DAVAO CITY - Course familiarity proved crucial for Filipino players as Team Philippines claimed the lead in the first round of action in the inaugural Junior Golf Foundation of the Philippines (JGFP) World Team Championships on Friday, April 17 at the Apo Golf and Country Club here.

Philippine Team (Brittannika) of Brittany Tamayo, Jared Saban, Kimberly Barroquillo and Travis Cadungog finished at 14-over-par 86 for a total first round score of 230, thus leading the 13-18 division of the world team category in this JGFP organized meet sanction by the National Golf Association of the Philippines (NGAP).

In a four-to-play and three-to-count format, Tamayo carded a 75, Saban 76, Cadungog 79 and Barroquillo 87.

At second and two strokes behind is Philippines-NGAP team of Tristan Padilla (73), Vito Sarines (75), Nicole Gaisano Gan (84) and Geoffrey Tan (84) at 16-over 232, while Malaysia’s team of Amelia Lee (76), Jarvis Liew Zun Xin (78), Chan Jun Han (79) and Jamie Tan Huan Ying (83) was at third 17-over 233.

Sebastian Diego Sajuela, David Gothong, Marqaela Davelyn Dy and Lois Laine Go of Philippines Visayas 1 are tied for fourth to fifth places out of 12 participating teams in the division with Australia’s Connor Roberts, Saehi Suh and Sienna McCulloch of JNR Golf with identical scores of 240.

In the 13-18 national team category, the Philippines also topped the opening day after the Go for Gold squad of Thirdy Fernando, Zero Plete, Tomy Dela Torre and Bea Lapuz put up a 20-over 236, ahead by a stroke on Ryuichi Tao, Kairi Kurogi, Ikki Hirai and Ryusei Kuroiwa of Japan MMGC, while at 239 are Inno Lim Flores, Chan Ahn, John Rey Oro and John Paul Oro of Philippines-Negros from Bacolod City.

The 15-year-old Fernando, an incoming Grade 11 student of Cagayan de Oro based homeschool Little Me Academy, was the only player in the 13-18 under division to shoot under with a 70 as he collected four birdies - 3, 5, 6 and 9 - with two bogeys (12 and 17) in the boys division, while Tamayo topped the girls with a 75.

Fernando, son of former touring professional and three-peg winner of the ICTSI-backed Philippine Golf Tour (PGT) Mark Fernando, said he focused on his short game and putting ahead of this tournament supported by the Philippine Sports Commission (NGAP), the NGAP, Islandwide and Sotogrande Hotel, the official home base of the event,

“Before the tournament I hit 200 balls a day focusing on my short game and also putting. I actually struggled coming into this tournament, so it really helped me in my preparation as I played well in the first round,” said Fernando, a native of Zamboanga City.

With his low score, Fernando is set to receive a cash prize to be given by JGFP president Oliver Gan, who pledged to give reward to Filipino players that shoot under par for every round.

Gan said that it didn’t surprise him that local teams, particularly players from Mindanao, performed well in the first round, but he expects those from Manila and from other countries competing regularly in international meets to bounce back in the second and third rounds.

“I’m not surprised that players from the Mindanao region are up there on the leaderboard, they’re familiar with Apo Golf. But expect the players with experience, especially playing abroad, to bounce back. Expect an exciting finish starting in the second round going to the final round,” said Gan.

The top Filipino players for boys and girls divisions, according to Gan, will get to play in the Asia Pacific golf meet in Sri Lanka this June.

Competition will also be held for the 9-12 and 8-under brackets. The 13-18 and 9-12 divisions will be played for three rounds while the 8-under will be contested for 36 holes in this event that gathered 150 players from 11 nations.

The event aims to position Mindanao, and Davao City in particular, as a serious hub in the national junior golf ecosystem, not just a warm weather playground for visiting pros. This is just the second international tournament ever hosted by Apo Golf—a milestone for the club and for Mindanao golf.

The first such event was a breakthrough in putting the course on the regional map; this follow up installs it firmly in the junior golf tour calendar and gives Filipino juniors a rare chance to compete against overseas talent without leaving the island.

For Davao City, the JGFP World Team Championships are more than a one week tournament; they are part of a broader push to use youth sports as a vehicle for community building, tourism branding, and long term golf development.