Juvic-Marvin duel looms in RP amateurs

Marvin Dumandan comes into the Philippine Amateur Golf Championship, which fires off today at Villamor, in near tip-top form, ready to foil fancied Juvic Pagunsan’s bid for a first-ever crown with a confidence boosted by impressive finishes overseas the last two weeks.

The power-hitting bet from Riviera finished second to Australian James Nitties in last week’s HLA Saujana Amateur Open in Malaysia, one week after he rallied from 26th position to salvage sixth place in the Pan West Malaysian Amateur Open with a final round 67.

Those finishes should augur well for Dumandan who now looms as the best bet to crowd Pagunsan for the country’s most coveted amateur crown with the latter expected to be on top of his game following a fifth place effort in the recent Julio Cup, a pro tournament also held at Villamor, not to mention his solid runner-up finish in the RP Open early this year.

But there’s a horde of talents out to spoil the projected Pagunsan-Dumandan showdown in the annual event spread over six days and organized by the National Golf Association of the Philippines.

They include Raymund Sangil, the newly-crowned Samsung Tour leg champion, Jay Bayron, DHL Open winner Jun Bernis, Ronnie Torrecampo, Boyet Saragoza, Gene Bondoc, Tonton Asistio, Mark Lopez and Michael Bibat.

The top 32 players after two days of stroke-play competition will advance to the next phase, a match play event with the championship slated for another 36 holes where the finalists will not only be tested on their shotmaking skills but on their stamina as well.

Pagunsan, the best-credentialled player in the fold with a SEA Games gold medal tucked under his belt, will tee-off at 7:36 a.m. while Dumandan is bunched with Tristan Tabanas, RJ Magtibay and Carlos Ochoa in the 7:54 a.m. flight, both hoping to cash in on the expected ideal playing condition.

Sangil, who rallied to beat Bayron and win the second leg of the Samsung series at Sta. Elena last week, is paired with his victim in the 7:27 a.m. flight along with Romeo Jaraula, who created an impact in the PAL Interclub early this year, and Lyndon Barril.

Also in the fold are former champion Artemio Murakami, JR Tanpinco, Jong Laput, Jun Jun Plana, Dave Hernandez, Jose Mari Hechanova, King Stehmier and Lino Retuerto.