Professional golfer and Lexus brand ambassador Miguel Tabuena took home a hard-earned win during the recently held Philippine Golf Tour ICTSI Eagle Ridge Championship. It was a nail-biter of a finish, with Tabuena claiming a two-stroke victory over his closest rival.
Tabuena is familiar with the course, having played there a few times. In fact, his last local triumph happened there in 2018 before campaigning abroad. “I was pretty familiar with the conditions and it wasn’t the hardest because the greens were actually in good shape and it was pretty easy to read the putts,” he shares. Nevertheless, it was still a hard-fought victory over some of the best golfers in the Philippines.
Tabuena fell behind early on, but thanks to his experience and skill, he was able to rebound strong, producing four birdies in a seven-hole stretch from No. 3 to storm ahead. “Playing golf at such a young age gave me the chance to learn, from early on, how to be competitive,” he says. “I enjoy the thrill of competition and I think if there’s something I learned from playing competitive golf since I was about five years old, it was how to win gracefully and lose gracefully.”
But it was all about winning during that weekend. Tabuena wants his game to speak for itself. This eliminates the temptation to try too hard to make things work. “If I prepare well, remain focused and quietly confident, the wins will come.”
He is the highest-ranked Filipino golfer in the Official World Golf Rankings after cementing his dominance in our region. He won his first Asian Tour title at the Philippine Open in 2015—the first Filipino since 2008 to win his national open. In 2016, he had the honor of representing the Philippines in the World Cup of Golf and in the Summer Olympics. In 2018 he won a second title on the Asian Tour at the Queen’s Cup in Thailand hosted by the Jade Foundation. And now, with his most recent PGT tour ICTSI victory under his belt, Tabuena is back in fighting form.
Not one to rest on laurels, Tabuena is preparing himself for future tournaments. “It’s a matter of getting back to work and fixing few things that I think I could improve on,” he added. The golf pro says he still finds time to practice regularly on the golf course and at the driving range, and he has been working hard on his physical and mental conditioning. As a Lexus brand ambassador, Miguel is familiar with the quest to constantly improve and evaluate one’s self. “I suppose I love the pressure because it helps assure me that I am in the right place,” he muses. “What’s a win without the pressure?”
“One day I hope to be someone other golfers can look up to,” he adds. “I know I have been given a talent by God, and this is something that I don’t take lightly. I have a responsibility to hone this craft and make the most of what I’ve been given.”