Royal Nairobi Golf Club’s, John Lejirma, follows his fairway shot on the third round of the Sunshine Development Tour Qualifying School at the Great Rift Valley Lodge.

By DANIELLA APIYO AND AMANDA DAMARIS

Royal Nairobi Golf Club’s elite amateur, John Lejirma, shot a round of 67 on round three of the Sunshine Development Tour – East Africa Swing Qualifying School (Q-School) tournament for 4-under par on the day, and 6-under par 207 for the tournament. Click this link https://a.meridianbet.ke/c/C7pYjz to start gaming and stand a chance of winning big with Meridianbet.

His round was the joint lowest of the tournament at the par 71 Great Rift Valley Golf Resort, seeing him return to the summit with a four-shot lead going into the final round. 

Lejirma who had previously held the tournament’s lead after round one, started the day in second, one shot behind the lead. He would steadily build up through the round, shooting a 1-under par, front nine score, off three birdies and two bogeys. At this point, he had taken over the lead from Njoroge who had a torrid time through the same holes, returning a score of 8-over par. 

At the back nine, Lejirma was blemish-free, shooting three birdies, at the par-4 13th, par-5 14th, and at the par-4 18th a hole he bogeyed at in the last round. 

Speaking on his round, Lejirma said, “Today was a good day, especially after yesterday which was a bit of a grind. Today I felt more in control of my game, I stuck to my strategy, made better decisions and the putts decided to fall.”

Kakamega Golf Club’s, Dismas Indiza, follows the flight of his shot on the third round of the Sunshine Development Tour Qualifying School at the Great Rift Valley Lodge.

“Coming in tomorrow, I will approach it positively and hopefully it will pay off, I need to keep the momentum going, nothing is guaranteed as I am playing against a solid field. I need to focus on strategy and not place any pressure on myself.” He added. 

Kigali Golf Resort & Villa’s Celestin Nsanzuwera, also shot a round-leading score of 4-under par, 67 to see him move up four places into second place on an overall score of 2-under par, 211.  

Celestin’s had an almost similar round to Lejirma’s, shooting a score of 1-under par through the front nine courtesy of three birdies and two bogeys, the bogeys coming at the same holes as Lejirma’s, at two par-4s the fourth and seventh. 

Celestin would go on to challenge for the lead, with triple birdies in the opening holes on the back nine, with a further birdie at the 14th, he would then drop a shot at the par-5 17th, while holding par through the rest of the holes. 

Speaking after his round, Celestin said, “My game plan coming into this round was to play better which I did, my shots stuck, and my putting was my strongest weapon in this round.” 

“Going into tomorrow, I won’t change much in terms of my strategy, I hope to go on and win, but if I don’t I hope to keep my current position. Winning this tournament would be a great opportunity for me and my country to be placed on the golf map. Yes, there is pressure, but nothing I can’t handle,” he added.

Muthaiga Golf Club’s, Greg Snow, follows his fairway shot on the third round of the Sunshine Development Tour Qualifying School at the Great Rift Valley Lodge.

Kakamega Golf Club’s Dismas Indiza’s steady rise on the leaderboard continued in round three, moving up five places, to finish the round T3, after returning a score of 2-under par, 69 to take his total tally to 2-over par, 215. 

Indiza barely put a foot wrong through the round, recording two bogies at the par-4 9th and par-3 12th. Other big movers on the day included Golf Park’s David Wakhu, who moved up 10 places to 18th, and Mutahi Kibugu who finished in 19th, 14 places better than he finished yesterday.  

Speaking on his round, Indiza said “I enjoyed my round today, I played alongside some great players who challenged me to play well. I, however, missed a short putt on the 9th but overall, I am happy.” 

“You can never be too sure with the sport of golf, depending on how the pin positions are placed, I’ll however look to give it the best I have.” He added. 

Mutahi’s brother Njoroge didn’t have the same fate, as he dropped 8 places to finish the round and placed in T9 on a score of 8-over par, 221 for the event. 

The last round of action will tee off at 7:30 AM, off both tees, with the leading group made up of Dismas Indiza, Celestin Nsanzuwera, and John Lejirma teeing off at 8:33 AM off the first tee. 

The overall winner of the tournament will walk away with KES 180,000, from the total purse of KES 1 million, with the top 10 receiving invites to play at the Sunshine Tour Final Stage Qualifier, set for 8th to the 11th of April 2025 in Johannesburg, South Africa.

John Lejirma in action at the first round of the East Africa Sunshine Development Tour – East Africa Swing Qualifying School (Q-School) tournament.

By DANIELLA APIYO AND AMANDA DAMARIS

Kenya Railways’ elite amateur John Lejirma shot a round of 3-under par 68 to hold a one stroke lead after round one action of the Sunshine Development Tour – East Africa Swing Qualifying School (Q-School) tournament, at the par –71 Great Rift Valley Golf Resort in Naivasha, Kenya.

Lejirma started his round from the back nine, returning a score of one under par 35, through his first nine holes, courtesy of a birdie at the par-5, 14th. Back-to-back birdies at the par-4 first and second holes got his front nine charge off to a great start, before dropping a shot at the par-4 fifth, his only bogey of the day. He would wrap up his round with a birdie at the eighth, while holding par through the rest of the holes, to return a score of 3-under par, 68 giving him the clubhouse lead.

Isaiah Otuke tees for his first round action at the East Africa Sunshine Development Tour – East Africa Swing Qualifying School (Q-School) tournament.

Speaking on his round Lejirma said, “This is a huge opportunity, to play in the Q-School tournament, especially as an amateur, it is a dream come true!”

“I arrived last night from Kisii, where I played a score of 4-under par, so I was charged up for this one. I just played in regulation, keeping the ball on the fairway and going from there, and it worked well.” He added.

Lejirma sits one stroke ahead of the pair of Muthaiga Golf Club’s Greg Snow and Vetlab Sports Club’s Isaiah Otuke, who returned scores of 2-under par, 69. Both players’ scores off a strong showing in the back nine after struggling with their opening 9 holes.

Otuke overcame early pressure from his playing group of Michael Karanga and Michael Kisia, who rallied to an early lead in the front nine, before both crumbling in the back nine, with consecutive double bogeys at the 13th and 14th holes.

Greg Snow held a score of par through his opening nine holes, off two birdies and two bogeys, before steadying through the back nine, off two birdies while holding par through the rest of the holes, to return a score of 2-under par, 69.

Greg Snow follows his tee shot at round one action of the East Africa Sunshine Development Tour – East Africa Swing Qualifying School (Q-School) tournament

Speaking on his round, Otuke said, “Coming into this tournament, I lowered my expectations, I played a quick nine yesterday in preparation through the back nine. I missed a lot of birdies on the front nine, but I managed to get back onto regulation in the back nine.” He said.

On his part, Snow lauded the opportunity to play in Sunshine Tour Q-School tournament, “I want to thank the organizers and IMG Kenya for putting this together, it is a great initiative and will give us exposure, as East Africans playing against the best, hopefully I’ll make the top 10 to play in South Africa.”

“It is a great start, though I feel I left some shots out there, it was a bit tricky with the wind, swirling a lot. Going forward I just want to stick to my game plan, stay patient and give myself as many opportunities.” He added on his round.

Round two action starts at 7:30 AM with the players looking to make the CUT and play through Wednesday and Thursday for a share of the KES 1 million prize purse, and more importantly, the opportunity to play at the Sunshine Tour Final Stage Qualifier in Johannesburg, for the top ten finishers.