Summit Point braces for wide-open LPGT, PGT title fights

LIPA CITY, Batangas — The three winners from the first four Ladies Philippine Golf Tour legs will lead a compact field into a wide-open ICTSI Summit Point Championship beginning Tuesday, Sept. 8, at Summit Point Golf and Country Club.

Recent monsoon rains could complicate an already demanding test in the PHP 1 million tournament.

Although Summit Point is designed to withstand wet conditions, its softened fairways could alter how players approach the course. Distance control, approach shots and course management could prove more important than raw power.

Yvon Bisera, Harmie Constantino and Chanelle Avaricio have accounted for all four early-season titles, with Bisera winning twice.

Past leg champions and emerging players will also challenge the trio, putting a premium on shot-making, club selection and composure.

The tournament will test the players’ conditioning after a lengthy tour break.

Several contenders stayed sharp by competing overseas during the hiatus, adding confidence to their title bids.

Bisera enters as the player to beat after earning a seven-shot victory over Chihiro Ikeda at Pradera Verde in the previous LPGT leg.

The Davao native also won the season opener at Lakewood and will pursue her third LPGT title at Summit Point.

Bisera expects a tighter contest because of the course’s conditions and the strength of the field.

The tournament will also serve as part of her preparation for her Korean LPGA Tour debut later this month.

The 2025 Thailand LPGA Masters champion is scheduled to compete in the Hana Financial Group Championship from Sept. 17-20 on Daebudo Island in Gyeonggi province.

Constantino ended a long title drought with a six-shot victory at Caliraya Springs.

She followed that performance with a joint runner-up finish alongside Tiffany Lee at Pinewoods before placing third at Pradera Verde.

Avaricio will try to rediscover the form that carried her to victory in a tightly contested Pinewoods leg.

She remained tournament-ready by recently competing in China as part of her preparation for the second half of the LPGT season.

The title race extends well beyond the season’s first three winners.

Reigning Order of Merit champion Sarah Ababa and former leg winners Mafy Singson, Princess Superal, Ikeda and Lee are also positioned to contend.

Martina Miñoza, Pamela Mariano, Velinda Castil, Rev Alcantara, Angela Mangana, Gretchen Villacencio and South Korea’s Seoyun Kim will seek breakthrough victories.

Daniella Uy is another player to watch after finishing tied for 12th as the top Filipina at the ICTSI Philippine Ladies Masters on the same Robert Trent Jones Jr.-designed course in February.

With a third LPGT title within reach and her first Korean LPGA appearance approaching, Bisera has more than another local championship at stake.

Her challenge will be to sharpen her short game, adjust to the soft fairways and rainy conditions, manage the course and build momentum for her trip to South Korea.

MEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP

Justin Quiban returns, Angelo Que seeks another title and a deep field of power hitters and emerging players prepares for another tight Philippine Golf Tour finish.

Three of the first four PGT legs were decided by one stroke, setting the stage for another close contest in the PHP 2.5 million men’s championship.

Quiban returns to the local circuit after competing overseas.

He opened the season with a stirring comeback victory at Lakewood before continuing his campaign abroad.

Que will try to build on his clutch performance at Caliraya Springs, where he scrambled to a dramatic final-hole victory over fellow veteran Tony Lascuña.

Lloyd Go, who won the previous two legs at Pinewoods and Pradera Verde, will miss the tournament to compete overseas and gain more international experience.

Go’s absence leaves the four-day title race open to a deep group of established champions and rising contenders.

Summit Point could provide the ideal test for such a competitive field.

The course has held up despite alternating sunshine and rain, but its soft fairways could encourage the tour’s longest hitters to attack more aggressively.

Knowing when to use that power and when to play conservatively could prove equally important.

The course rewards bold play but can quickly punish lapses in judgment.

Summit Point is returning to the PGT calendar after nine years. Clyde Mondilla won the last men’s tour event played there, the 2017 ICTSI Players Championship, before capturing that season’s Order of Merit title.

Keanu Jahns leads the tournament’s power hitters after posting a respectable finish in an Asian Development Tour event last month.

The Filipino-German is a four-time PGT leg winner who capped last season by winning the Match Play Championship.

Jahns placed third at Lakewood and sixth at Caliraya Springs before slipping to a tie for 28th at Pinewoods.

He rebounded with another third-place finish at Pradera Verde and will try to convert that renewed form into a victory at Summit Point.

Sean Ramos also enters with title ambitions after spending the past two months competing overseas.

Ramos earned his first PGT victory in 2024 and appears ready to challenge for another championship.

Carl Corpus will seek another PGT title after winning the Valley Golf leg last season.

Corpus is also using the tournament as a competitive tuneup for the Asian Games in Japan later this month.

He will represent the Philippines alongside Miguel Tabuena and Justin delos Santos as the country pursues its first Asian Games golf medal since the women’s team swept the individual and team titles in 2018.

Aidric Chan brings a similar sense of purpose to Summit Point.

The former national amateur standout has secured his first professional victory on the Asian Development Tour and is now pursuing his maiden PGT title.

Jeffren Lumbo and Russell Bautista are also expected to contend.

Summit Point’s demanding conditions could give the tournament’s experienced players an advantage over the younger challengers.

Multi-titled campaigners Guido van der Valk, Rupert Zaragosa, Reymon Zaragosa, Jhonnel Ababa, Zanieboy Gialon, Michael Bibat, Jay Bayron and Lascuña give the field a wealth of experience.

Each understands how quickly a golf tournament can turn and when to attack or protect a score.

South Korea’s Taewon Ha, who narrowly missed winning at Lakewood, leads the international contingent.

Fellow South Koreans Kim Tae Soo, Jisung Cheon and Lee Song will also compete.

Japan’s Kashihara Hirotaka, Sena Shiraishi and Nagata Masaki complete the overseas challenge.

With Go absent and the rest of the field carrying momentum, unfinished business or preparations for bigger competitions, the Summit Point championship shapes up as another wide-open contest.

The first four tournaments produced razor-thin finishes. Summit Point’s weather and demanding layout could make the margins even finer.