When the Spanish colonial authorities began building what is now Intramuros in the late 16th century, defense of the newly established city was foremost on their minds, not only from rebelling natives but also from foreign forces. As such, they not only built the walls that we see today, but also a moat would surround it, the typical defensive systems used in castles and other fortifications in Europe during the medieval period.
By the turn of the 20th century, the city and the country as a whole fell under American rule. While the Americans were keen to preserve Intramuros, they were not so keen on keeping the moat as it was deemed to be “unsanitary” as it was a breeding ground for mosquitoes and dengue. So the decision was made to fill up the moat and convert it into a golf course, though it served as parade grounds from time to time.
Transformation as a golf course
The golf course was originally a 9-hole course but was expanded in the 1930s to be a full 18-hole course. During that period as well, the management of the golf course was turned over to the Manila City Government. Since then, the golf course remained largely unchanged, having survived World War II and an ownership change in 1981 which brought the golf course under the control of what is now the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority* (TIEZA), AKA one of the recipient government bodies of the travel taxes Filipinos pay for when going overseas.
The golf course was officially named the Club Intramuros Golf Course and while not as prestigious as the likes of Wack-Wack or Manila Golf and Country Club, the Club Intramuros was a fairly popular golfing venue at least for some rounds of golf within the capital city. However, its presence has been a hot button topic for a while as environmentalists and urban renewal advocates have criticized the presence of a place as “elitist” as a golf course within a city that is sorely lacking green open spaces in the midst of the worsening pollution and urban decay that the rest of the (non-golf-playing) population should enjoy. There was also the perception of gatekeeping that kept the former moat inaccessible as opposed to the rest of the Walled City when the area was an integral part to the overall character of Intramuros.
So when Isko Moreno Domagoso was in the midst of his attempt to reclaim the mayoralty post of the City of Manila in the 2025 elections, one of his campaign promises was to open up Club Intramuros Golf Course to the public and transform it into a public park as part of his campaign to “Make Manila Great Again”. Despite the cringeyness of that slogan, Domagoso won the post with a landslide and by October, reports emerged that he immediately began talks with the national government agencies, including TIEZA’s parent the Department of Tourism, to discuss the future of the said golf course.
Opened to the public
While discussions remain ongoing at this time of writing, an interesting development emerged by the following month as TIEZA announced that Club Intramuros Golf Course would now be open to the public every Sunday. As TIEZA and Intramuros Administration (the government agency responsible for administering Intramuros) have not made any official comments regarding the proposal to convert the golf course into a public park, the move is seen as a preemptive move, either in preparation for the possible conversion or to dissuade such conversion as the opening of the golf course once a week should satisfy calls for the area to be opened to the public.
Whatever the motives behind this move, the opening of the Club Intramuros Golf Course to the public every Sunday is very much a welcome development as non-golfing public finally get to explore the area surrounding the walls and what it is like walking around it from the outside. The lush greens and unobstructed open spaces provide a unique experience of tranquility though the lack of shade in vast areas of the golf course may pose a challenge.
The opening of the golf course to the public also provided an opportunity to finally visit up close some areas of Intramuros that had long been inaccessible to the public. One such spot is the Reducto de San Pedro, a pentagonal stone redoubt which was used as ammunition storage by the Spanish forces stationed in the Walled City.
Another landmark that the public is now able to visit is the Puerta de Santa Lucia area that would have led to Intramuros. While the gate is closed off at the time of writing, it is nice to see the view of the gate from the outside.
As a bonus, one can also check out a few meters away a monument dedicated to Miguel Hidalgo, a Mexican priest who is also known as the “Father of the Mexican Nation.” Nearby is a marker commemorating the heroic deeds of Mexico’s Escuadron Aerea de Pelea 201 or the Aguilas Aztecas, a fighter squadron of the Mexican Air Force which saw action in World War II as one of the Allied forces that helped liberate the Philippines. It is also the only instance of a Mexican military unit that saw action outside Mexico.
However, at the time of writing, not all parts of the golf course is accessible to the public. In particular the area from Puerta de Santa Lucia up to the clubhouse located across the Fort Santiago area, including the overpass bridge above A. Soriano/Aduana Street is still off limits. Here’s hoping they eventually open that part as well for the whole experience to be complete.
An uncertain future
At this time of writing, it is not yet clear what the future of Club Intramuros Golf Course will be. Already, debates are raging between the aforementioned group of environmentalists and urban renewal advocates who favored its conversion into a park and those who oppose it, mainly golfers and other environmentalists who argue that such a conversion will “ruin the character of Intramuros.”
Whatever the fate of the Club Intramuros Golf Course will be, it is the hope of this Urban Roamer that the general public, especially those who have been suffering from the continuing urban decay and congestion, will continue to benefit from the access of this green open space and that it would be preserved for the benefit of the people, of Intramuros, and of the city as a whole.
*It is interesting that the Club Intramuros Golf Course falls under the control of TIEZA rather than under Intramuros Administration, which further bolsters the perception of the divide between the golf course and the greater Intramuros itself
Acknowledgements as well to Wikipedia and the book Ciudad Murada by Jose Victor Torres
