Wide-open battle seen in Southern Ladies Open

MANILA, Philippines - With Chihiro Ikeda out of the picture, the chase for this year’s Southern Ladies Open golf crown is expected to be wide open when the 49th staging of the country’s premier ladies championship is held March 1-3 at Del Monte Golf Club in Bukidnon.

Ikeda, who romped off with a four-point win over Jayvie Agojo in Bacolod last year, has joined the pro ranks, leaving Agojo and her teammates in the ICTSI golf squad along with the top players from the country’s leading golf clubs to slug it out for the coveted crown in the 54-hole tournament organized and conducted by the National Golf Association of the Philippines.

“With the continued support of the Philippine Sports Commission,  WWWExpress and  DPC-Yellow Pages, we expect another good competition this year and we expect  ladies from various clubs to join the event,” said NGAP auditor Alice Ll. Andrada.

Agojo, for one, is raring to nail the crown to add to her Hong Kong Amateur Open diadem she won late last year. Expected to crowd the former Philippine Ladies Open champion for the crown are reigning Queen Sirikit champion Dottie Ardina, Princess Superal, Sarah Ababa, Lovelynn Guioguio and Daniella Uy.

The local bets, headed by Eva Minoza, are also tipped to contend for the title in centerpiece Championship Flight of the tournament, owing to their familiarity with the par-72, tight layout. Scoring will be based on Molave points system.

Also on tap are competitions in Classes A, B, C and D plus the seniors category for 55-years-old-and-above players and the 36-hole team event to be composed of four players each with the top three scorers counting for the squad. The team and seniors events will use the Stableford scoring system (net of handicap).

Registration is ongoing with fee pegged at P2,500. Deadline for listup is on Feb. 25.