Following on from the Magical Kenya Ladies Open (MKLO), Kenya’s top lady golfers headed to South Africa for a special invitational event arranged by The R&A. Amongst the Kenyan ladies team, representing Kenya was Vipingo Ridge sponsored talent Naomi Wafula. Naomi, who made history last year as the first golfer to make the cut at the MKLO, served as the Kenya Team Captain for this event.

The Africa Amateur Championship in South Africa

Twenty women from across the Africa continent were invited to Leopard Creek Country Club in South Africa for a new event. This championship complements other similar events organised by The R&A in Asia-Pacific and Latin America. The format was a 54-hole stroke play with the winner receiving exemptions into several premium events.

Naomi attended the first Africa High Performance Programme in October 2023 and this championship aims to build on this, enabling players from Africa to play at the highest level, as well as create a pathway for African golfers to develop and inspire others.

The Programme

Naomi was joined by fellow Kenyans Chanelle Mwangi, Mercy Nyabande, Serah Khanyereri and Ashley Ouma as Team Kenya.

Monday 19th February was the official first practice day, player registration and a welcome reception event with a live band. Tuesday marked the second practice day before Round 1 on Wednesday morning. In parallel to the ladies competition the Men’s event featured 72 players and had another one tee start.

Thursday was Round 2 to with another one tee start for the Men and another for the Womens. The Men’s cut took place on Thursday reducing the field to 40, while the ladies play continued with 20 competitors. Friday marked the final day of competition for the Women's game, while Saturday saw the conclusion of the Men's competition, followed by a televised prize-giving ceremony for both championships.

The Results

Naomi secured the 8th position after completing 54 holes, while her teammate Chanelle 'Channy' Mwangi delivered an impressive performance, clinching the fourth spot as the highest-ranking Kenyan. Reflecting on the championship, Naomi shared her thoughts:

“I played well on day one until the last hole when I went into the water a couple of times, which lowered my ranking. On day two I was keeping it together until the last 4 holes, and again that last hole I went into the water twice. But I am happy that on day 3 I fought. My goal was to get back into the top 5. Even though I did not achieve that goal, am so happy for this experience and the golf course is so beautiful. I really loved the course.”

Naomi also expressed that the Kenyan team were delighted with Chanelle’s result, beating three of the South Africans, and the Chairman was happy with their performance.

Beyond golf

The fantastic programme also included a number of other elements:

The inaugural R&A Africa Women’s Amateur Invitational was a great success, with plenty of positives for the Kenyan Women’s team to take away, including some great memories.