Despite having started the year on a high, Kenya’s professional golfers would wish to quickly forget the final part of the 2021/ 2022 season.
And in particular the Magical Kenya Open, a DP World Tour event held at the Muthaiga Golf Club from March 3.
Njoroge Kibugu follows the progress of his tee shot during the third round of the Karen Challenge at par 72 Karen Country Club course on August 21, 2022.
Coming into the first round, most of the locals, as well as their regional colleagues, were fired up and all ready to upstage visiting players drawn from over 28 countries with the five continents represented.
They were not just well tuned-up for the game, but also enjoyed good material support.
Players like Simon Ngige of Thika Sports Club, Golf Park’s David Wakhu, Mohit Mediratta from Sigona, Nyali’s Daniel Nduva and Edwin Mudanyi of Vet Lab were each given Sh200,000 to help them meet tournament expenses.
David Wakhu follows the progress of his shot from 18th hole fairway during Magical Kenya Open at Muthaiga Golf Club in Nairobi on March 03, 2022.
Others received support from various corporates bodies, including generous sponsorship from the Vision 2030 Secretariat.
Having had excellent outings in the first half of the 2021/2022 season, which included victories for some of them like Great Rift Valley Golf Resort-based Justus Madoya who clinched the Uganda Open on his favourite course at the Entebbe Golf Club.
The Kenyan line-up also included Muthaiga’s Greg Snow, Samuel Njoroge of Muthaiga, Rohit Mediratta and Eric Ooko of Golf Park while the regional line-up featured Zimbabwe’s Robson Chinhoi, who carried four Safari Tour Victories, Malawi’s Paul Chidale and Uganda’s Ronald Rugumayo.
Kenya junior golf team for the All Africa junior golf challenge captain Njoroge Kibugu (right) flanked by team mate Alyssa Jamal (second left) receives t-shirts and travelling bags from National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOC-K) second vice president Waithaka Kioni (second right) at Muthaiga Golf Club on March 24, 2022. On the left is Kenya Golf Union (KGU) chairman Peter Kiguru.
All of them, having displayed an excellent form during the Safari Tour now a regional tour, were expected to unleash great performances at Muthaiga.
But little did they know that they were up against a strong DP World Tour field, and at the close of the second round, all of them went out, with Samuel Njoroge in tying 86th on two over par, being the best placed local/regional player.
However, saving Kenya and East and Central Africa’s face was an 18-year-old junior amateur, Njoroge Kibugu, who made the cut to the last two rounds with a brave six under par score.
Became Kenya’s saviour
Kibugu and another junior, Taimur Malik, had joined Kenya’s amateur line-up for the event, a squad led by Nyali’s Adeil Taufiq Balala alongside John Lejrmah of Kenya Railway Golf Club, Limuru’s Dennis Maara and Michael Karanga of Kiambu.
Dennis Maara follows the progress of his tee from 14th hole tee box during Kenya Amateur Matchplay Championship at Royal Nairobi Golf Club on June 19, 2022.
Kibugu not only became Kenya’s saviour at the event, but also evolved into a big star and great hope for the future of the Kenyan game.
Although he was not able to climb further than a 64th place, beating 11 professionals in the process, Kibugu had sent a clear message on what Kenya needs to do to the clinch the Magical Kenya Open title and shine at other international tournaments.
Before coming to the Open, the two juniors had played in a number of international events in South Africa where they were attending a golf school.
Following his achievement in the 2022 Magical Kenya Open, Kibugu was supported by retired President Uhuru Kenyatta to compete in another Tour event in Belgium in addition to a number rewards including cash from organizations like the Vision 2030 Secretariat.
The four leading senior amateurs — Adel Balala, John Lejirmah, Dennis Maara and Michael Karanga — having been selected to form Kenya’s national amateur team for international events, also redeemed Kenya’s image by reclaiming the Africa Region Four title, beating Uganda at the Lake Victoria Serena Golf Resort in Kigo Uganda.
Amateur Golfer of the Year
They also chalked up victory in the Victoria Cup between Kenya and Uganda at Limuru Country Club a few weeks later.
The amateurs also finally claimed a bronze medal by finishing third in the All Africa Team Golf Championship in Egypt.
Individually, Kenya Amateur Stroke Play Champion John Lejirmah was obviously the star of the game in 2022. In addition to assisting his national team colleagues in clinching the Africa Region Four title in Uganda, the Victoria Cup and a bronze in the Africa Team Championship in Egypt, Lejirmah managed to win five Kenya Amateur Golf Championship (KAGC) series tournaments.
John Lejirmah poses with ‘Golfer of the Year’ trophy at Nyali Golf and Country Club course in Mombasa on December 11, 2022.
This propelled him to eventually claim the KAGC Amateur Golfer of the Year title and the best player on average score per round of 71.85.
Starting with the Golf Park Open at Ngong Racecourse and Golf Park, Lejirmah also claimed the Gold Fields Trophy in Kakamega, the Nyanza Open’s Hippo Pot title and the Kenya Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship which was hosted for the first time at the PGA Baobab Course at Vipingo Ridge Golf Resort.
The Stroke Play victory earned Lejirmah a place in next year’s Magical Kenya Open although his main target was to become the best amateur golfer of the year in the country.
And his last victory at the Nandi Bears Open Shield assured him of that.
He has now turned his attention to the 2023 Magical Kenya Open, a DP World Tour event to be hosted again at Muthaiga Golf Club from March 9 to 12. BY DAILY NATION