Dismas Indiza follows hiss shot at the practice range in George, South Africa.

By DANIELLA APIYO

Mumias long-hitter Dismas Indiza missed out on the qualifying slot of the ongoing Dimensional Data ProAm by a mere shot as Kenyans started off their campaign in the Sunshine Tour in George, South Africa.
A total of four Kenyans took part in the George based Pro-Am which is part of the Sunshine Tour.
South Africa based Kenyan youngster Stefan Andersen was privileged to join KCB- sponsored compatriots Indiza, CJ Wangai and David Wakhu but the foursome weren’t so lucky.
Brett Liddle of South Africa and Zambian Dayne Moore shot superb rounds of 4 under par 68 to jointly top the qualifiers.
Wangai in a phone interview said they return back to Johannesburg Friday well in time for qualifiers of the prestigious Jo’Burg Open on Tuesday. Practice is scheduled for Monday.
“The good news for now is that we’ll remain in Jo’burg for the week just practising. The weather in George is extremely hot, but the courses here are very good though they are all lynx courses – near the sea,” said Wangai in an interview.
Wangai who is also the PGK Captain said they have put their George’s woes behind them and now are focusing for the Jo’burg challenge.
Indiza missed the main event slot by 1 shot to finished 20th overall.
Wangai lost the qualifying slot by 8 shots whilst Wakhu lost it by 9 shots.
Kenya’s Stefan played a round of 5 under par 77 to wrap it up jointly 30th. The Dimensional Data Pro-Am main event culminates on Sunday. Johannesburg championship is a significant event for the three Kenyans as they have been entered in qualifiers which they need to prevail upon to play in the event proper. Jo’Burg Open is a round of the European Tour and offers Kenyans a platform to brush shoulders with some of the global’s best pro golfers.
Indiza who was last year’s winner in the PGK Order of Merit  said: “Sunshine golf is very popular now. There are a lot of tournaments and a lot of people are coming to play here. The game is becoming more and more popular. Now that KCB is enabling us to play in the top tournaments around the world this will help us get better and better as we prepare for the Kenya Open,” said Indiza.
Sgona’s Wangai who is making his debut in the Sunshine Tour sounded quite febrile after practice “I am looking forward to the week in George at the Fancourt  Golf Club. I hope to practise a few holes in Jo’Burg. I just here it is a brilliant course where you are compelled to hit the ball cautiously off every tee. It is much more important to be accurate from the tee and to keep the ball in the fairway because the rough can be very difficult to play from and you can get a lot of fliers. It’s going to be very difficult to keep the ball under control from the rough,” said Wangai who is also the PGK Captain.
Royal Nairobi man Wakhu returns to the Sunshine Tour after half a decade since having a one off n 2009.  Wakhu said: “It will be nice to play in South Africa once again. It is nice to have as many local based pros partake in the Sunshine Tour but I would like to say that I want a Kenyan to keep this trophy on foreign soil. This is a tour event you want to excel in  as its sets the mood and platform to our participation in Johannesburg Open next week. The Jo’Burg Open is a tournament which is steep in history; and from what I know Clubs here in South have such a fantastic history. Jo’Burg is definitely one of those events which you want to play and post good results.”
During the players send off-cum launch of the 2015 KCB Golf Tour at Kencom House in Nairobi last week, KCB Chief Business Officer and MD Kenya Samuel Makome said the sponsorship of the three golfers to the Sunshine Tour highlights KCB Corporate Golf tour as a premium tour that promotes top players in the golfing fraternity where they get the opportunity to compete with their peers globally.
“We are excited with the fact that the international exposure will help boost the standards of pro golf in Kenya,” said Mr Makome.
The Sunshine Tour is a men’s professional golf tour based in Southern Africa. For a lengthy part of its history it was known either as the South African Tour or the FNB Tour, but it re-branded itself in a deliberate attempt to broaden its appeal.
The Kenyans are expected to return on Februart 2 and will play in the 2015 KCB Golf Tour which  tees-off at Royal Golf Club on March 11 and culminates with the Grand Finale at the Nyali Golf Course on August 8.
KCB has committed a total of Kshs. 25 Million towards organisation of the Tour as well as facilitating for the three golfers who will be sponsored by KCB to play at the South Africa based Sunshine Tour next week. The five leg series, which prepares local pros for the prestigious Kenya Open, has a prize fund of Ksh. 5.5million.

Dimension Data Pro-Am Qual.
Selected Final Result.

=1. Brett Liddle (RSA)
(-4) 68
=1. Dayne Moore (ZAM) (-4) 68
=3. Louis Calitz (RSA)RSA
(-3) 69
=3. Callie Swart (RSA)
(-3) 69
=5. Jaco Prinsloo (RSA)
(-1) 71
=5. Tyron Roelofsz (RSA)
(-1) 71
=20. Dismas Indiza (KEN)
(+3) 75
=30. Stefan Engell Andersen (KEN) (+5) 77
=45. John Chege “CJ” Wangai (KEN) (+8) 80
=51. David Wakhu (KEN) (+9) 81 cheap air max 90 mens cheap air max 90 mens

KCB Chief Business Officer Samuel Makome (left) presents PGK chairman Jacob Okelo with a Sh25 million cheque a
for the 2015 KCB Golf Series. Right is Angela Mwirigi

By DAIELLA APIYO

The 2015 KCB Golf Tour will  tee-off at Royal Golf Club on March 11 and culminates with the Grand Finale at the Nyali Golf Course on August 8, officials announced yesterday.
The Bank announced this at an official launch yesterday as it committed a total of Kshs. 25 Million towards organisation of the Tour as well as facilitating for the three golfers who will be sponsored by KCB to play at the South Africa based Sunshine Tour next week.
The five leg series, which prepares local pros for the prestigious Kenya Open, has a prize fund of Ksh. 5.5million.
The first four tournaments at Royal, Thika, Kisumu and will carry a prize fund of Ksh. 1Million each and a further Ksh.  1.5Million for the Grand Finale in Nyali.
Last year, in an effort to make the tour more exciting to the players, KCB pledged to take the top 3 pros of the tour to participate in this Sunshine Tour event and true to its word; the 3 professionals will be headed to South Africa this weekend.
Top three Kenyan professional golfers Dismas Indiza, David Wakhu and CJ Wangai depart today and will be participating in the two rounds of the prestigious Sunshine Tour.
During the players send off-cum launch of the 2015 KCB Golf Tour at Kencom House in Nairobi, KCB Chief Business Officer and MD Kenya Samuel Makome said the sponsorship of the three golfers in the Sunshine Tour highlights KCB Corporate Golf tour as a premium tour that promotes top players in the golfing fraternity where they get the opportunity to compete with their peers globally. The KCB Golf Tours have become the cornerstone of developing regional/local professionals ahead of the annual Kenya Open Golf Championship and the PGA Sunshine Tour in South Africa.
“The Tour which incorporates professional and amateur golfers is by and large considered a ‘must play’ event as it is the second biggest event in the pecking order after the prestigious Kenya Open. We are excited with the fact that the international exposure will help boost the standards of pro golf in Kenya,” said Mr Makome.
Indiza who is attached to Mumias Golf Club, Royal’s Wakhu and CJ Wangai of Sigona landed the sponsorship after topping the KCB Golf Tour Order of Merit last year.
During last year’s Order of Merit, Indiza retained the top accolade followed by Wakhu on 48.5 points. Wakhu picked up 15 points in the Grand Finale at Nyali while Sigona’s John Wangai wrapped up the 2014 KCB Order of Merit in third place with a total of 46.5 points.
This year, KCB Golf has lived up to its promise to sponsor Kenyans in the South African series, a gesture intended to help golfers further their golfing skills and above all brush shoulders with the cream of the continent’s best.
Professional Golfers of Kenya Chairman Jacob Okello while wishing the three Kenyans well, thanked the management of KCB Group for their long-standing support of pro golf in the country.
“KCB has supported us for the umpteenth time and the send-off we are witnessing here today is a true indication that the KCB Golf Tour 2015 is rated as second to none,” said Okello who is easily Kenya’s most successful player at the Kenya Open.
The Kenyan trio begins their Sunshine Tour campaign with the Dimension Data Pro-Am slated for February 19 – 22 in George, South Africa. The three will then head to the Jo’burg Open where they will play in the qualifiers on February 24. Johannesburg Open runs from February 26th to March 1st in Johannesburg.
The Sunshine Tour is a men’s professional golf tour based in Southern Africa. For a lengthy part of its history it was known either as the South African Tour or the FNB Tour, but it re-branded itself in a deliberate attempt to broaden its appeal.

THE KCB GOLF TOUR 2015:
March 11-14: Royal Nairobi
April 11-14: Thika Sports Club
May 14-16: Nyanza Golf Club
July 2-4: Nakuru Golf Club
August 5-8: Nyali Golf Club cheap nike air max 97 cheap nike air max 97