Precious Zaragosa flashed fine form in chipping and putting and ripped the girls’ field with 110 points while Stefano Bautista topped the boys’ side in Round 2 of the Junior PGT 2023 Series at the Mount Malarayat Golf and Country Club in Lipa City, Batangas last Sunday.
Zaragosa bounced back strong from a third-place effort in driving (13 points) by ruling the next two skills contests, netting top-scoring points in chipping (55) and putting (42) for a 110-point output in the 11-12 age-group side of the tournament that also featured competitions in the 9-10 category.
Tiffany Bernardino garnered 23 points in clinching the driving honors but placed second and third in chipping and putting worth 27 and 35 points, respectively, as she finished second with 85 points, while Althea Bañez pooled 78 points (17-drive, 25-chip and 36-putt) to place third in the one-day tournament that showcased the participants’ talent and skills in three keys aspects of the sport.
Bautista, on the other hand, produced 50 points in putting after 30-point and 21-point efforts in driving and chipping, respectively, as he assembled 101 points to capture top honors in his side of the competitions organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc.
He edged Matthias Espina and William Sulit, who matched 94 points.
Espina put in a best 50-point score in chipping but settled for 14 and 30 points in driving and putting, respectively, while Sulit took the scoring honors in driving and putting (34 and 55 points, respectively) but ended up with five points in chipping.
Georgina Handog and Race Manhit, meanwhile, shared top honors in the 9-10 side of the tournament held under ICTSI’s junior golf program with the former barely winning with 78 points, just a point better than Makayla Verano’s 77-point total.
Handog drew a best 37 points in chipping and scored 10 points in driving and 31 points in putting, while Verano recovered from an 11-point output in driving with second-best 31 points in chipping and third-best 35 points in putting.
Quincy Pilac, who topped the driving contest with 23 points, placed third with 72 points.
Manhit, on the other hand, posted 27 points in driving but shone with a second-best 41 points in chipping before ruling the putting side with 55 points for 123 points.
Ryuji Suzuki finished second with 118 points from a best 45-points in chipping and second-best 47 points in putting. He scored 26 points in driving, while Jacob Casuga, who netted a second-best 30 points in driving and a third-best 40 points in chipping, came in third with 97 points.