EDITORIAL
Hosting Ladies European Tour another big win
for Kenya
I
ts good news for Kenya’s golf as
the inaugural ladies Magical Kenya
tournament has been admitted to
the elite Ladies European Tour. This
is a step in the right direction for
the ladies in Kenya and East Africa
in general. Ladies golf in Kenya has
been seriously eclipsed with very
little attention being paid to what is
going on in the Kenya Ladies Golf
Union circles. This has critically
hindered the development of the
sport among ladies.
The fact that we only have two lady
golf professionals is bad enough
but the story state of affairs is
exacerbated by the reality that we
have too few single handicappers
among the womenfolk. We are
optimistic that staging a world
class event in Kenya will jolt our
ladies from the deep slumber. This
is no doubt a noble step towards
redeeming the game. We would
like to see more efforts being set in
motion at the amateur level more
so with an eye on identifying and
nurturing talent at the juniors’ level.
Staging an event of this magnitude
in Kenya is another demonstration
of how the government, through
the Magical Kenya brand, is keen
on promoting the country as a golf
destination. Kenya now plays host
to three international events, evenly
spread over the year. We believe
there’s still room for at least getting
two more events admitted on the
international calendar. The benefits
4
of such sponsorships are glaringly
obvious.
Safari Tour
Professional golfers have embarked
on the arduous road to Magical
Kenya Open. More than 60
professional golfers from East Africa
will be chasing eight automatic
qualifications through the Safari Tour.
We would like to laud the organizers
of Safari Tour for coming up with this
tournament that ensures local pros
remain competitive in the run up to
the European Tour sanctioned Kenya
Open. For a long time, local pros
have always been disadvantaged,
taking part in Kenya Open without
the requisite match fitness and
mental strength.
The tough format and numerous
rounds across three countries that
the players have to contend with to
make the cut will definitely ensure
our pros remain fully engaged.
It is also worth noting that The
Safari Tour has brought sanity in
allocation of slots by spelling out
a predetermined and objective
qualification criterion. Gone are the
days when some opaque practice
would be used to select players
often leading to undeserving pros
finding their way to Kenya Open. We
are confident that at the end of the
series, Safari Tour will yield the best
players who can fiercely compete
against the visiting pros at the
Magical Kenya Open.
Talent
Golf has for a long time been
considered a recreation sport. But
this perception is fast changing as
sports is becoming a well-paying
full time venture. The story of Serah
Khanyereri is very encouraging. From
the humble dwellings of Nairobi’s
Kangemi suburb, young Serah is
now a student at Raritan Valley
Community college in New Jersey on
a fully paid golf scholarship. This is a
testament of opportunity meeting a
strong will and determination. And
with this move, Serah has embarked
on a journey to re-write her story.
It is our hope that Serah will stay
focused on her journey to joining the
professional golf ranks in the United
States. On her young shoulders,
she carries hope for the hundreds
of talented youngsters who are
harbouring the dream of making a
breakthrough in life through sports.
We would like to acknowledge
the efforts of veteran golfer Rose
Naliaka in mentoring Serah and other
young girls from disadvantaged
backgrounds. It is encouraging that
a number of similar programmes are
coming up targeting these vulnerable
youngsters. Let these academies
emulate Rose Naliaka’s Africa Golf
Programme model and create myriad
international networks to uplift the
lives of our children.