John David Velez goes for another double-title feat while Casey Padilla hopes to shine at home as they lead the title chase in the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala CdO regional age-group tennis tournament starting today at the Nazareth Tennis Club in Cagayan de Oro.
Close to 200 entries are slugging it out in nine age categories plus five in the doubles side of the Group 2 tournament serving as the second leg of the 50-stage nationwide circuit sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop and presented by Slazenger.
Velez topped the boys’ 14- and 16-under divisions in the Fr. Suarez Cup in Bulacan last month although the rising star from Davao has opted to skip the 14-under battle and test his mettle in the 18-U side where he is expected to slug it out with top seed Steven Sonsona from Tubod, Lanao, both in the 16- and 18-under play.
Padilla, meanwhile, seeks to draw inspiration from the home crowd as she shoots for the crown in the girls’ 12- and 14-under categories of the five-day tournament backed by Asiatraders Corp.