Complete and loaded, Philippine women's golf eyes Asian Games golds
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines' women's golf team is heading to the Asian Games in Japan next month with something it did not have in Hangzhou three years ago — a complete and formidable three-player lineup.
Anchored by rising international star Rianne Malixi and reinforced by seasoned campaigners Bianca Pagdanganan and Pauline del Rosario, the national squad is set to bring a full-strength troika to the Quadrennial Games in Aichi Prefecture, Japan from September 30 to October 3 with both individual and team gold medals firmly in its sights.
The stakes — and expectations — are considerably higher this time.
At the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, the Philippines was forced to make do with just two players in the three-to-play, two-to-count team format after Chanelle Avaricio was denied the opportunity to replace Princess Superal, who begged off at the last minute. Despite the disadvantage, Malixi and Lois Kaye Go still battled to a ninth-place finish in the team competition, with Malixi also tying for 11th individually.
This time, there will be no such handicap.
Malixi returns to the Asiad as a much more accomplished and battle-tested player, while Pagdanganan and Del Rosario give the country the depth, experience and competitive maturity it lacked in Hangzhou.
Together, the three present a compelling combination of youth, power and poise — and a legitimate shot at challenging the region’s traditional golfing powers.
The Philippines knows exactly what is at stake, having swept both the individual and team gold medals when women’s golf was contested at the Asian Games in 2018 in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Yuka Saso, then still representing the Philippines, produced a dramatic final-hole rally to capture individual gold. She also spearheaded the Philippine team, alongside Pagdanganan and Go, to the team championship.
Saso has since switched her sporting allegiance to Japan and gone on to establish herself as one of the world’s premier players, winning two US Women’s Open titles on the LPGA Tour.
The Philippines, meanwhile, has developed another generation of players capable of carrying the flag.
At the forefront is Malixi, now a freshman standout at Duke University.
Just 19, Malixi has made an immediate and significant impact in her first collegiate season, posting a school-record 70.60 stroke average on her way to being named the Atlantic Coast Conference Freshman of the Year and the WGCA National Freshman of the Year. She was also placed on the WGCA Player of the Year watch list.
Those accomplishments only add to an already impressive international résumé.
In 2024, Malixi became the first Philippine-born player to complete a historic sweep of the US Girls’ Junior and US Women’s Amateur titles in the same year – an achievement that underscored her ability to perform under pressure on some of the biggest stages in amateur golf.
Now, she returns to the Asian Games with considerably more experience, confidence and credentials than she had in Hangzhou.
Malixi will bring the youthful energy and hunger of a player still building her international legacy. But this time, she will not have to carry the Philippine challenge virtually by herself.
Pagdanganan provides the power and experience.
A familiar figure on the international circuit, Pagdanganan has continued to shuttle between the LPGA Tour, where she holds conditional status, and the Epson Tour. While she has yet to establish a breakthrough run on either circuit, her length off the tee, competitive experience and familiarity with high-pressure team and individual competitions make her a dangerous presence in the field.
She also knows what it takes to win at the Asian Games, having been part of the Philippine team that captured the women's team gold in Jakarta.
Meanwhile, Del Rosario, a multi-titled campaigner on the Ladies Philippine Golf Tour, brings a different but equally valuable dimension.
A veteran campaigner on the LPGA developmental circuit, del Rosario, the first Filipina to win on the LPGA Tour of Taiwan, has built her reputation on composure and consistency and can be particularly valuable when the pressure mounts. In a four-round team competition where every counted score matters, that steadiness could prove decisive.
For all three, however, the final push toward Asiad contention could come down to the small things — particularly the short game and putting.
Pagdanganan and Del Rosario, both supported by ICTSI, will look to sharpen those areas and put together greater consistency, while Malixi will seek to translate her impressive collegiate form and growing international experience into another big-stage performance.
The beauty of the Philippine lineup is that its strengths complement one another.
Malixi brings the momentum of a rising star and the confidence that comes from winning at the highest levels of amateur golf. Pagdanganan supplies power, experience and proven Asiad pedigree. Del Rosario offers stability, patience and the ability to stay composed when a round — and potentially a medal — hangs in the balance.
And in the three-to-play, two-to-count format, that balance could be crucial.
The team competition rewards depth because there is little room for a bad round. At the same time, the individual championship gives each member an opportunity to chase personal glory, meaning the Philippine troika can simultaneously pursue a team medal while positioning itself for an individual podium finish.
But the path to the top will be anything but easy.
Traditional Asian powerhouses Japan, China, South Korea and Thailand are expected to field strong rosters, setting the stage for a fiercely contested four-round battle. With the region's best players converging in Aichi, margins are likely to be slim and every shot will matter.
That makes the Philippines’ decision to bring a complete three-player roster all the more significant.
Three years after settling for ninth with only two players, the country returns with a deeper, stronger and more experienced lineup — and with three players whose games offer distinctly different ways to win.
Malixi has the pedigree and momentum of a rising international star. Pagdanganan has the power and experience to overpower a course. Del Rosario has the poise and steadiness to deliver when the pressure is at its peak.
Individually, each has the tools to contend.
Together, they could be even more formidable.
The mission is clear: reclaim the Asian Games crown that the Philippines last won in Jakarta.
And with Malixi, Pagdanganan and Del Rosario forming a complete and complementary troika, the Philippines has every reason to believe it can contend for both individual honors and the team championship in Aichi.
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