Magical Kenya Ladies Open: Ladies European Tour Season Opener
6th Feb: MKLO Opening Ceremony
Tuesday 6th February - The Magical Kenya Ladies Open (MKLO) kicked off tonight at Vipingo Ridge, marking the start of the Ladies European Tour (LET) season 2024.
The opening ceremony, hosted by H.E Gideon Mung’aro, Governor of Kilifi County, and Flora Mbetsa Chibule, Deputy Governor of Kilifi County, set the stage for the tournament.
Players will tackle the challenging Baobab Course, known for its winds and wildlife sightings. The LET competition starts on Thursday, however Amateurs will pair with the Pros on Wednesday 7th February to play in the ProAm Competition.
With 108 players competing for €300,000, including notable names like Alexandra Försterling, Kristýna Napoleaová, Alice Hewson, April Angurasaranee, Lisa Pettersson, and Kenya’s Naomi Wafula, the competition promises excitement.
Fun Facts: MKLO 2024
Vipingo Ridge is buzzing with great energy. The 2024 MKLO is unique and includes players from 34 nations, 11 invitees, 26 tour winners, 20 rookies, and 14 debutants!
Photo credit: LET
Additional fun facts about MKLO 2024 include Avani Prashanth, aged 17, as the youngest player in the field, Laura Sluman making history as the first player from Panama to compete on the LET, and Dorota Zalewska as the first player from Poland to grace the tournament. Last year we watched April Angurasaranee take home 2nd place. This year April and Alice Hewson are determined to surpass their runner-up finishes from 2023, while Diksha Dagar enters as the highest-ranked player from last year's Race to Costa del Sol, holding the third position.
Commenting on the tournament, U.COM Event Managing Director Dirk Glittenberg expressed excitement for the competition. The event will be broadcast globally, showcasing top-level golf at Vipingo Ridge. The general public are also invited to watch the Tournament in person.
SPECTATOR TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE TO PURCHASE. CLICK BELOW TO BUY MKLO TICKETS
The tournament will also be aired from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm from Thursday, February 8, to Saturday, February 10, and from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm on Sunday, February 11, East African Time (EAT). Whether you are here or far way, you can enjoy the action at Vipingo Ridge from February 8th to 11th, 2024.
7th Feb: The Pro-Am Competition
Wednesday 7th February - Today 190 golfers kicked off the day at 7am. Amateur golfers joined forces with LET (Ladies European Tour) professionals for an exhilarating round of golf, setting the stage for the main tournament which officially begins on Thursday 8th February.
The Results
Congratulations to all the players to who took part in today’s competition. After a very hot and thrilling day, the results of the Pro-Am are out as follows:
First Place: Lisa Petterson & Gabriella Cowley (pros) + Naeem Pasta, Vimal Ranpura & Karan. -32
Second Place: Chiara Tamburlini & Hayley Davis (pros) + Trish Boulton, Aniz Dopat & Alnoor Dhand. -31
Third Place: Marta Sanz Barrio, Agathe Sauzon (pros) + Michelle Muhanda, Millicent Melo & Willy Sang. -28
Notable achievements in addition:
Men’s nearest to the pin: Samuel Mwangi 5.2M
Ladies nearest to the pin: Mary Nyamemba 8.6M
Men’s longest drive: Fareen Samj 270 yards
Ladies longest drive: Sandrah Githere 224 yards
8th Feb - The Ladies European Tour Begins!
A Leading Three-way Tie
The fourth edition of the Magical Kenya Ladies Open teed-off today at the par-73 PGA Baobab course, Vipingo Ridge in Kilifi where England's Eleanor Givens, South Africa's Cara Gorlei, and 23-year-old Lauren Walsh from Ireland carded 4-under par 69 to end the day in a three-way share of the lead.
The trio sits a shot above another three-way tie for second featuring Northern Ireland’s Olivia Mehaffey, Italy’s 24-year-old Alessandra Fanali and Denmark’s 24-year-old Sofie Kibsgaard Nielsen, who are tied on 3-under par, 70.
How the Kenyan Amateurs got on
It was a challenging outing for the Kenyan amateurs taking part in the event, but Vipingo-based Jacquelyne Walter emerged best of the lot, finishing the round in a tie for 40th place after carding a round of 2-over par 75 to leave her in contention for tomorrow’s cut which will reduce the field to 60 and ties.
Playing in her first Magical Kenya Ladies Open, Kenyan amateur Kellie Gachaga carded a score of 8-over par 81, one behind Naomi Wafula who carded a round of 7-over par 80. Speaking after her round, Kellie said; “This is my first time playing at the Magical Kenya Ladies Open and I feel very honoured and happy to be representing Kenya. I was a bit nervous going into this, but I am confident in the preparation that I had put in and I just went out there and enjoyed my time and I am happy with that.”
Jacquelyne Walter will be the first Kenyan to tee off at 8:51AM off the first tee. Chanelle Wangari will also get her round going from the first tee, at 12:32 PM, with Naomi Wafula, Mercy Nyanchama and Kellie Wahito Gachaga all teeing off between 1 PM and 2 PM.
We look forward to tomorrow’s results. Who will make the cut?
Live blog shot by shot available on: Ladies European Tour: Magical Kenya Ladies Open 2024 Live Blog (golfpost.com)
9th Feb - Who Will Make The Cut?
South Africa's Cara Gorlei carded 1- under par 72 in the second round of action at the 2024 Magical Kenya Ladies Open, to take her total for the tournament to 5-under par, 141 and into the lead as the tournament heads into the weekend.
Cara, who started the day as part of a three-way tie at the top of the leaderboard alongside England's Eleanor Givens and Lauren Walsh from Ireland, wasted little time in making her intent clear, with three birdies from her first three holes.
She would drop her first shot at the par-5 seventh, to see her card a score of 35 in the front nine. She started her back nine in almost similar fashion to the front nine, this time hitting three birdies through the first four holes, before double bogeying the par-4 fourteenth. That would be a turning point in her round as she struggled through the last four holes, with bogeys at the 16th and 18th to post a score of 37 on the back nine.
Cara said “I started birdie, birdie, par, birdie got off to a hot start and then I had a nice little four-putt that set me back a little bit and then came in slow. To start the back nine, I had another three in a row, so that was great, but also still just came in slow; the putting was just very hot and cold.
The round's best score belonged to 23-year-old Samantha Bruce of the Philippines, who played a blemish free round, to post a 5-under par 68 score, courtesy of five birdies, and taking her total for the tournament to 2-under par 144; which leaves her in a tie for seventh place going into Moving Day.
The cut line was set at 6-over par,152, with a total of 67 players making the cut to play into the weekend for an opportunity to win part of the tournament's 300,000 Euros (KShs 51,900,000) prize fund.
None of the five Kenyans playing at the event made the cut with Naomi Wafula finishing the day as the highest finisher of the lot with a 13-over par 159 score to end her campaign tied in 95th.
Jacquelyne Walter, who played a solid 2-over par round yesterday, shot 13-over par on Friday to take her total for the tourney to 15-over par 161 for a tie in 100th place.
Tournament debutant, Kellie Gachaga, carded 81 on both days, taking her total for the tournament to 16-over par 162, two shots better than Chanelle Wangari who ended her challenge at the event with an 18-over par 164 score. Meanwhile Mercy Nyanchama shot a round of 80 on Friday, seven better than she had on Thursday, for a total of 27-over par 173.
Dorota Zalewska and Lily May Humphreys will get the action underway on Moving Day tomorrow at 8:59 AM, with the leaders teeing off at 1:15 PM.
10th Feb - Safaricom Champions Young Aspiring Golfers
Safaricom sponsored a junior golf clinic at this years Magical Kenya Ladies Open, benefiting more than 50 junior golfers who received full-day coaching from professional golfers.
Safaricom, known for its culture of supporting and nurturing talents in the country, committed KES.34.8 million to support the event.
“Sports sponsorship remains a key area for us because of its role in transforming the lives of many young Kenyans. As part of our commitment to supporting and nurturing talent, today we supported junior clinics where over 50 children were trained by golf professionals. The young golfers we nurture and develop are the future of the country’s golf sport,” said Peter Ndegwa, CEO of Safaricom.
Players and spectators on Saturday, February 10, 2024, got a glimpse of some of the animals on the side-lines of the third round of the tournament. Vipingo Ridge has 195 animals, up from 151 in 2023. The most photographed animals on the Ridge are Zebra and Giraffe. Here we see the Ladies golfers enjoying time with the Giraffes.
11th Feb - Singapore’s Shannon Tan Wins the Magical Kenya Ladies Open
Teenager Shannon Tan made history by winning on her debut as a professional on the Ladies European Tour at the season-opening Kenya Ladies Open.
Nineteen-year-old Shannon Tan from Singapore carded a final round of 3 under par 70 to taker her total score for the tournament to 12 under par 280 to win the 2024 Magical Kenya Ladies Open on her debut event on the Ladies European Tour (LET). She edged out her closest challenger, Alessandra Fanali from Italy, by four shots to seal her fantastic debut win on the Tour and become Singapore’s first LET winner.
She had a hot start to her final round, holing three birdies in the first five holes before dropping a shot at the par-five sixth. She immediately recovered that shot in the par-5 seventh with a birdie, before dropping another short at the par-3 eighth to card a total of 35 on the first nine. She played bogey-free on the back nine, holing a birdie at the par-5 11th for a total of 35.
For her outstanding performance in Vipingo, Shannon will bank KES 7.9 million (€45,000), earn 500 LET order of merit points, and qualify to play at next week’s prestigious Aramco Saudi Ladies International presented by PIF whose prize kitty is KES 812 million (USD 5 million).
Speaking after the round, she said:
“It was close until hole 16 where it was like a one-shot difference… but I stuck to my own game plan just trying to hit every fairway and every green I can. So, basically, that was my game plan throughout the whole day today.”
Commenting on her decision to turn pro golfer just before this event, she said:
“It was a tough decision to begin with, but I made the decision."
Commenting on becoming the first winner from Singapore on the LET, she said:
“I would say I am proud. Juniors back home [now] know that it is possible, and they know anything is possible and I guess it [will] kind of push them a little bit and inspire them.”
Commenting on her next steps, she said:
“I will I go into every event with the same mindset and target; just trying to do my best and control what can be controlled; so, I will just try and stick to my game plan throughout the whole season.”
In Second Place, 24-year-old Alessandra Fanali played level par 37 on the first nine courtesy of birdies at the second and the seventh holes and bogeys at the fifth and the eighth. She made a steady start to the back nine, playing bogey-free through the first five holes before holing a birdie at the par-5 15th. She, however, dropped consecutive shots at the 16th and 17th holes for a score of 1-over par 74 for the day; taking her total for the tournament to 8-under par 284.
There was a five-way share for third place featuring Belgium’s Manon De Roey, Spain’s Ana Pelaez Trivino, England’s Alice Hewson, Chiara Tamburlini from Switszerland and Nataliya Guseva – who all ended their challenge in Vipingo with scores of 4-under par 288 to complete the podium places.
The event was organised by U.COM, played at the Vipingo Ridge PGA Baobab Golf Course and sponsored by the Government of Kenya, The County Government of Kilifi, Safaricom’s MPesa, Huawei, East African Breweries Limited, and Absa Bank Kenya.