By DANIELLA APIYO AND AMANDA DAMARIS

On a day many players struggled with form at the PGA Baobab Course at the Vipingo Ridge in Kilifi, Sweden’s Linnea Strom carded a superb round of 4-under par 68 to top the leaderboard, giving herself a two-shot cushion heading into the second round.

She carded a decent first nine, hitting birdies at the second, sixth and seventh holes but dropping shots at the fourth and eighth holes for a total of 35. She had an excellent back nine, carding a total of 33 courtesy of birdies at the 11th, 13th, 14th, 15th and 18th. Her only blemish on the back nine came at the par-4, 16th, where she dropped two shots.

Speaking after the round, Linnea said: “The wind was tricky out there, and the course was pretty firm, so if you don’t hit it where you want to, it can pretty much bounce anywhere. I played steady today, I had eight birdies, but I made some mistakes as well, but overall, I am pretty happy with the score; there are still some things I need to figure out, especially in the right to left wind, but hopefully, I can work that out tomorrow and continue to play well.

“I don’t mind the wind, when I play in the wind, I have to remind myself to be a bit more relaxed, and that’s something I have been trying to work on in the last year. So today, I knew I had to be relaxed to have a good swing and keep a good tempo, so I think I managed to do that well today. I had a good game plan, and I enjoyed it out there with my caddie. Practice has been going pretty well, I had a couple of good practice days here, and I like the course, but I didn’t really have any expectations.”

“I’ve been working on a few things in my game and my swing at the moment, and that helps scoring-wise because I take the expectations off, and I just want to go out there to keep on improving and work on the stuff I’ve been working on.”

Finishing the round in second was Emma Grechi from France, who carded a round of 2-under par 70. She carded 35 in the first nine, having holed birdies at the second and eighth holes, with the only dropped shot coming first. On the back nine, she carded a similar score of 35 with birdies at the 11th, 13th, and 15th and single dropped shots at the 10th and the 12th.

Speaking after the round, Emma said: “I had many ups and downs, but I just had to focus on my strategy and hit the greens and make the putts. I started in the morning, but after the first nine, I had some wind, so I had to take on the flags and be aggressive and try to make my putts, and all that happened, so that’s good. I came here to see if what I worked on in the winter is working or if I have to try something else, but I think it’s fine – I’m happy, and I think my coach will be happy.”

Amy Boulden from Wales and Julia Engstrom from Sweden joined Linnea and Emma as the only four players to play under par. Both finished tied in third, having carded rounds of 71.

It was a tough start for the Kenyan contingent, with Bhavi Shah and Faith Chemutai occupying the bottom two places on the leaderboard with opening rounds of 20-over par and 17-over par, respectively. Naomi Wafula ended the round tied in 87th with a score of 11-over par, while Mercy Nyanchama ended the round as the highest-ranked Kenyan at 7-over par.

Round Two of the event gets underway tomorrow at 7:45 am. The Magical Kenya Ladies Open is sponsored by the Government of Kenya – through Magical Kenya, Ministry of Sports, Sports Fund; Huawei, Johnnie Walker, Safaricom and Centum.

By KGG Team

Top-ranked Jon Rahm is among the favorites at this week’s PGA Phoenix Open and the reigning US Open champion says a year-end break refreshed him and more could be coming.

Rahm, who finished in the top eight at all four majors last year, was runner-up at the Tournament of Champions last month in Hawaii and third two weeks ago at Torrey Pines, where he captured his first major title last June.

The Spaniard’s 2 1/2-month break at the end of last year has rejuvenated his game ahead of his start at TPC Scottsdale.

“One of the best decisions I’ve made in my life was taking those 2 1/2 months off,” Rahm said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s something I do more often.

“To have some time to just be home and enjoy the time off is great. This is probably one of the reasons why I’ve started playing so good.

“Even though my game didn’t feel at its best, I feel like I’m refreshed enough. Call it competitive stamina. It’s high enough to where I can actually pull it through and finish strong.

“I’m playing good golf and hopefully starting this week things start clicking a little bit better.”

SuperSport viewers on DStv can look forward to seeing all the action from the PGA Tour’s Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale in Phoenix, Arizona from Thursday 10 to Sunday 13 February 2022.

SuperSport is the ultimate destination for Golf fans, with an unparalleled selection of action from around the world.

Formerly known as the Phoenix Open, this tournament was founded in 1932 and has the reputation as ‘The Greatest Show on Grass’. The all-time leaders in terms of wins at this event are the great Arnold Palmer, Gene Littler, Mark Calcavecchia and Phil Mickelson – all of whom have three times to their name.

The defending champion is Brooks Koepka who claimed his second Waste Management Phoenix Open title in 2021, shooting a -19 265 to come home one stroke ahead of Xander Schauffele and Lee-Kyoung hoon.

“It’s been a wild ride for the last year and a half and very frustrating,” Koepka said of his triumph at last year’s tournament. “I’ve had moments where I didn’t know if I was going to be the same, if I could even come back.

“I went through it mentally. I think that’s probably the toughest thing, where you don’t know if you’re ever going to be the same competitor that you were. You go through some real dark places, and it’s not a fun place to be.”

Alongside Koepka, this year’s field includes Jon Rahm, Justin Thomas, Bubba Watson, Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler. “Last year we had one of the strongest fields we have ever had in tournament history, and we look to continue that trend in 2022,” tournament chairman Dr. Michael Golding said.

Another entrant to watch out for is Arizona State University freshman Preston Summerhays, who received the first sponsor exemption into the Open.

“I first started standard bearing at the Waste Management Phoenix Open when I was 10-years-old, so this event is like a major championship to me,” Summerhays said. “To be able to compete against the very best players in the world, in this amazing atmosphere, in my own backyard, is a dream come true.”

The TPC Scottsdale Courses are 7,266 yards, par 71 (Stadium Course) and 7,115 yards, par 71 (Champions Course). The purse for the Waste Management Phoenix Open is $8.2million.

No rival can compete with SuperSport’s coverage. Our viewers on DStv can see all their favourite golf stars dominating courses across the world. Visit www.dstv.com to subscribe or upgrade, and join in on the excitement. And while you’re on the move, you can stream matches on the DStv App.

 

Waste Management Phoenix Open broadcast details

All times CAT

 

Thursday 10 February

22:00: Day 1 – LIVE on SuperSport Golf

 

Friday 11 February

22:00: Day 2 – LIVE on SuperSport Golf

 

Saturday 12 February

20:00: Day 3 – LIVE on SuperSport Golf

 

Sunday 13 February

20:00: Day 4 – LIVE on SuperSport Golf