TAT Filipinas Golf Club, San Pedro, Laguna, Philippines

Jobim Carlos aims to defend his Faldo Series Philippine Championship title when the second edition of the Faldo Series Asia Grand Final tees off at the TAT Filipinas Golf Club in San Pedro, Laguna later this month.

Carlos zoomed to victory in the maiden tournament last year also at TAT, giving the 17-year-old sensation every reason to aspire for a back-to-back title. He earned a slot in last year's Grand Finals of this event held at the Mission Hills Golf Club in Shenzhen, China.

Carlos opened with a 15-over-par 87, but recovered with a pair of two-over-par 74s in the next two days. He was declared the best Filipino in the 54-hole R&A World Amateur Golf Ranking event.

The grand final was supervised by golf great Nick Faldo, who established the Faldo Series Asia in 2006 to bring opportunities to young people and to develop the region’s next generation of champions.

More than 80 talented young golfers from the Philippines are expected to take part at TAT Filipinas in the first of nine "open" championships on the 2010/2011 Faldo Series Asia schedule.

Boys and girls aged 12 to 21 will benefit from the top-level competition under strict tournament conditions over three rounds. Participants will also be given expert advice by the guest speakers.

The field will be divided into five age categories, three for boys (Under-21, 18 and -16) and two for girls (Under-21 and -16). The winner of each category will join the six-time Major winner Faldo at Mission Hills in the fifth Grand Final next year.

The 2010/2011 Faldo Series Asia schedule features a record 17 tournaments in 12 different countries, including six in China.

Similar events will also be held in the Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam, Bahrain, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Japan, Chinese Taipei, Indonesia and Thailand.

JVP/RCJ/Adrian Flores, GMANews.TV