Mavis Espedido opened her chase for a second straight crown in impressive fashion, shooting a four-over-par 76 for a three-stroke lead over Venus Delos Santos in the girls’ 7-10 division of the ICTSI Sherwood Hills Junior PGT Championship on Tuesday.

Playing out of Anvaya Cove, the 9-year-old wonder won the Eagle Ridge stop two weeks ago, also after a hot start, eventually winning her 36-hole division by 14 shots. She had three birdies that cushioned the impact of a double bogey.

Delos Santos, meanwhile, was slowed down a lot by a quadruple bogey and two double bogeys that littered her 79, although she has a comfortable nine-shot edge on Athena Serapio.

Over in the boys’ division, Zoji Edoc fired an 81 and seems to have put the title in the bag with a round to play after taking a 17-shot lead over Halo Pangilinan.

The boys’ 11-14 category is shaping up to be a tight race yet again, with Vito Sarines picking up a shot on the 18th to shoot a 76 and be a shot ahead of Eagle Ridge winner Ryuji Suzuki, who birdied 16 and 17 to set the stage up for an exciting final round.