Absa Bank Chief Financial Officer Yusuf Omari (left) signs a dummy cheque as Pro Golfers Chair CJ Wangai, KOGL Commercial Director Ronald Meru and Tournament Director Patrick Obath witness.

By DANIELLA APIYO AND AMANDA DAMARIS

Absa Bank Kenya is sponsoring the ongoing Safari Golf Tour series to the tune of KES 4.5 million as part of its continuing commitment to the development of the sport in the country and region.

The Safari Tour is one of the biggest golfing tours in the region and has become one of the most prestigious events in Kenya and a favorite on the calendar of many professional golfers. This year’s edition has so far attracted professionals and amateurs drawn from Namibia, Zambia, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Tanzania, Malawi, and the host country, Kenya.

The top eight players in the Safari Tour series will earn the opportunity to participate in the prestigious Magical Kenya Open, scheduled to take place on February 22, 2024.

Speaking during the cheque handover at the Limuru Golf Club recently, Absa Bank’s Chief Financial Officer, Yusuf Omari, affirmed the bank’s ongoing commitment to supporting Kenya’s golf scene through the Safari Tour sponsorship.

“We are delighted to be part of the sixth edition of the Safari Tour. Our investment highlights our strong commitment to supporting the local golf scene, which in turn promotes Kenya’s brand as a premier sporting and tourist destination. The 2023/24 Safari Tour Golf Series provides us with a great opportunity to support our local and regional professionals as they prepare to take on the 2024 Magical Kenya Open later in February,” Omari said.

The funding is channeled through the Kenya Open Golf Limited (KOGL) and will go towards supporting the three legs of the series. The first round was played in Sigona last week, while the second leg is ongoing at Limuru. The third leg will be played on January 27 at Muthaiga Golf Club.

The Safari Tour Season Six fourth leg, which commenced with a Pro-Am event last Saturday, set the stage for a week of intense competition. Zimbabwe’s Visitor Mapwanya is currently leading the leg after pulling an impressive five under par 67 at the close of round two.

Dismas Indiza smiles after winning Safari Tour in Limuru

By DANIELLA APIYO AND AMANDA DAMARIS

Dismas Indiza of Mumias Golf Club rallied from behind to turn the tables on three-day leader Zimbabwean Visitor Mapwanya, beating him by a single shot to bag the Safari Tour event at the par 72 Limuru Country Club Safari on a score of -14.

Indiza finished with a score of 65 in the final round thanks to eight birdies that were superior to a single bogey he picked at hole 3 while Mapwanya seemed to be under pressure from Indiza’s chase in the back nine where he suffered a setback owing to three bogeys while Indiza got four birdies. In the end, Mapwanya finished with a score of 72.

After the win, Indiza said “Am very happy for my win today and I thank God for how things turned up, I played basic golf; drove to the fairway, to the green, and putt, and thats how I won it. Am very sorry to my colleague Visitor Mapwanya (ZIM) for taking food from his mouth, he’s a good player and I admire his game,” Dismas Indiza told People Sports.

Indiza also had a message for the Safari tour organizers and the sponsors. “It’s been about three years when we played better golf than this and we are pleading with the organizers to raise the prize money otherwise I will have no choice but to continue to take food from the mouths of other golfers,” he added.

As a result of the win Indiza returned to Mumias 150,000 richer while the runners, Visitor Mapwanya pocketed Sh 100,000. Greg Snow and Samuel Njoroge tied for third place with -5 and each got a cheque of Sh 77,500.

Chairman PGK CJ Wangai is hopeful the Safari tour golf series will grow. “We understand the current economy but the organizers have still managed to do a wonderful job. We have players from over seven countries participating in the Safari tour and we pray as we go forward that we will have the participants number increased as well as the prize money, that is my request to KOGL.” PGK chairman CJ Wangai told People Sports.
Meanwhile, the title win also came with precious points for his campaign to make a cut in next month’s Magical Kenya Open (MKO) where he widened a big gap on the overall points where he is placed first with 213.0.

Following Indiza on the overall standings of the road to the Kenya Open is Samuel Njoroge of Kenya Railways with 179.5 while Daniel Nduva, Greg Snow, and Visitor Mapwanya are placed 3rd to 5th respectively.

A total of eight professional Kenyan golfers from the Safari Tour golf series will seal their fate in next month’s MKO.

Final leaderboard from the Limuru Safari tour:

Dismas Indiza.                  -14

Visitor Mapwanya.            -13

Greg Snow.                        -5

Samuel Njoroge.               -5

Daniel Nduva.                    -4

Njoroge Kibugu.                -2

Mohit Mediratta.                -1

Dave Kamulindwa.             -1

John Kagiri.                    PAR