurious clubhouse in the background.

Best of all, no apologies need be made for Caliraya Spring any longer. As a golf experience, it will thrill you with the shots it asks you to play and amaze you with its beautiful vistas and breathtaking sunsets.

It might be over two-and-a-half hours from Manila but it’s a trip worth taking. If you have time on your hands, the churches of Laguna are some of the oldest and most beautiful in the Philippines. Linger in Pansol and sooth your body in the hot springs or stop in Lumban to peruse the exquisite embroidery that seems to permeate the sleepy town. If you don’t have the luxury of time, traveling at night will cut over half an hour off the trip.

Given the distance that you have to travel to get there, plan on staying the night to get another round in before the drive back to reality. The club has 20 rooms in the basement and recently opened four boat houses. The floating accommodations are the best on the property but be sure to make reservations, as these are also the quickest to sell out. They sit on a fenced-off pond stocked with Pangasius hypopthalmus, or more commonly known as cream dory. You can drop a line into the pond from your balcony and the club will be more than happy to cook what you catch for you.

There are other facilities which make bringing the nongolfers among your group with you on this sojourn. Besides fishing and trekking, you can go boating or kayak on the lake. It’s a wondrous place that needs to be explored. There is fauna everywhere; birds, lizards and, if you’re lucky, you might even get a glimpse of deer or wild boar.

So, do it. Call the club and book a weekend with your family and foursome. You won’t regret it.

Source: Business Mirror