Filipino golfers who have been silent in major Asian Tour tournaments since the start of the year are crossing their fingers with the hope of finally clinching a win in their home country with the holding of the Philippine Open on April 3-6 at the Wack Wack Golf and Country Club.

Among the Filipino hopefuls who have signed up for the oldest golf tournament in Asia, are  Juvic Pagunsan, Artemio Murakami, Frankie Miñoza, Gerald Rosales, Tony Lascuña, Angelo Que, Jerome Delariarte, and Mars Pucay.

The field will be hostile, however, for the Filipino golfers because pro golfers from Korea, Thailand, India, and Australia, among others, are up to give a challenge for the prestigous cup and the $300,000 pot money.

 Miñoza, considered as a Filipino golf legend, will be aiming to end a career jinx when he defends his title at Philippine Open. Throughout his illustrious career, the 48-year-old Minoza has won 16 professional tournaments spanning over three decades across the region but strangely, the laidback Filipino has never enjoyed a successful title defence.
 
Minoza will be aiming to get his record right at Wack Wack Golf and Country Club next month when he faces a strong Asian Tour line-up for what is the eighth leg of the 2008 season.
 
He knows that a good defence will be tough, especially when it is his national Championship. “To play in your home Open, it’s very hard. There’s pressure as everyone expects you to win,” said Minoza, who has a big following in the Philippines. 
 
The Philippine Open has had its own controversies, especially when it was cancelled in 2003, but thanks to the National Golfers Association of the Philippines, biggest golf event in the Philippines has been resurrected the following year.

Politics, worsening economic situation, and the lack of financial resources caused the cancellation of the Philippine Open in 2003, the country’s most prestigious and Asia’s oldest golf tournament, eliciting disappointment from Filipino golfers, who did not see a major tournament in the country during that year year.