Top amateur ladies set sights on Strokeplay title
What you need to know:
- The first round gets under way from 7am Saturday followed by the second round in the afternoon.
Leading lady golfers from the East Africa region will be converging at the par 71 Muthaiga Golf Club course this weekend for the 2016 Kenya Ladies Open Amateur Strokeplay Championship.
The 54-hole event, which counts towards the Kenya Ladies Golf Union (KLGU) Golfer of The Year series and the World Amateur Ranking, has attracted a field of 94 players divided into three categories, Silver, Bronze and the Subsidiary.
The Silver division, open to handicap 20 and below, has a field of 42 players who will vie for the Mary Neville trophy while the Bronze division, open to players in handicap 21 to 35, has an entry of 36 players. Only 16 players will feature in the subsidiary which will take place on Sunday morning.
Competition for the Mary Neville trophy is very open as defending champion Madina Idd from Arusha Gymkhana in Tanzania, who had earlier entered her name, withdrew at the last minute.
However, another Tanzanian Vicky Elias is drawn to battle it out with the locals who includes veteran Florence Maina, Mary Karano, Jane Njoroge, Agnes Wanjiru, Esther Chumo from Eldoret and Nakuru’s Esther Karuga and Shiro Kaime.
Also drawn is Uganda’s top lady golfer Flavian Namakula, who skipped last year’s event. Also eyeing the trophy are a number of youthful players led by former champion Naomi Wafula, Agnes Nyakio, Mercy Nyanchama, and home player Kellie Gachaga.
“I have been practicing well for this weekend’s tournament, and I am all set to tackle these youngsters,” said Mary Karano who won the Eldoret Ladies Open last weekend at Eldoret Golf Club. She is drawn to play in today’s Madison Insurance tournament which she says will be part of her final preparation for the weekend championship.
The first round gets under way from 7am Saturday followed by the second round in the afternoon.
