Karimi’s team wins Nyali Leg of Johnnie Walker Series

The team of Christine Ockotch, Florence Karimi, Martin Ombura and Mburu Kariuki, carded a combined score of 131 points to be crowned the overall winners of the eleventh leg of the Johnnie Walker Golf Series held on Saturday at Nyali Golf & Country Club.

Claiming the second position was the team comprising of Jon Stokes, Pauline Gachihi, Mary Kandu and Petronilah Kalee who managed a combined 128 points on count-back, fending off the challenge from the team of Joyce Masai, Alice Wahome, Martin Wahome and Lumatete Muchai who also combine for a score of 128 points to seal the second runners-up position.

Meanwhile, Naveed Arif carded 43 points to emerge the winner in the Men’s Category beating Peter Gathuri who posted 38 points to claim the second position.

In the Ladies Category, Provia Othiambo, posted 43 points to claim the top honours ahead of Harsimran Kaur who scored 40 points to emerge second.

Claiming top positions in the Nines were Susan Mwangi who scored 23 points in the first nine, and Anthony Kariuki also scored 23 points in the second nine.

In the Longest Drive contest, Charles Rob and Provia Odhiambo emerged respective winners in the Men’s and Ladies categories, while Moses Wanjohi claimed top honors in the Nearest to the Pin challenge.

The event attracted a field of 153 players who braved the hot coastal conditions to battle it out for the qualifying positions. The top three teams now join the list of teams to play in the next round of the Series – Eagles Round at Muthaiga Golf Club, as they aim to make the cut to play in the Series’ Grand Finale where a fully paid-up trip to the iconic Gleneagles Golf Course in Scotland will be up for grabs.

Speaking during the event, Mary Kandu, Nyali’s immediate former Lady Captain, expressed her excitement after her team qualified for the tournament’s Semi-Final round.

“The course was really good apart from the greens, which were top dressed and so some of them were fast while others were a bit slow, but the course was in good conditions.”

This is one of the biggest events we have held this year at the club, and we thank KBL for the sponsorship and for giving us golfers the opportunity to better our skills and competitiveness. Gleneagles is a dream destination for any golfer and we hope the ultimate winners will come from this club,” said Kandu.

Leah Mwanzia, KBL’s Coast Regional Sales Representative said: “We are delighted to be at this stage of the competition as it means that we are edging closer to our ultimate destination – Gleneagles. We head towards the semi-finals at Muthaiga Golf Club in May and later on play at the Grand Finale at the iconic Gleneagles Golf Course in Scotland. This competition is a fantastic opportunity for the best of our local golfers to experience Gleneagles which is a true bucket-list destination for both golfers and non-golfers alike. I believe that winners from this leg will represent the club very well at the finals,” she said.

She added: “KBL believes in the power of sports as an avenue for our audiences to interact with our brands. This is because sport is an affirmation of societal values, with the ability to bring communities together,” she added.

Following the Nyali event, attention now turns to Limuru Country Club for the twelfth leg of the series dubbed ‘Road to Gleneagles’ on March 26.