Indian player Pranay Kapur made his maiden win at the Kenya Amateur Golf Championships (KAGC) series, the Kabete Open at the par 72 Vetlab Golf today.
Coming from Royal Johannesburg in South Africa Club, Kapur fired one over par 217 for the title beating Nyali Club’s Adel Balala and Zambian Gilbert Chalwe who tied in second with three over 219 in the three day tournament that teed off on Friday to today.
“It was a decent tournament. I started with a very rough round on Friday but improved on my putting in the second round. I started the third round I was tied with three other people for the lead, but I knew I had to stay calm and composed and play my game. Overall, it was a good tournament, and I liked the way I bounced back,” Kapur said.
It was yet another master-class display from teenage sensation Kanana Muthomi as she finished as the best lady with an overall score of ten-over-par 226, tied in position eight overall.
Kapur had a rough start on Friday, picking six bogeys in the 3rd, 4th, 7th, 10th, 14th, and 18th while paring the rest to finish on 78 strokes. However, he had a blemish-free second round, collecting birdies in the 2nd, 7th, 15th, and 16th, and playing par in the other holes to finish the round with four strokes to spare.
On his part, Balala, who was aiming for his fourth title in the tournament, started the tournament on the wrong footing also, picking a double-bogey on the first hole and five bogeys in the 2nd, 3rd, 6th, 15th, and 18th and pars on the rest on Friday to finish on 79. On Saturday, he played birdies in the 7th, 9th, 12th, 15th, and 17th but bogeyed the 10th and 18th while playing level on the rest to finish the round on 69 strokes. In the final round, he picked an eagle on the 18th, birdies in the 7th, 8th, and 12th, and bogeys on the 1st, 3rd, 13th, and 14th to finish the tournament on three-over-par 219.
Chalwe played his best round on Sunday, moving 11 places on the final round to finish joint-second with Balala. A perfect start on Sunday with consecutive birdies in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th, and another one in the 12th, with only one dropped stroke on the 6th, saw him card four-under-par 68 to make up for the 76 and 75 scores in the first and second rounds, respectively.
Elvis Muigua, who is third on the KAGC standings, and championship leader John Lejirma both finished with a total of 221 (+5) after three rounds in yet another hotly contested battle, as second on the series rankings this season, Michael Karanga, finished a distant 14th.
The event had drawn 90 top players from around the world, vying for critical World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) and Kenya Amateur Golf Championship (KAGC) points. The participants included 80 from Kenya, two each from Rwanda, Mauritius, and Austria, and one each from Zambia, South Africa, and Burundi.
Focus now shifts to the second bit of the three-part Kenya Swing series with the NCBA Kenya Amateur Matchplay Championship teeing off this Friday, 25th July, through to Sunday, 27th at the Sigona Golf Club.
Top ten leaderboard
- Pranay Kapur (Royal- Johannesburg) 78, 68, 71= 217
- Adel Balala (Nyali) 79, 69, 71= 219
- Gilbert Chalwe (Royal-Johannesburg) 76, 75, 68= 219
- Elvis Muigua (Ndumberi) 73, 73, 75= 221
- John Lejirma (Royal- Nairobi) 72, 74, 75=221
- Isaac makokha (Kenya Railways) 74, 74, 75= 223
- Dennis Maara (Limuru) 73, 73, 78= 224
- Ewan Widor (San Roque- Australia) 80, 73, 73= 226
- Lee Njoroge (Vet Lab) 79, 74, 73= 226
- Ebill Omollo (Vet Lab) 78, 73, 75= 226
- Josphat Rono (Golf Park) 78, 71, 77= 226
- Dusabe Felix (Kigali-Rwanda) 75, 78, 73= 226
- Kanana Muthomi (Windsor) 75, 75, 76=226