The country’s leading players slug it out in what looms to be a duel of shotmaking and putting in the Philippine Junior Amateur Open Golf Championships beginning today at the Sherwood Hills Golf Club in Trece Martires, Cavite.
The heat and wind are also expected to test the field’s stamina and mental toughness in the 72-hole stroke play tournament serving as the third leg of this year’s PLDT Group National Amateur Tour, which features four divisions in both the boys and girls’ classes, including the centerpiece Albatross (15-18).
Though Aidric Chan, Sean Ramos, Josh Jorge, Carl Corpus and Paolo Wong get the top billings in the boys’ division, the likes of Joaquin Barro, Joaquin Gomez and Jacob Rolida, both 17, David Guangko, Rald Sarmiento and Joachim Yu are ready to pull off a surprise along with Riggs Illescas, Masaichi Otake and Pierre Ticzon and Koreans Kim Sang Jin, Kwon Tae Yon and Lee Sang Min, guaranteeing an exciting battle in the next four days for the local bets priming up for the SEA Games elims in May.
Keen competition is also seen in the girls’ premier side of the event, sponsored by the MVP Sports Foundation, PLDT Group, Cignal and Metro Pacific, with reigning WExpress RVP Cup titlist Junia Gabasa heading the cast that includes Rafaela Singson, Kristine Fleetwood, Sophia Blanco, Isabela Tee, Kayla Nocum and Korean Kang Da Yun.
Meanwhile, listup for the MVPSF Visayas Regional Golf Championship is ongoing with another huge field expected to clash for top honors in the fourth staging of the event on April 8-12 at Cebu Country Club.
Fees are pegged at P3,000 (men’s and ladies division) for local players and P4,000 for foreign entries and P2,500 (local) and P3,500 (foreign) for those competing in the Mid-Amateur Open category. Fee for club members is P1,500, according to the organizing National Golf Association of the Philippines.
