Concerns over local golfers’ performance at Magical Kenya Open
Four amateurs took centre stage at the tournament but only Kenya amateur team captain John Lejirma of Railways Golf Club and Harish Shashwat had positive runs
Kenyan golfers’ performance in the Magical Kenya Open (MKO) has not been great in recent times, a scenario that has generated concern among fans.
This year, despite Kenya lining up 19 players, no player went past round two thus none made the cut on day three. The situation has been blamed on lack of enough games to expose local players to the competition.
Only Riz Charania did a good job. The 40 year old Windsor Golf & Country club did a good job but finished on a score of +3(145) after two rounds. The 13 pros on duty for Kenya largely disappointed despite the opportunities accorded to them by the DP World Tour and the organisers Kenya Open Golf Limited (KOGL).
Four amateurs took centre stage at the tournament but only Kenya amateur team captain John Lejirma of Railways Golf Club and Harish Shashwat had positive runs. Both finished on +4(146) score after two rounds.
Even the home players at the venue of the four day event (Par 71 Muthaiga Golf Club) did not do enough to create hype. The trio of Greg Snow, Mutahi Kibugu and Njoroge Kibugu struggled for a decent showing despite understanding the course and its terrains so well. This left a bad and sour taste on the home front despite government and local sponsors spending tons of money on marketing the event.
There are murmurs that the organisers will in future consider cutting the matrix for qualifying despite the recent threats by the Professional Golfers of Kenya (PGK) to seek legal redress over number of Kenyan players allotted for the tournament.
Most fans especially on social media and golfing chat groups have expressed displeasure with the casual attitude and lack of effort by local players with most dubbing the show as “embarrassing”. For now, it is back to the drawing board as eyes shift to MKO 2026.
