Aces boost Palawan-Los Baños netfest

MANILA, Philippines - Some of the country’s leading junior players make up the core of the third leg of the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala regional age group tennis circuit presented by Tecnifibre which gets going today at the Los Baños College Country Club in Laguna.

The four-day tournament marks the first time that Los Baños is hosting a leg in the country’s premier junior tennis circuit with a slew of local players also raring to spring some surprises against the fancied bets in the fold.

Gabby Zoleta, siblings Marcus and Miguel del Rosario, Enrique Jugo and Macie Carlos head the 130-player field vying for top honors in various divisions of the tournament sanctioned by the Philippine Tennis Association and sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop and Technifibre.

“This is in response to the strong clamor to stage a tournament in Los Baños where the sport is popular,” said Philta president and Parañaque Mayor Edwin Olivarez. “Four other new legs are on tap this season as part of our effort to promote the sport and discover talents in the countryside.”

The other new hosts are the Mandaue Tennis Club in Cebu, the Roxas Sports Complex in Roxas City, the Isabel Tennis Club in Isabel, Leyte and the Maasin Tennis Club in Maasin, Leyte.

“Palawan Pawnshop will continue providing our youth top-notch tournaments like this,” said Palawan Pawnshop COO Bobby Castro. “This tournament will surely inspire our young players to achieve a higher level of play.”

Others competing in the Los Baños event, a Group 5 tournament, are JT Bernardo, Denise Bernardo, Mariano Po, Gelo Aparte, Tim Gumban, Edgardo Angara and Aidul and Jerome Ignacio.

Meanwhile, the fourth leg, a Group 4 tournament, will be held at the Ubay Tennis Club in Ubay, Bohol on Feb. 21-24. 

Details: Tournament director Bobby Mangunay at 0915-4046464.