Alido, Jahns out to keep young guns’ run at TCC

MANILA, Philippines — Ira Alido and Keanu Jahns, two of the Philippine Golf Tour’s rising stars, aim high in The Country Club Invitational, fueled by a desire to duplicate Koreans Micah Shin and Kim Joo Hyung’s escape acts in the last two editions of the circuit’s highlight event at the TCC course in Laguna.

The P5 million event kicks off Wednesday with a select cast featuring the top 30 players in last year’s PGT Order of Merit ranking all primed up for four days of battle in challenging conditions, including Alido and Jahns, both due for a big finish following impressive campaigns last year.

Alido has posted a number of top five finishes to rank No. 6 in the OOM derby while Jahns also had a couple of runner-up efforts last year, including in the TCC he lost by one to Kim, who humbled the country’s top players to win the country’s richest championship outside of the Philippine Open at 17.

Kim’s triumph likewise kept the TCC crown at the hands of the young Koreans following the then 21-year-old Shin’s similar one-stroke victory over Miguel Tabuena in 2018.

The same tight, thrilling finish is expected this week with Alido, 18, and Jahns, 23, hoping to put themselves into the early mix to get a crack at the championship in the event put up by ICTSI president/chairman Ricky Razon to honor the memory of his father.