Four amateurs get Kenya Open nod

Kibugu Mutahi poses with the trophy after he was crowned the Kenya Junior Strokeplay golf champion on August 3, 2017 at Muthaiga Golf Club. PHOTO | FILE |

What you need to know:

  • The four players will be Edwin Mudanyi of Vet Lab Sports Club, Daniel Nduva of Nyali Golf and Country Club, Mutahi Kibugu of Muthaiga and Royal Nairobi’s Dennis Saikwa.

Only four local amateurs will be in the starting list of the 2018 Barclays Kenya Open set for March 22-25 at Muthaiga Golf Club.

According to the list released by the Kenya Golf Union (KGU), the four players will be Edwin Mudanyi of Vet Lab Sports Club, Daniel Nduva of Nyali Golf and Country Club, Mutahi Kibugu of Muthaiga and Royal Nairobi’s Dennis Saikwa.

Mudanyi emerged the 2017 Kenya Amateur Golf Championship (KAGC) series champion, while the South Africa-based Nduva is the Kenya Amateur Open Strokeplay champion.

TOP JUNIOR

Sixteen-year-old Kibugu was included as the country’s top junior golfer while Saikwa was second in the 2017 KAGC series Order of Merit. Missing in the series is Kenya Amateur Matchplay champion Joseph Gathumbi whose handicap is reported to have been suspended by his sponsoring club Thika.

Gathumbi played a couple of events after winning the matchplay title which had seen him qualify for the Open.

In his absence, the KGU has thus given the slot to the top Ugandan amateur while the sixth slot will go to the top Tanzanian amateur. The two foreign players must be playing off scratch and better during the Open.

INCREASED PRIZE

A total of 156 players including the six amateurs will be battling it out at Muthaiga during the Open which marks its 50th Anniversary this year with an increased prize fund of Euros 500,000 (Sh62.5m) which makes it the richest event in the 2018 European Challenge Tour series.

The overall professional winner will take home Euros 80,000 (Sh10,150,000) while the top amateur who will have to make the second round cut will receive the trophy and some World Amateur Ranking points.