ROSE HALL, St James — There are high expectations for the Professional Golfers Association of Jamaica (PGAJ) two-day, 36-hole championships that gets underway today at Cinammon Hills course in Rose Hall, St James.

Just a few weeks after the staging of the 55th JGA Open championships at the Tryall Club in Hanover, Sebert Walker, who succeed Dr Richard Grant as chairman of the PGAJ, says they had high expectatioins for the event that returned last year after a few years of dormancy.

The participants will be playing for a purse of $350,000 with $90,000 going to the winner, and Walker said they were hoping to be able to hand out prize monies to the top 10 finishers.

“We are expecting our top professionals to show up. This is our flagship event and we are expecting a good turnout,” Walker told the Jamaica Observer earlier this week.

Al Robinson, last year’s champion, is expected to return as well as Wesley Brown and Orville Christie who both played in the 54-hole JGA Open earlier this month.

Twenty-one players took part last year, including 17 professionals and four amateurs, and saw Wyndham Rose Hall professional Al Robinson retain his title with a three over par 147 score, including an even par 72 on Wednesday.

Wesley Brown and Owen Wynter were tied for second with seven over par 151 while Ray Brown and Orville Christie were tied for third with 10 over 154.