Jolo Magcalayo, the highest-placed Filipino in the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR), will make the bold move of going from a Christian Brothers high school in Alabang to a private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California, next year as he embarks on his journey to stamp his mark in the US NCAA Division I circuit.
Magcalayo, 17, is an incoming Grade 12 student at De La Salle Zobel and recently decided to enroll at Santa Clara University, an institution more known for producing NBA legend Steve Nash than the late golf pro Jim Wiechers. Over 40 US schools pursued Magcalayo who has given his verbal commitment to Santa Clara athletic director Renee Bumgartner and new golf varsity head coach Andrew Larkin.
The country’s No. 1 amateur golfer has been locked down in his hometown of Santa Rosa, Laguna, missing the chance of playing in his third straight US Junior Open and his first US Amateur Open because of the pandemic. US College Camps (USCC) Asia’s Philippine partner Atty. Robert Bruce, a former Junior Golf Foundation of the Philippines president, connected Magcalayo to Larkin through USCC Asia’s George Duangmanee. Magcalayo was assisted by Duangmanee’s college recruitment service provider The Agency and Katie Brophy’s Golf Globally in deciding on Santa Clara. Former Philippine national tennis player and Santa Clara alumnus Kyle Dandan of The Agency’s local partner College Sports Pathways was also involved in the process.
Magcalayo was No. 499 in the latest WAGR and once went up to No. 449. “I chose Santa Clara because of the opportunity to make history,” he said. “The direction is to be a national power in golf. I want to have the chance to be the top player at SCU as we try to reach the nationals for the first time, be a consistently top-ranked program and hopefully, contend for a national title before I’m done. I also chose SCU because of coach Larkin who was one of the key people responsible for UCLA’s recent success. I know that he’ll be successful at SCU, too. I feel that he can be a real mentor to me in college and prepare me for a possible professional playing career.”
Bruce said Magcalayo went all over the US to look for the school with the perfect fit. “He looked at all types and sizes, big and small, located in big cities and small towns, public and private, from the top-ranked schools to mid-majors to schools ranked above 100,” said Bruce. Magcalayo shared this advice with other junior golfers aspiring to break into the US NCAA. “Start early,” he said. “Play a lot of relevant tournaments. Get out of your comfort zone. I started with a full US schedule when I was a freshman in high school and I played everywhere I had the chance. I set very lofty goals. It looked difficult at first but I just played and played. I had no time to get scared or to feel sorry for myself if I lost. I had to prepare for the next tournament. All those tournaments made me tougher. I was taught early not be blinded by brands. We really looked at fit more than anything else. I looked for a school where I will be happiest and where I will thrive as a golfer, student and person. I was lucky that a lot of people helped me and my family in mapping out my pathway to a US college scholarship. We never paid them anything and they never asked for anything in return. They just helped. We will always be grateful to them.”
Bruce said like the rest of the world, Magcalayo is waiting for the pandemic to end so he can get back to playing golf regularly and competing again at a high level. “I want to be a great college player,” Magcalayo said. “I want to win college events, have a chance to play in big amateur opens and do well in professional tournaments. I want to maximize my potential as a player and hopefully, when I’m done with college, be acknowledged as one of the best Filipino college golfers ever.”