Overall Winner Felix Kandie awarded by Jane Nganga NCBA

By AMANDA DAMARIS

More players booked their spots for the fast-approaching NCBA Golf Series Grand Finale following their respective triumphs during the Diamond Leisure Lodge Monthly Mug on Saturday. Click this link https://a.meridianbet.ke/c/C7pYjz to start gaming and stand a chance of winning big with Meridianbet.

Felix Kandie emerged the overall winner after carding 28 points. George Mokaya was the Men winner with 38 points as Pauline Nduva clinched the Lady Winner title with 37 points. Patel Kumar (38) and Daniella Gallaway (34) won the Division Two titles as Arcel Adeyemo (35) clinched the junior title.

“It was a nice round, started off with a bogey on the first hole but followed it up with a series of pars. I missed a couple of birdies, but I am impressed with the performance. I am looking forward to playing at Muthaiga and will put in more training before then. At the moment, my game is on the upward and I know I will have a good performance,” Kandie said.

The 2025 series is in final stretch ahead of the grand finale showdown, with Muthaiga set to host the final major qualifying leg at the start of November before paving way for the finale showdown later in the month.

Nyeri Golf Club, Nyahururu Golf Club, and Kericho Golf Club are set to host mini qualifiers in the form of club mugs, offering more opportunities for golfers to book their tickets.

Elsewhere, the NCBA U.S. Kids Golf Nairobi Fall Local Tour delivered yet another exciting weekend of junior golf action at the Royal Nairobi Golf Club on Sunday, marked by standout under-par rounds and closely contested categories.

Aryan Patel stole the spotlight in the Boys 7 category with a brilliant 1-under-par round as Hakeem Mutungi impressed with an incredible 3-under-par finish in the Boys 9 category. Ishaan Patel added to the list of standout performances, shooting 1-under to win the Boys 11 division in style.

Lady Winner Pauline Nduva awarded by Jane Nganga NCBA

Victor Haland took top honors in the Boys 6 & Under category with a score of +7, while Surya Bongu battled through tough conditions to claim victory in the Boys 8 division with +8. Paren Reel carded +4 to secure the Boys 10 category. In the older age groups, Adam Nesbitt posted +3 to win the Boys 12 category, George Ikirima claimed the Boys 13-14 division with +5, and Wahome Mutahi held firm to win the Boys 15-18 category on +4.

Njeri Nganga won the Girls 8 & Under title with +2 as Leticia Mwangale delivered a confident performance to win the Girls 9-10 category with +4. Ashley Gachora  carded +8 to take the Girls 11-12 division, while Siqian Yu matched that effort with +8 in the Girls 13-14 category. Shani D’Souza rounded off the winners’ list, taking home the Girls 15-18 title with a score of +30.

At the same time, Royal Nairobi Golf Club’s John Lejirma delivered an outstanding performance to win the 2025 NCBA Nyanza Open Hippo Pot with an impressive total score of 1-under-par 209 at the Nyanza Golf Club in Kisumu.

The Kenya Amateur Golf Championship (KAGC) Series leader carded rounds of 70, 69, and 70 to finish first ahead of William Odek and John Koina who who finished second and third on par (69, 72, 69) and five-over par 215 (72, 71, 71), respectively.

Last year’s winner, John Kamais had to settle for eighth after carding 13-over par 223, thanks to a disappointing second round on Saturday that saw him play in excess of eight strokes.

John Kamais of Nakuru Golf Club celebrates after winning the 2024 Nyanza Open Hippo Pot.

By DANIELLA APIYO

Nakuru Golf Club’s John Kamais will return to Nyanza Golf Club this weekend, from Friday, October 10, through to Sunday, 12, aiming to defend the NCBA Nyanza Open – Hippo Pot title. Click this link https://a.meridianbet.ke/c/C7pYjz to start gaming and stand a chance of winning big with Meridianbet.

Last year, Kamais carded 9-over par 219 to finish ahead of John Lejirma (221), John Timbe (222), and John Koina (222) in a battle of Johns and will be hoping to replicate the same performance this weekend.

This year, a total of 42 golfers will take to the course hoping to get a share of the KES 400,000 prize purse, including the Ugandan duo of Joseph Kasozi, who finished fifth last year, and Titus Okwong.

Elvis Muigua, William Odek, and Isaac Makokha are some of the other names on the list for the Nyanza showdown.

Last weekend, David Kiragu put up a strong fight to emerge as the 2025 NCBA Tea Fields Trophy champion as the KAGC Series pitched camp in Kericho.

Kiragu scored 3-over-par 219 to finish ahead of Elly Barno and Elvis Muigua who were tied on 6-over-par 222, as defending champion Titus Okwong from Uganda, played four strokes more to finish on 10-over-par 226.

The Muthaiga Golf Club player carded 77 in the first round on Friday but played seven strokes less on Saturday to finish the second round 2-under-par 70. On Sunday, he managed to play even par to finish first and dethrone Okwong.

On his part, Barno played rounds of 75, 76, and 71 while Muigua carded 74, 75, and 73 across the three days.

Speaking ahead of the tournament, NCBA Group Managing Director John Gachora said: “We are happy to be at Nyanza this weekend for another important leg of the KAGC Series. Our commitment this year to supporting golf’s full cycle means that we get to support elite amateurs through this series. Apart from this, the NCBA Golf Series will continue this weekend with the Diamond Leisure Lodge Monthly Mug, and we will also be having a junior event at the Royal Nairobi Golf Club, all these are events within our broader golf umbrella.”

Elsewhere, more golfers will have a chance to book their slots for the NCBA Golf Series Grand Finale during the Diamond Leisure Lodge Monthly Mug on Saturday.

More than 100 golfers are expected to grace the course in Diani for the event that will see four more players join the long list of golfers who have already secured their tickets for Muthaiga.

Last weekend, Luther Kamau, Nancy Steinmann Nyambura Muigai, Stuart Scott, Doug McIntyre, and Prince Moreno emerged triumphant in different categories during the Great Rift Valley Lodge qualifying leg, earning themselves the coveted slots.

In addition, the sixth leg of the U.S. Kids Golf Nairobi Fall Tour will be held on Sunday at the Royal Nairobi Golf Club

The event, which is jointly organized by U.S. Kids Golf and the Junior Golf Foundation Kenya, is expected to attract over 100 junior golfers aged between 5 and 18 years, both boys and girls.