By: Waylon Galvez
Armed with a solid partnership with the National Golf Association of the Philippines, the Junior Golf Foundation of the Philippines will conduct a series of qualifying tournaments for Filipinos seeking to join the inaugural JGFP World Junior Team Championship 2026, set for April 16 to 19 at the Apo Golf and Country Club in Davao City.
JGFP president Oliver Gan said a one-day qualifying tournament will be held on March 8 across three venues in the country to ensure balanced participation among young golfers from different provinces.
The Luzon leg will be staged at the Summit Point Golf and Country Club in Lipa City, Batangas, while the Visayas leg will take place at the Cebu Country Club in Cebu City. The Mindanao leg will be held at the Apo Golf and Country Club in Davao City, Davao del Sur.
Aside from these three venues, Gan said the JGFP will also hold additional qualifying tournaments on March 21 at the Del Monte Golf Club in Manolo Fortich, Bukidnon, and on March 28 at the Negros Occidental Golf and Country Club in Bacolod City.
“We’d like to ensure that our young golfers, even if they are from far away, from different provinces, will have access to join this historic event, the first-ever JGFP World Junior Team Championship 2026,” said Gan.
“This event, which the NGAP is fully supporting, is open to all. We’d like to see the best golfers from different parts of the country go up against the best in the world in a team format competition,” he added.
According to Gan, the JGFP World Junior Team Championship is expected to attract about 60 golfers. So far, the JGFP has received confirmations from sports associations in Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, and Australia, as well as the Hainan Golf Association and the Indonesian Junior Golf League. Clubs from Thailand and Japan have also expressed interest in joining the event.
“This is part of our mission to provide high-level competition for our players, and to have NGAP’s sanction and support makes this tournament even more significant,” said Gan, a former golf consultant for the Games and Amusement Board.
“Expected to join are Thai star Jadar Kiantphonsiri and WAGR No. 259-ranked player Alliana Tee from Hong Kong, sixth-placed in the women’s open Passion Hsu from Singapore, 2023 junior world champion Teagan Tudla, and Myanmar golf sensation Khant Zwe Wai Yan,” he added.
In preparation for the World Team Championship, the JGFP has secured a partnership with Sotogrande Hotel Davao in Davao City as the event’s official hotel sponsor.
