Golf: EFG Singapore Junior Masters to return in November

The tournament will return from Nov 29 to Dec 1 at the Laguna National Golf Club. PHOTO: LAGUNANATIONAL.COM

SINGAPORE - Buoyed by the successful staging of the inaugural EFG Singapore Junior Masters during the Covid-19 pandemic last year, the tournament will return from Nov 29 to Dec 1 at the Laguna National Golf Club.

Along with the Open (19 years and under) and Junior (15 years and under) categories, organisers LLD Sports Development Management have introduced a new category, Super Junior (13 years and under), to meet the demand from younger golfers.

Last year's edition, held from Nov 30-Dec 2 at the same venue, was the first golf tournament to be held in Singapore since Covid-19 measures were put in place.

However, it was hit by the withdrawal of three Hong Kong players who were supposed to travel here as part of the Hong Kong-Singapore travel bubble but were unable to do so after the arrangement was postponed following a spike in cases in the territory.

With the easing of travel restrictions, this year's event will see a full field of over 70 players, including those from Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, China, India, United States, United Kingdom, Germany, and South Korea, as well as 14 world amateur ranked players.

Another boost for the tournament has also come in the form of Swiss-based global private banking giant, EFG Bank, signing on as title sponsors of the Singapore Junior Masters till 2023.

Albert Chiu, Head of Asia Pacific Region of EFG International said that the deal will allow EFG "to continue our work in young and talented athletes' development in Singapore". He added: "It is our goal to inspire youngsters and create a lasting impact in the Singapore community."

National women's golfer Shannon Tan, who won the Open category girl's divisionlast year, will defend her title against top contenders such as Hong Kong junior Arianna Lau and Samantha Marie Dizon from the Philippines.

Lyn Yeo, managing director and founder of LLD Sports Management and Development, said: "Shannon will be looking to defend her title at Laguna National, but she will have to bring her 'A' game with the field tougher this year."

Irish American James Jay Healy will also be returning to defend his boys' title against a field that includes CarTimes Singapore Junior Development Tour champion Sean Lee and world-ranked players from Singapore such as Eng Wei Jin, Daryl Low and Ethan Lim, and India's Atkish Gupta and Jayaditya Saluja.

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