MANILA, Philippines — The ICTSI Junior PGT Luzon series resumes with its fourth leg at the Riviera Golf and Country Club's Couples course on Tuesday with competition in four age categories promising to be fierce and intense as players vie for stage honors and bolster their bids for slots in the Philippine Junior Match Play Championship.
Vito Sarines, winner of the Splendido Taal and Pradera Verde stops of the seven-leg Luzon series, is eyeing another victory in the boys' 10-12 age bracket. He, however, braces for a stiff challenge from Jacob Casuga, Prince Sales, Xavier Palacios and Ezekiel Opinion, among others.
Ranking points are awarded at each leg, with the top four players in the boys' and girls' divisions after the Luzon swing of the nationwide circuit qualifying for the national finals set at The Country Club in Laguna this October.
Sixteen players have already secured their spots in the Match Play finals following the conclusion of the three-part Visayas series last week. The Mindanao tour will commence later this month, featuring four tournaments at Apo, South Pacific, Del Monte and Pueblo de Oro with the top two players from each category advancing to the finals.
The player's top four results will be counted for the Luzon series, while only the best two results will be considered in the Mindanao swing.
Keen competition is also expected in the other age divisions with Maurysse Abalos, who claimed victory in the girls' 10-12 category in the Visayas Series 3 in Negros Occidental, seeking another win against Georgina Handog, Quincy Pilac, Aerin Chan and Lily Agamata.
Handog previously split top honors with Abalos in the 8-10 class at Splendido and Pradera, respectively, before the age-group format was modified from three to four brackets.
Patrick Tambalque returns from a stint in the Singapore Open to pursue a second leg crown in the boys' 16-18 category following a dominant win in Visayas Series 2 in Murcia, Bacolod. But out to foil the Cavite native's title drive are Harry Sales, Alonso Espartero, Francis Slavin, Mark Kobayashi, Abram Lim, Rolly Duran and Alejandro Arabia.
Players can enter multiple events, but only their three best results will count towards the final rankings.
A tight battle is also expected in the girls' premier category among Pinewoods leg titlist Rafa Anciano, Chloe Rada, Casey Frankum, Gabriela Sison and Iloilo's Necky Tortosa.
In the 13-15 class, competitors include Jose Carlos Taruc, Matthias Espina, Clark Bayani, John Paul Agustin, Jr., Miguel Encarnacio, Ramon Fabie, Jayden Macatangay, Gavin Chua and Santi Asuncion (boys), and Gen. Santos City's Alexie Gabi, Levonne Talion, Maria Monserrat Lapuz, Kendra Garingalao and Ayesha Salino (girls).
Cebu's Kvan Alburo, already a finalist after topping the Visayas series, is trying a new set of competition to hone his skills and toughen his mental game. He will join Michael Ray Hortel II and Jesus Yambao in the boys' 8-9 division. Tyra Garingalao, Athena Serapio, Andrea Dee, and Penelope Sy, on the other hand, will face each other in the girls' youngest division of the series.
Sponsored by ICTSI and organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc., the circuit aims to identify talent and foster camaraderie among participants. The PGTI ensures no scheduling conflicts with other junior golf organizations, allowing the circuit to operate independently. TMT
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