RALPH Rian “Apollo” Batican led the Philippines to a notable finish in the recent Singha Thailand Junior World Golf Championships, capturing the boys’ Class C division title at the Royal Hua Hin Golf Course in Hua Hin, Thailand.
Batican secured a solid three-stroke lead after 15 holes, highlighted by a crucial eagle on the 10th hole. Despite a slightly tense finish, he stayed ahead to win by three strokes to prevent a gold-less campaign by the Philippines.
The Philippine junior golf team also got impressive finishes, with three bronze medals from other standout performances.
Reese Ng claimed bronze in the Class A girls’ division, Athena Batican took bronze in the Class C girls, and the boys’ team of TJ Padilla and Geoff Tan earned bronze in the team event.
In the Girls’ Division A, Reese Ng’s final score of 13-over secured her 3rd place.
Vietnam’s Chuc An Le won the division at 9-over, with Sri Lanka’s Kaya Daluwatte finishing 2nd at 10-over.
TJ Padilla narrowly missed a podium spot in Boys Division A, finishing one stroke behind Sweden’s Theodor Kruus, who placed 3rd at 11-over. Thailand’s Srichatphirun topped the division at 4-over, and Singapore’s Samuel Tan followed in 2nd at 8-over.
In Boys’ Division B, Geoff Tan tied for 4th at 18-over, while Emil Hernandez placed 9th with a 26-over total. Thailand’s Kenanan took the top spot with a score of 1-over, and Chuangprayoon came in 2nd at 9-over.
Nicole Gan placed 6th in Girls’ Division B with a 21-over score. Thailand’s Tawinsang dominated the division with a winning score of 6-under, followed by Kamolborvorn at 4-over and Japan’s Chikashige in 3rd at 9-over.
In the Boys’ Team Category, Padilla and Tan finished in 3rd place with a combined 30-over. Thailand claimed the team victory with an 18-over total, while Singapore came 2nd at 24-over.
In the Girls’ Team Category, the Philippine duo of Balangauan and Ng finished 4th with a 45-over total.
Thailand took 1st place at 12-over, Vietnam came in 2nd at 27-over, and Japan claimed 3rd with a 42-over finish.
