SOME 100 participants from all over the Visayas and Mindanao will troop to the Mactan Island Golf Club today for the third leg of the VisMin Youth Golf Circuit. It will be a two-day event that will be immediately followed by the culminating leg at the Cebu Country Club on Thursday and Friday.
The junior golfers have already played two previous legs in Del Monte, Bukidnon, and Pueblo Golf, Cagayan De Oro. Each leg has its own set of winners based on age and gender: A (15 to 17), B (13-14), C (11-12), D (9-10), and E (8 and under).
There is also a Special Class for the 18 to 23 years old bracket.
Every class will have Player of the Year Awards for the competitors who have the lowest aggregate score in all four legs. The premiere Class A division will be a three cornered-fight with Marapara’s Chepe Dulay, Alta Vista’s Edsel Tan, and Del Monte’s Art Arbole—all of whom represent their clubs in the PAL Interclub.
In the Girls A Class, Marian Woo and Kristine Leonen, both of Del Monte, are in a virtual deadlock with two legs to go.
However, there will be participants playing for the first time who may not be qualified for the POY plums but will be strong contenders for the individual leg titles. One of them is Wolen Superal who will play in the Boys A. This former junior world champion will be making his first appearance in the circuit.
Newly crowned Cebu Country Club Men’s Champion, Chuckie Hong, will also be making his first start in the Special Class which has been dominated thus far by Del Monte’s Banny Abaño. Also making their first start are two former Southern Junior Classic champions for Cebu, Jj Alvarez and Bayani Garcia.
Improvement
“Mactan Golf Club will be a very interesting venue for the juniors,” said organizer and circuit co-founder Atty. Jovi Neri. “The course presents a lot of challenges for them because most approach shots are over water.”
Neri also praised the improvements of the golf course and the facilities.
“The club has improved greatly over the years thanks to the untiring efforts of their General Rodante Joya. The juniors will surely enjoy this venue,” he added as Mactan is hosting a leg in the VisMin Circuit for the first time.
The tournament is sponsored by Pepsi Philippines, Red Golf Store, and Crystallite Trophies by Kima Glass Supply. (PR)
