Zaragosa goes for 4th Phl Jrs Am crown

MANILA, Philippines - Rupert Zaragosa sets out for a fourth national crown as he takes on a bumper crop of local and international bets in the 2014 Philippine Junior Amateur championship presented by the MVP Sports Foundation at Sherwood Hills in Cavite today.

Zaragosa, who held both the boys’ and the men’s championships at the same time when he was 13, is the odds-on favorite to rule the 72-hole event backed by Pancake House, Golf Depot and Pacsports as part of the PLDT Group Amateur Tour.

The 16-year-old shotmaker from Canlubang in Laguna is coming off an impressive performance in the just-concluded Callaway Junior World Championship qualifier.

But out to foil his title bid is Kristopher Arevalo, last year’s 13-14 champion in San Diego who will be seeking his first national championship. Also in the fold is a slew of Korean expatriates.

Sherwood Hills is the official golf course of the National Golf Association of the Philippines and Zaragosa, as well as a handful of others who are in the national pool, are expected to flash their familiarity with the par-72 layout.

South Korean expat Kim Tae-woo, a 16-year-old with a handicap of three and playing out of Royal Northwoods in Bulacan, heads the foreign challenge in the boy’s division.