MANILA, 25 January — Reigning Philippine Open champion Cassius Casas and last year’s RP Open titlist Gerald Rosales get the rare chance to play against the best players in the world when they compete in the Johnnie Walker Classic on Jan. 24-27 at the Lake Karrinyup Country Club in Perth, Australia.

The $1 million event, which could rival the world’s four major championships in terms of prize money and participation, will serve as a titling venue for Casas and Rosales to showcase there shotmaking skills against the likes of US Open champion Retief Goosen and former JW Classic winners Ernie Els and Michael Campbell.

The early list of players seeing action in the event, which has gained prestige and popularity through the years, include Notah Begay, Sergio Garcia, Colin Montgomerie, Thomas Bjorn, Lee Westwood and Nick Faldo.

Casas never had a good crack at the JW Classic crown in a long, long time, either he was overwhelmed by the opposition or simply got clobbered by them.

In fact, he has never kept track of his best finish in the prestigious event although he had a lucrative debut as a pro when he won $150,000 in a Johnnie Walker Skins Game at Wack Wack in 1993.

But the 34-year-old dusky shotmaker from Davao has vowed to dish out his best in the four-day championships where he hopes to come up with a creditable performance in a bid to further boost his confidence in time for his campaign in the US Buy.Com Tour.

Casas earned a spot in the elite cast through International Management Group (IMG), which manages his career as well as that of Rosales.

Rosales, on the other hand, tries to make the most out of his first-time stint in a championship of this magnitude although hopes are high for the reed-thin shotmaker to overcome the challenge owing to his solid campaign in the Asian PGA Tour last year.

POC seeks palace nod for 2005 SEAG

The groundwork has already been laid down and only Malacanang’s blessing is needed to jump-start preparations for the country’s hosting of the Southeast Asian Games in 2005.

Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) president Celso Dayrit urged President Macapagal-Arroyo to formalize the Philippines’ hosting of the 2005 meet and create a multi-agency task force that would handle it.

"We want to prepare early. We are asking Malacanang for two things: first, an official acceptance of the hosting from the president, which we would submit to the SEA Games Federation and second, the formation of an inter-agency task force," Dayrit said in a press briefing.

The POC had first sought the official Malacanang acceptance and the task force’s creation last March 8. But so far, the only communication coming from Malacanang was a phone call from Deputy Executive Secretary Waldo Flores, who asked for a black and white that would serve as talking points between the POC and the Palace.

After formulating guidelines for the hosting that Flores required, the POC wrote a follow-up letter to the president last Jan. 4 in a bid to spur more awareness on the need to prepare early for the hosting.

SEAG winners are shoo-ins for Asiad

Filipino athletes who won gold medals in the Southeast Asian Games in Kuala Lumpur last year or at least bronze medals in the 1998 Asian Games in Bangkok are virtually assured of slots to this year’s Asiad in Busan, Korea.

But, of course, they will have to be in fighting shape.

This was agreed upon during the Philippine Olympic Committee board meeting recently.

The Philippines won only one gold medal in the Bangkok Asian Games courtesy of Gandy Valle and Romeo Villanueva of billiards.

In the Kuala Lumpur SEA Games, the Philippines won a total of 31 gold medals courtesy of 43 athletes, including the 12-man basketball team. Of these athletes, only Ma. Nelia Sy-Ycasas of taekwondo and Mark Rosales of wushu won at least a bronze medal in the last Asian Games.

Overall, the Philippines won a single gold, five silver and 12 bronze medals in Bangkok. But some of these medalists are no longer ineligible for the Pusan Games with the likes of Eric Canoy of boxing ñ now retired ñ and Dorothy Delasin and Jennifer Rosales of golf ñ now a professional.

Athletes body elect officials

Archer Purita Joy Marino and six others were elected by their peers to the athletes’ commission, the body put up by the Philippine Olympic Committee to serve as the national pool members’ "voice" in POC assemblies.

Marino, a gold medalist in last year’s Southeast Asian Games, emerged as the top vote-earner with 99 votes in the two-day election simultaneously conducted at the POC office at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila, the PhilSports complex in Pasig and the Teachers’ Camp in Baguio City.

Others elected to the commission were Jose Rodriguez (rowing), Alfonsito Aldanete (weightlifting); Ma. Lorella Bauzon (fencing), Sheila Barlovento (football), Eva Marie Ditan (taekwondo) and Leonardo "Botchok" Rey (bowling).

The seven would later be joined by four others who would be appointed by the POC executive board. They would serve up to Dec. 31.

POC secretary general Romeo Ribano said the 11-man athletes’ commission would be given access to the POC’s regular assembly meetings.

Philta laughs off complaint

Philta Tennis Association secretary-general Juan Marfil Jr. laughed off a new complaint forwarded to the Philippine Olympic Committee by a group composed of people describing themselves as the legitimate elected regional vice presidents of the association.

Marfil was amused by the letter protest submitted by Giovanni Mamawal, who is seeking POC arbitration over his allegation that the Philta "is prolonging the declaration of regional vice presidents winners after the Jan. 5, 2002 elections."

The letter alleged the tennis association is preparing to announce a failure of election and also accused Philta of preparing to "discredit and kick out the honorable men and women whose main objective is to simply uplift tennis in the country."

Chua captures Open title in bizarre end

Five down with eight holes left, Heidi Chua had started to lose her composure but Aileen Rose Yao and Ria Quiazon lost theirs faster than she did as the club bet snatched the Philippine Ladies Open crown before a stunned crowd at Wack Wack’s west course.

"I couldn’t believe I won," said the 20-year-old Chua, whose closing seven-over par 79 stood as one of the highest-ever winning scores in the annual event. She finished with a 227, 11 over par for 54 holes, and won by one stroke over Yao and Quiazon.

Yao and Quiazon couldn’t believe they had lost either. But with the former fumbling with an 82 and the latter carding a 78, both could only assemble identical 228s.

Not even a bogey on the final hole could stop Chua from pocketing the title as Quiazon blew a four-foot par putt that could have forged a sudden-death playoff.

Yao, who started the round two-up on Chua but fell two down when she teed off on 18th, salvaged a tie for second with a tap-in par putt from a lucky blast that saw her ball hit the flag.

Atoy Co shines in golf

Former basketball star Atoy Co captured the overall individual title while Bagumbayan I took team honors in the 16th edition of the recent northern leg of the Rotary Golfing Fellowship Foundation of the Philippines (RGFFP) tournament series in two venues in Baguio.

Co, carrying the banner of Pasig I, upstaged the low handicappers with his 36-hole total of 84 points for the top individual award in the tourney which drew 298 players from 28 different clubs from all over Luzon.

Bagumbayan drew a big game from Sevie Oliva on the way to winning the top team award in the event.

Angeles Centro took the Founders division, Cabanatuan Mother Club won the Governors division. Paranaque East bagged the Presidents division, Las Pinas topped the Fellowship division and Goody Ignacio ruled the Open division.

Poch Borromeo, chief operating officer of RGFFP, awarded the prizes to the winners together with other committee members and tournament director Pancho Perrea.