This archive report was first published on 25 August 2019.
On a challenging day at the Nyali Golf and Country Club, with temperatures just over 25 degrees Celsius and swirling winds, the top three golfers in the Safari Tour season opener carded impressive scores.
Among them were Golf Park's Jacob Okello, Railway's Alfred Nandwa, and Mumias Sugar's Dismas Indiza, who all returned scores of level-par 71 to lead the field after round one.
Okello's round started off with a triple-bogey at the par-5 first hole, but he made amends with birdies at the par-3 third and the par-5 fifth holes. He later dropped a shot at the par-4 ninth hole, but played a blemish-free back nine, holing birdies at the par-5 11th and the par-3 15th holes.
Nandwa, on the other hand, dropped two shots on the first nine, at the par-3 third and the par-3 sixth holes, but holed a birdie at the par-5 fifth hole for a total of 36. On the back nine, he carded a total of 35, with birdies at the par-5 11th, par-4 13th, and par-5 17th holes, despite dropping shots at the par-3 15th and the par-6 16th holes.
Indiza's round started off strongly, with a blemish-free front nine and birdies at the par-5 first, par-5 fourth, and par-4 eighth holes. However, he struggled on the back nine, dropping shots at the par-3 10th and the par-4 12th and 16th holes, but picking up a solo birdie at the par-5 11th hole.
Other notable golfers in the field included rookie Matthew Wahome, who carded a round of 73 in his first tournament as a golf professional, and Rizwan Charania, Tony Omuli, Simon Ngige, and Greg Snow, who all finished with a three-over par score of 74.
Joseph Karanja, Frank Matilo, Erik Ooko, and David Wakhu finished with a score of 75, four shots off the lead. Wakhu was the winner of the Nyali leg of the 2018/19 Safari Tour season.
Among the elite amateurs invited to this leg of the Safari Tour, Adel Balala finished seven over 78, Gathogo Kaguta returned a score of 80, and Karan Inamdar finished at 82. Andrew Wahome, 13 years old, returned a commendable score of 84.
Lady pro golfer Bhavi Shah had a tough day in the office with a score of 86, and will not be playing tomorrow having fallen foul of the 85 gross score rule that eliminates any player returning a score of 86 or worse. Muthaiga's Nelson Mudanyi, who scored 86, has also been eliminated.
With a total of 46 professional and elite amateur golfers participating in Round One, the field will now be reduced to 44 through the second round, and further reduced to the top 20 and ties after the second round.
Action resumes tomorrow in round two of the leg, which will tee off at 10:00am.
