In-form Saso seeks repeat in Ladies Am

MANILA, Philippines — Yuka Saso hopes to bring her winning act back here with a form honed up by her Asian Games feat last year as she banners an elite international field in the Champion Philippine Ladies Amateur Open which gets under way Feb. 19 at the Manila Golf and Country Club.

Saso, 17, who anchored the Philippines’ incredible comeback in the final round to sweep the individual and team gold medals in the quadrennial regional games in Jakarta, has confirmed her participation in the 57th staging of the annual championship which drew an early roster of 94 players, including 54 foreign bets.

They include the top and rising shotmakers from Taiwan, Singapore, Japan, Australia, Korea, Thailand and the US, all eager to slug it out with the country’s cream of the crop, including the likes of Samantha Dizon, Mafy Singson, Eagle Ace Superal, Arnie Taguines, Laia Barro, Angela Legaspi, Monica Mandario, Junia Gabasa, Kyla Nocum and top jungolfer Nicole Abelar.

But no one packs a credential as imposing as Saso’s, who also powered the Phl to the team and individual gold in the World Junior Girls Championship in Canada in 2016. She also boasts of two victories in the local pro circuit, the last at Ayala Greenfield last year where she bested the likes of LPGA Tour-bound Dottie Ardina and a host of strong Thai players before beating Mikha Fortuna by two to rule the 56th Philippine Ladies Open at the Orchard.

That makes the Fil-Japanese ace the player to beat in the event, organized and conducted by the Women’s Golf Association of the Philippines and sponsored by the National Golf Association of the Philippines.

The upcoming championship, backed by the ladies chapters of Alabang, Forest hills, Tagaytay Highlands, Sta. Elena, Canlubang and Manila Golf clubs, also marks its return to its old home at the posh Forbes Park layout, which is expected to provide a tough test for the competing field with its tight fairways and sleek putting surface.     

Registration is ongoing.

Details: email [email protected] (WGAP chairperson) or [email protected] (WGAP president Anna Haurie).