After Herlene Budol won the Miss Tourism title at the Miss Grand Philippines 2023 pageant, netizens noticed the sad facial expression of the actress-beauty queen.
Some netizens pointed out that Budol looked disappointed after winning her title.
miss pampanga nalang sana sa placement ni herlene budol tutal malungkot sya sa nakuha nya
bat malungkot ang beshy ko
kasi sad ang manager nyo #MissGrandPhilippines2023— hanz (@han77303132) July 13, 2023
Anyone noticed Herlene Budol's sad smile during the crowning moment?
Favorite pa man din siya ni Nawat.#MissGrandPhilippines #MissGrandPhilippines2023— Kenneth Bryan Timbol Bugawisan (he/him) (@thekennethbryan) July 13, 2023
https://twitter.com/dixiejean07/status/1679652472212815873
https://twitter.com/TEAM_FEU/status/1679743797624991744
https://twitter.com/mar_kofrias/status/1679552857408966658
Through her Facebook account, Budol jokingly addressed the speculations with a post showing her ‘sad face’ with the caption, “Kase sinayang ni angkol. kaya Sa ms tourism tayo tatambling ng bongga.’Â
https://www.facebook.com/HerleneHiponBudolOfficial/posts/pfbid02j5A5YMsknHyiDsvu7jC52Q8C9E36jGKUvg78zvhbTbWNvTXwAbiJdUZPxoi9XnjSl
 The post garnered mixed reactions from Facebook users, with most congratulating her for bagging the Miss Tourism crown.
In earlier Facebook posts, Budol expressed her appreciation of her ‘Golden Crown’ with the Miss Tourism title and thanked her manager Wilbert Tolentino, pageant training camp Kagandahang Flores, her glam team, her speech coach, her designer, and Madam Inutz.
https://www.facebook.com/HerleneHiponBudolOfficial/posts/pfbid02mhBGQUU35Jc8pdNjjazqdULthjr7fgb3V6DrAMkwxdAYotZg8w6Z4NpX5HKeZm8ul
https://www.facebook.com/HerleneHiponBudolOfficial/posts/pfbid02XBw1E66z1FCnGXWxeVLXzT7yveZAmW4vGaPia88TMyUc6baMivbfUCpGgeKeos8ql
Her manager Wilbert Tolentino congratulated the Kapuso actress-beauty queen for landing the Miss Tourism title.
https://www.facebook.com/sirwil75/posts/pfbid0WYaoDEXKmettijF768qzkP2d4nvznkmH6fYGwubNRkbtmJdxeMD1EB2BX3vKu5ATl
Aside from her ‘sad expression,’ she also trended on social media for her on-brand response in the Question and Answer portion of the pageant.
As for the Miss Grand Philippines, Nikki De Moura from Cagayan de Oro City won the title at the finals night held in Pasay City last July 13.
Budol will be representing the Philippines in the Miss Tourism World 2023 pageant. She vowed that she would work hard to take home the second Miss Tourism World Crown for the country.
The newly crowned queen stars in the GMA Afternoon Prime series ‘Magandang Dilag’ with Benjamin Alves.
