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Manila Bulletin devider Sports devider Golf devider All eyes on trio developed by champs as Nat'l Strokeplay gets off ground at Pradera

All eyes on trio developed by champs as Nat'l Strokeplay gets off ground at Pradera

Published Jul 28, 2026 05:52 pm

At A Glance

  • Aside from the usual big guns, a lot of eyes will be on a trio of young talents in the boys' division starting Wednesday when the Philippine National Stroke Play Championship gets off the ground at the Pinatubo layout of Pradera Verde Golf and Country Club.
Thirdy Fernando (Contributed photo)
Thirdy Fernando (Contributed photo)
Aside from the usual big guns, a lot of eyes will be on a trio of young talents in the boys' division starting Wednesday, July 29, when the Philippine National Stroke Play Championship gets off the ground at the Pinatubo layout of Pradera Verde Golf and Country Club.
National pool members Rolando Bregente, Jet Hernandez, Chris Remata, among others, would certainly grab a lot of the attention, but it is worthy taking a look at Mhark Fernando III, John Bernis and Ralph Batican when the 72-hole tournament gets off the ground since it was winners who developed their respective games.
Batican's game is being nurtured by the revered Frankie Minoza, the country's biggest professional export who has taken a liking on the 14-year-old that he even caddies for him.
Bernis and Fernando, meanwhile, have been developed from the ground up by their respective dads, Jun and Mhark, who both won the Philippine Am title at one time in their careers and are definitely hoping that their sons do the same--in the future, if not this year.
"I am very excited, since this is my first time playing a national tournament," Fernando III said in Filipino as he sampled the wide-open layout in Lubao, Pampanga for the first time on Tuesday afternoon. "I don't think the length will be a problem, but the greens are already playing difficult--they are slopey and quite quick already."
The elder Fernando won the PH Am in 2009 at Eastridge, five years after the elder Bernis won his at Villamor. They were teammates at Canlubang then, but this time, will be rooting for different players, obviously.
"I want to win everything that I can win," the younger Bernis, a second year foreign services student at Lyceum of the Philippines, said in Filipino, also after seeing the course for the first time on Tuesday.
This will be just the second time that Bernis will be playing a national tournament, and memories of the first one are one he'd like to forget after losing to businessman Gary Sales--whose eldest son Harry is also playing--in 2024 for the match play crown.
"I gained a lot of experience in that tournament," the 21-year-old Bernis said. "It will definitely come in handy for me here."
Bregente, Hernandez and Remata remain to be the favorites, even as Precious Zaragosa, Tashanah Balangauan and Crista Minoza are installed as the fancied bets in the ladies division.
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