Great Rift Valley’s Jastas Madoya in action.

By DANIELLA APIYO AND AMANDA DAMARIS

Home professional Justus Madoya got off to flying start, firing four under par 67, to grab a three shots lead as sixth leg of the 2020/2021 Safari Tour Golf series got under way at the Great Rift Valley Golf Resort Naivasha today.

Courtesy of a bogey-free first nine, Madoya managed to jump to the top, leaving Nyali Golf and Country Club’s amateur Adel Balala in second place.

“Usually I start poorly and then do recovery bit, but I am happy I started well this time round and I am hoping this is the beginning of a good week’’ said Madoya in an interview with the press after his round. He made birdies at the par four-first, third, fifth and sixth holes.

He also started the back nine well though a double-bogey at the par three-15th following an early single bogey at the 13th almost ruined the day for him though he managed to recover with two birdies at the 14th and 16th .

“The course is playing well and probably easy to score if one stays on target and has enough patience for the greens’’ added Madoya who said he hopes to build up his opening round with probably better scores in the remaining rounds.

Following Madoya in second place was amateur Adel Balala from Nyali Golf and Country Club Mombasa who shot one under par 70 despite missing a number of birdie chances particularly at the back nine where he dropped a shot at the 13th.

He had made two birdies at the front nine’s third and sixth holes, a good foundation though birdies became elusive at the back nine. “ I hit very good shots at the back nine and was all the time on regulation but I could make some birdies though in am happy starting on under par score’’ said Balala.

Two players including Uganda Open champion Robson Chinhoi of Zimbabwe meanwhile tied for third place on level par 71, while Uganda’s Deo Akope was on one over par 72.

Chinhoi who shot an amazing 15 under par in the Uganda Open on a tough condition course, started of with a birdie at the first hole in yesterday’s first nine and concluded it with a birdie at the ninth with a bogey at the fourth.

He then bogeyed the 12th and 15th with only two birdies at the 13th and 17th leveling the day to tie with Uganda’s Abbey Bagalana who made five birdies but against a similar number of bogeys one of them being at the home green.

A total of 45 players made the first round cut out of the field of 48 players. Today’s second round is set for 9am.

The leader board after Day One:

1. Justus Madoya 67
2. Adel Balala(A) 70

     3. Robson Chinhoi (Zim) 71

         Abbey Bagalana (UG) 71

5. Deo Akope 72
6. Dismas Indiza 73

         Jacob Okello 73

8. Njuguna Ngugi 74

   David Wakhu 74

   Greg Snow 74

The vehicle that will be up for grabs on Hole 13 at the Muthaiga’s Captain’s Prize

By DANIELLA APIYO and AMANDA DAMARIS

Portuguese multinational Salvador Caetano Group has given a boost to this year’s Captain’s Prize at the par 72 Muthaiga Golf club, sponsoring the exclusive first Hole- In-One winner with a brand new Hyundai Santa Fe Diesel Premium (complete with a 5 Year / 100,000kms Warranty) on Hole # 13.
The brand new Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) is a 2019 model, and is packed with innovative features and advanced technologies. The vehicle currently Retails at Ksh 8.2 million, but is currently on a Black Friday offer of Ksh 6.7 million.
“We are very excited to be a part of this exciting tournament, and happy to support Captain Snehal Patel (better known as Munna). I would like to wish all the players the very best – and hope that someone gets a Hole-In-One on hole # ‘13’… enabling them to Drive Off with a brand new Hyundai Santa Fe Diesel Premium! All he or she has to do… Drive off the tee box with some luck or really good aim, and Drive Off with the new Hyundai Santa Fe!” said Michael Ian DeSouza, General Manager – Sales & Marketing, Caetano Kenya.
“This event promises to be very exciting, with lots of surprises in store for the players, and even if no-one gets the hole-in-one prize – we have our able Sales Team on site to help you choose your new Hyundai” added Michael “Hyundai – New Thinking, New Possibilities”.
The Captains Prize at the Muthaiga Golf Club will be held between the Friday and Sunday. The Hole-In-One Prize is for the first golfer to get a hole-in-one on Hole # 13 over the two- day golfing days, Friday 27 th and Saturday 28 th November 2020 and the prize giving ceremony will be on Sunday.
Salvador Caetano is the sole distributor and Retailer of New vehicles and Aftersales services that include comprehensive Aftersales care, i.e. spare parts and accessory sales and full valet services. The company’s product offerings are from the Hyundai stables, which include the Hyundai Santa Fe, Hyundai Tucson, Hyundai Creta, Hyundai Grand i10, Hyundai H1 Van and the Hyundai H100. From the Renault stable, the company offers the Renault Kwid, Renault Kwid Climber, Renault Triber, Renault Duster, Renault Kangoo and the Renault Koleos.
Salvador Caetano Group (SCG) has over 70 years of history dedicated to industry and the automotive sector, headquartered in Portugal, and has a presence in more than 100 companies spread across Europe and Africa. The global presence is in 37 countries on 3 continents, selling
over a 100 thousand vehicles annually, with over 7,000 employees.