Story & photos by Mike Besa
Thanks to the golf boom of the 1990s, the Philippines has been blessed with some of the most beautiful and challenging golf courses on the planet . When it comes to balancing beauty with playability and the challenges inherent in a championship golf course, few do so as well as Eastridge Golf Club.
Carved out of the limestone hills above Angono and Binangonan in the province of Rizal, Eastridge provides the drama and beauty of a mountain course with the playability of a course in the flatlands. The views here are as good as any that you’ll find on a golf course in this country but can be played while walking without too much duress.
Eastridge Golf Club is the work of James Martell Jr., once an apprentice of Robert Trent Jones Jr. whose golf courses in the Philippines are among the best we have to offer. Martell built the course around most of the land’s natural attractions while creating many scenic spots from which to enjoy the incredible views of Laguna de Bay and beyond.
The golf course straddles a ridge; the front nine sits on one side, the back nine on the other with the clubhouse in between. The outward nine has a more open feel to it, while the back nine turns toward the mountain; it’s tighter and requires the golfer to put more thought into each shot. The changes in the topography change the nature of the game, as well.
The course is very well constructed and drains better than most. The greens are gorgeous; they run hard and fast year-round, further testament to the course’s build quality. That’s not to say that the golf course is not without its challenges, but thus far, Eastridge has walked the line better than most.
Eastridge is a fair course to play and truly offers something for golfers of all abilities. It’s accessible for the novice and yet offers plenty to challenge the more skilled. It’s not overly long, but it has some holes that play much longer than they read on the scorecard. A good score here is most dependent on how one handles the greens. Most are very generous targets but are devilishly difficult to decipher. Being cognizant of the prevailing slope is imperative, as is an experienced caddy.
There is great variety in the design, and this is its greatest appeal. The hilly topography guarantees it. There are some great short holes here, something that so many other golf courses have in short supply. These are holes that make you think and, if played correctly, they are ultimately rewarding but will penalize the errant shot severely. There are also holes that will challenge the golfer to his limits, but they are fair tests of golf, and most are stunning to look at.
The opening hole sets the tone for the rest of the round. The 458-yard first hole at Eastridge offers you a choice of two distinct ways into the green. Longer hitters might elect to carry the three fairway bunkers just to the right of the rock feature that divides the fairway. Doing so will leave a shorter shot into the green, but one that requires the most precision to hold the putting surface. Driving your ball to the left of the rocks provides the better angle into the green but from further away.
Four is a beauty. The elevated tee shot requires carrying a small hazard to a fairway that runs downhill. Expect a lot of roll but cross bunkers restrict the landing area as you get closer to the green. The green slopes dramatically away from the mountains toward the lake. Be prepared to aim much further away from the flag than you think.
The three closing holes on the front side present the greatest challenge. Seven plays much longer than its 439 yards on the card would have you believe. It’s a spectacular tee shot (one of many here) from the elevated tee; so be sure to take it all in. The approach plays uphill into a deceptively difficult green so be sure to club accordingly.
Eight is Eastridge’s signature hole—a 223-yard par three across a yawning ravine. The hole plays downhill significantly and, thus, shorter than its published length would have you believe. It is a gorgeous hole.
At 387 yards, nine doesn’t sound like a very difficult hole, but it plays on the very edge of the property with superb vistas of Laguna de Bay all the way up the left side. The ravine plays tricks with the mind and makes this one of the toughest fairways to hit on the golf course. The hole plays quite severely uphill to the multitiered green. The view from behind the green looking back down the fairway is sublime.
Eleven is a gem of a par 4. Everything is in front of you. The fairway is an island of green guarded by out of bounds on the right and a hazard on the left. The fairway rises sharply to the elevated green nestled in the bosom of the mountain. It is quite something.
Thirteen is one of the great driving holes on the golf course. The tee shot must cross the largest lake on the property to a fairway that doglegs away from you to your right. The challenge here is to cut off as much of the dogleg as you dare. Bunkers and rock features obscure the second into the green forcing most golfers to the right before playing the approach into the green.
Fourteen and fifteen are among the shortest of the par fours but are two of the most diabolic. One must take particular care with the approach shots, as both greens run away from the fairway. Sixteen is the big boy; the longest par four on the property. The ideal line to the fairway lies over the boulders that guard the right side, a proper test of your intestinal fortitude.
Given the quality of golf at Eastridge, it’s a wonder the fairways aren’t choked with golfers.
The real challenge for the club is access. Traffic chokes the small streets of Taytay and Binangonan on the West and the way up from the North on Ortigas Avenue isn’t much better. Taking C6 has been iffy with the road’s rehabilitation and expansion, but this situation should ease up soon as the work there nears completion. Traveling on off-hours helps to a great degree, but you need to be prepared for the unexpected, as the city’s traffic is famous for its unpredictability.
Even so, nothing can dampen the golf experience here. Eastridge is a very playable, exceedingly beautiful golf course that will take your breath away. It is always in superb condition, and its proximity to the city make it a tantalizing prospect for the golf tourist that demands great golf without having to travel a great distance. It is unique among the Philippines’s mountain golf courses and is a great value given the golf that is on offer.
It is the hidden gem of the East.
Image credits: Mike Besa