Royal’s Anil Shah chips the ball during the third leg of KCB Golf Tour at Muthaiga today.

By DONALD WELLINGTON

Royal Nairobi’s Anil Shah sunk four birdies in the second nine to take an early lead after the first round of the third KCB Advantage Banking Golf tour that teed off today at the par 71 Muthaiga Golf Club.

Shah who ended his round on three under par 68, started brightly sinking a birdie on the par 4 hole three before dropping shots on holes five and eight to finish the first nine on one under (37). Luck swung his way in the second nine where he sunk back-to-back birdies on holes 10, 12, 13 and 18 for a three under par 31 for a total of 68.

Mumias’s Dismas Indiza who has won the last two tour events at Royal and Nyanza, found the going tough as he could only manage a three over par 74 after the first day.

Indiza cited fatigue for his poor show saying the South Africa Sunshine Tour which took place in Zambia last week took a heavy toll on him.

“The day has certainly not been well for me because of fatigue but by tomorrow I will be fine. I took part in a golf tournament in Zambia last week so the boys here have a slight advantage over me,” said Indiza who is among the favourites for the event.

Muthaiga’s Paul Thuo and John Wangae are joint second in the leader board, two shots behind Shah at one under par 70, while Nakuru’s Ajay Shah fourth on level par 71. Nicholas Rokoine of Muthaiga, Vet Lab’s Mathew Omondi who recently turned professional and Ben Simwa are tied fifth at one over par 72.

Anil Shah is confident of maintaining his lead to the final day and win the leg. He said: “I feel good about the way I played today, it’s a dream start for me so I just want to work on maintaining my composure and carry the lead into the weekend. I know you cannot win a tournament in one day but you can lose in one day so I have to take extra caution.”

Tomorrow’s round will have a cut where the top 15 players will proceed for the last two rounds where lucrative prize money is up for grabs. Nyali’s Kopan Timbe was locked out of the tournament for arriving late, arriving thirty minutes after his scheduled tee off time and consequently missed his slot. michael kors sac a main michael kors sac a main

Dismas Indiza quenches his thirst during this year’s Kenya Open Championships.

By CORRESPONDENT

The third round of KCB Advantage Banking Golf Tour tees off at the par 71 Muthaiga Golf Course tomorrow.

The KCB Advantage Banking Golf Tour has so far seen stiff competition between the top pro-golfers in the country as they battle to earn points in the overall order of merit while winning prize money in the ongoing series.

Twice in a row, Mumias Golf Club resident professional Dismas Indiza has edged out his closest counterpart Thika Golf Club resident professional Simon Ngige in what can be described as a rivalry of the titans in the golf course.

Indiza has won both the Royal Golf Course Tour and the Nyanza Golf Club leg and is favourite to win in Muthaiga.

“Muthaiga Golf Club is a favourite for a number of golfers. This tour is going to be very competitive considering this leg is a critical part of the tour where one needs points to stamp his presence in the entire competition,” said Professional Golfers of Kenya Chairman, Rizwan Charania.

This tour may prove challenging for the front runners since a number of the professionals are familiar with the Muthaiga Golf Club.

Muthaiga Golf Club resident professional Nicholas Rokoine who is also KCB Advantage Banking Golf tour 2012 order of merit title holder is gearing up to set the record straight in his home turf as he competes for top honours in this weekend’s tour. Not to be left out is Nakuru Golf Club resident Professional Richard Ainley who is in pursuit of the top position in this year’s grand title.

This leg is particularly important since it is being held in the capital where a large number of spectators and contestants are expected to grace “the home of golf in Kenya” Muthaiga Golf Club.

The tour will be a four day event where three days will be exclusive for Professional golfers competing to make the cut for the final day and for the coveted order of merit and the third day will be a Pro-Am day featuring top armatures in the Kenya golf circuit that will be paired with Pros.

A total of 30 professional golfers are expected to grace the Muthaiga tour including Nelson Mudanyi who missed the Nyanza tour as he was involved in South Africa Sunshine tour.

Others are Mombasa resident Pro Kopan Timbe, Royal Nairobi golf club resident Pro Anil Shah, Charan Thethy, Nakuru resident Pro James Lorum, and Windsor resident Pro Rizwan Charania, Nyanza Pro David Odhiambo, Thika resident Pro Sullivan Muthugia among others.

The total prize money for this leg’s participation is Kshs 750, 000 given to the best 15 Pros. Armatures will play for gifts and golf equipment.

The last leg held in Nyanza Golf Club witnessed a total of 26 professionals turn up for the Nyanza greens; despite the raging rains the golfers took to the course shooting good golf for the entire tour.

KCB Advantage Banking Golf tour has six series traversing the country and will culminate at the Leisure Lodge Golf Club later in the year. maillots foot maillots foot