Macaranas who won third place in Callaway Future Champions Golf World Championship last month received the acceptance confirmations on Thursday last week.
He earned the slot in two of the big golf events from his exemplary plays during the 2009 world championships in Pinehurst, North Carolina and San Diego, California.
Last year, Macaranas also played in two Tournament of Champions—the Section Championship PGA Desert Tournament of Champions at Tahquitz Creek Golf Club and SCPGA Metro Series Tournament of Champions at Hemet Golf Club in Landmark.
While gearing up now for the Country Club of Rancho Bernardo—a par 73, 6027 yards course in San Diego, and Legacy Golf Links—a Par 72, 5600 in Pinehurst, Macaranas will need to raise funds this month for two world championships.
So, it’s time for the CNMI people to show their support for RJ’s work in promoting the islands’ world championship brand.
According to his family, the pressure to win in world championships is so great, that it’s almost impossible to resist rationalizing on saving money when his competitions seem to have endless monetary support.
Due to the economic climate that has been affecting many junior golfers, Macaranas drastically needs a sign of support. The NMI’s junior golfer will not compete for the first time in the spring tournaments.
Since he clinched a spot in the Spring Bridgestone Tournament of Champions, he chose to suspend all spring tournaments to play the Tournament of Champions and stretch the budget for the World Championships.
Consequently, he will not have enough points to compete in Spring player of the year because 15 tour events left on schedule is too costly, and will concede and not being invited to the PGA Banquet of Champions.
More triumphs
Macaranas also won the first place at El Prado Classic nine-hole PGA tournament where he shot 1 over par 37 tying it with fellow Player of the Year contender Stephen Brown.
Macaranas will never forget this tournament because he was forced to a sudden death playoff. After two holes, the young golfer clinched the win as he sank a 27 foot birdie putt. He should have never agreed to the sudden death playoff, and rather have it in scorecard playoff. But because Brown knew that he would have lost the card-off he demanded for a sudden death playoff.
Macaranas admits that the victory in the playoff made it a lot more memorable.
Brown didn’t know that his opponent’s angel was by his side to that day—Anunciacion Sablan Palacios, aka Nan Uncha, or Uncha Neni, Macaranas’ grandmother whose birthday was on that day.
In the LA City Championship, Macaranas settled for fourth place. Here, his two-day round of 75 was two strokes short of the first 1st place at 73. Christian Lingamen and Charles Reiter topped their division and Connor Brown was 3rd with a 74.
Macaranas is praying that more people donate even a small amount to help him promote the CNMI world championship brand. He hopes nonprofit organizations like the CWGA and Refaluwasch Golf Association lead the way for individuals to contribute to the world championship representatives.
