Swedish professional Lisa Pettersson (C) and England’s Gabriella Cowley (second-right), winners of the MKLO 2024 Pro-Am, with Jackson Mutua, Safaricom’s Coast Regional Business Lead

By DANIELLA APIYO AND AMANDA DAMARIS

Swedish professional Lisa Pettersson and England’s Gabriella Cowley successfully led their team comprising Naeem Pasta, Vimar Ranpura, and Karan Khagramat to victory at the 2024 Magical Kenya Ladies Open, Pro-Am tournament. The team combined for a score of 32-under to clinch the win at the event held at the picturesque par-72 PGA Baobab Course at Vipingo Ridge on Wednesday. Click this link https://a.meridianbet.ke/c/C7pYjz to start gaming and stand a chance of winning big with a meridianbet.

In a closely contested event, Pettersson and Cowley’s team narrowly edged out their closest competitors, the team of Chiara Tamburlini (Pro), Heyley Davis (Pro), Trish Boulton, Aniz Dopat, and Alnoor Dhand, who finished closely behind with a combined score of 31-under.

Taking the third spot was the team led by Spanish pro Marta Sanz Barrio and her French counterpart Agathe Sauzon, joined by amateurs Michelle Muhanda, Millicent Mello, and Willy Sang, with a combined score of (–28).

The Pro-Am competition featured a unique format, with each group of three amateurs paired with two professionals, one playing each nine, in a move aimed at providing the pros with valuable practice rounds ahead of the main tournament.

In individual accolades, Samwel Mwangi and Mercy Nyamemba emerged victorious in the Nearest to the Pin challenge in the Men’s and Ladies’ categories, respectively, showcasing precision and accuracy in their shots.

At the same time, Fareen Samj and Sandra Githere showcased their power in the Longest Drive category, claiming victory with impressive distances of 270 yards and 224 yards, respectively.

Following the pro-am, all eyes are now set on the main tournament, which tees off on Thursday, February 8, at the Baobab Course at Vipingo Ridge. A field of 108 golfers is poised to compete for a stake of the coveted 300,000 Euros prize fund.

The action will be broadcasted live globally across 100 countries and to 350 million homes, continuing with its history of placing Kenya on the global map since inception in 2019.

The live action will be broadcast across eleven territories including Europe, America, Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. Locally, Mediamax, through K24 TV between 3pm and 6pm Kenyan time from Thursday to Saturday, with final day coverage starting from 1PM to 4pm.

Celine Herbin from France during the Pro-Am tournament at Vipingo Ridge today.

By DANIELLA APIYO AND AMANDA DAMARIS

The 2024 Magical Kenya Ladies Open tees off tomorrow morning, at the Baobab Course in the Vipingo where a field of 108 players is expected to take to the pristine, yet challenging, par-73 PGA-accredited course.

Round one will tee off at 7:45am with the trio of Finn Emily Penttila, Slovak Pia Babnik, and Englishwoman Georgina Blackman teeing off at the first; whilst the trio of Tiffany Chan from Hong Kong, Sara Kouskova from the Czech Republic and Spaniard, Marta Sanz Barrio will tee-off from the 10th at the same time.

17-year-old amateur, Chanelle Wangari, will be the first Kenyan off the tee at the event at 8:07 am from the tenth in the company of Nataliya Guseva and Lisa Pettersson from Sweden – who last year recorded the first hole-in-one at the event.

Naomi Wafula, who made history last year as the only Kenyan to have made the cut at the tournament, will tee off at 8:40 am alongside Kirsten Rudgeley from Australia and Madelene Stavnar from Norway.

Speaking on Wednesday in Vipingo, Naomi said she is aiming to finish higher at this year’s tournament having gotten good exposure at events in Europe since last year’s Magical Kenya Ladies Open.

“My main goal for tomorrow and the rest of the week is to do my best and not just make the cut, but also have a really good score that gives me the highest possible finish,” she said.

Johnnie Walker-sponsored Kenyan amateur, Mercy Nyanchama, will tee-off at 9:02 am alongside Sofie Kibsgaard Nielsen from Denmark and Samantha Bruce from the Philippines. This will be Mercy’s fourth outing at the event, where she will be looking to make the cut having missed out on weekend action in the previous tournaments.

Meanwhile, Dubai-based Kenyan amateur golfer, Kellie Wahito Gachaga, and Vipingo-Ridge-based Jacqueline Walter will tee off at 9:13am and 1:16pm respectively as they begin their quest at the event. This will be Kellie’s debut at the tournament where she will be looking to cut.

April Angurasaranee from Thailand has unfinished business in Vipingo having ended last year’s challenge tied in second. She will take to the tee at 1:05pm to begin her charge.

Speaking ahead of the round, she said: “I just have a lot of good memories here. Finishing second and just played with many people in the first event. They are nice memories, everyone just made me comfortable and made me enjoy everything. The crowd is nice. Everyone here just makes me feel right where I think I need to be.

“I think I like this course in general. It looks good visually and this year’s condition is better than last year’s. I think it’s going to be fun. The little extra stuff like giraffes and zebras, it’s a nice element to have. Walking down the fairway and then just the giraffes casually walking the fairways, you don’t get it anywhere. It’s a good experience.

“My goals for the year, I want to get my first win. I want to finish in the top 15 in the Order of Merit this year. Last year, I missed by one from my goal, but it was it was still a nice finish.”

Alice Hewson from England, who finished joint second with April last year, will begin her challenge at this year’s tournament at 12:21pm, while Diksha Dagar, the best-placed finisher at last season’s Order of Merit, will tee off at 8:29am.

Meanwhile, Singapore’s Shannon Tan, a rookie on the tour, will tee off at 8:51am on the tenth. Speaking ahead of the event, she said: “It is my first time in Kenya. I am early excited about it. Before coming here, I was excited to begin with, so now that I am finally here, I am going to play my practice round in an hour or two. I am just excited to see what the course is like. I have heard about the course, but I want to see it. I have heard they’ve got animals, so that will be interesting.”

For further information about the Magical Kenya Ladies Open, please visit https://www.magicalkenyaladiesopen.com/.