Mikey Arroyo is godfather of junior golf

MANILA, Philippines – Former Rep. Juan Miguel “Mikey” Arroyo is the new godfather of junior golf in the Philippines, according to Junior Golf Foundation of the Philippines (JGFP) president Oliver Gan.

“Congressman Arroyo has been actively supporting our tournaments and programs through his family’s Lourdes Tuason Arroyo (LTA) Foundation,” Gan said on Tuesday.

“His support enabled us to sustain our programs for underprivileged golfers performing well in various local tournaments,” he added.

Alethea Gaccion, the reigning Faldo Series Asian Finals champion, and Kiera Montebon are the early beneficiaries of the LTA. They received P100,000 each to finance their trips to the United States for the IMG Junior World Championships in San Diego, California in July.

Arroyo was present during the turnover of checks to Gaccion and Montebon. Another recipient of P100,000 assistance was Alonso Retuerto, the grandson of renowned coach Roger Retuerto.

The assistance to the three junior golfers was apart from the financial support lent by Arroyo to the JGFP.

“I can’t divulge the total amount shouldered by Rep. Arroyo but it was enough for us to aggressively pursue our programs,” Gan said.

The 54-year-old son of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is joining the JGFP delegation at the IMG event. Her daughter Monique is seeing action in the girls’ 15-18 division alongside Reese Ng, Alethea Gaccion, Anya Cedo and Grace Quintanilla.

The prestigious event is set for July 16-22 on various golf courses in California.

The Philippines is also fielding entries in the 6-and-under, 7-8, 9-10, 11-12 and 13-14 brackets.

The 6-under and 7-8 divisions will be played at the the Singing Hills Pine Glenn and Pine Oak courses at Sycuan Resort in El Cajon, California. The 11-12 bracket is set at the Heights Golf Course in San Diego, the 13-14 at Rancho Bernardo Heights and the 15-18 divisions will be played at Torrey Pines.