Wu Ashun clinched the 2022 Magical Kenya Open title yesterday at the Muthaiga Golf Club with a four shot lead following an under 16 score to become the first Asian to win the tournament and take home 279,000 Euros (around Sh36 million).
The 36-year-old Kenya Open debutant and four time European Tour winner came from the back after two rounds of trailing.
Wu was effective on his shot variation and execution in the last nine holes with a series of birdies helping his course. The two-time Japan Open winner was calm in his duty as he eventually closed at 65 score on the board.
He was the third Chinese winner in DP World Tour history when he won his first title on home soil, during the 2015 Volvo China Open, and since then he has added further wins in Austria and the Netherlands to confirm his international quality.
Speaking during a presentation at the club’s putting green led by President Uhuru Kenyatta, the player was ecstatic and thanked the organisers for a great event.
“I want to thank the Kenya Open Golf Limited and Muthaiga Golf Club for hosting a good event for all of us. We have enjoyed ourselves and this award means a lot to me. For my family and sponsor plus the China Golf Federation, I owe you a debt of gratitude,” said the world number 125 who was feted with an iconic rhino sculpture and champion’s jacket.
Junior players
During the closing ceremony, President Kenyatta thanked the Junior Golf Foundation Kenya Golf Federation for their commitment to develop the game. “I am thankful for what the JGF has done in its effort to grow the game with a target of 6,000 junior players by next year. This will ensure many more young players will come through as is evidenced by Njoroge Kibugu here. As a government, we have decided we will take him to the Sandall Open in Belgium. Besides that, we will support his transition to Pro-Golf and also provide him and his team with kits. We have shown that we can be able to host and also compete with the best,” he said. Cabinet Secretary of Sports Amina Mohamed praised the organisation of the tournament. “This tournament just goes to show that Kenya is home to golf.Young player Njoroge Kibugu is a role model and an inspiration and this tournament has given him a good platform. At Kasarani, we will set up a facility to train amateurs. We have come up with a curriculum that will be taken to the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development dubbed ‘Golf Mashinani’. If the Sports Fund was not present, we would be struggling and this initiative under president Kenyatta’s leadership has helped us a lot,” she stated.
