Pagdanganan hopes to inspire young Filipino girls to play golf

Bianca Pagdanganan of the Philippines hits her tee shot on the sixth hole during the first round of the Cambia Portland Classic at Columbia Edgewater Country Club on September 18, 2020 in Portland, Oregon. Steve Dykes/Getty Images/AFP

MANILA, Philippines — There’s more to being an athlete than just winning.

And Bianca Pagdanganan hopes to pave way for young girls, particularly those back home in the Philippines, to gain interest in playing golf.

“Hopefully, we just get to inspire younger girls to pick up the sport. I think that’s one of my goals as a professional golfer,” Pagdanganan told LPGA.com.

“It’s really fun. You get to learn so much.”

The 22-year-old Pagdanganan is coming off a sterling campaign in her first major championship in the Women’s PGA in Pennsylvania earlier this month.

The University of Arizona product finished in joint ninth, a result that gained the attention of many especially her countrymen.

“The support has been pretty crazy,” said Pagdanganan, a bronze medalist in the 2018 Asian Games.

“I see it a lot on Facebook. I get tagged in all these posts and sometimes I get to read the comments. You can tell people are getting excited knowing that more Filipinos are getting on tour.”