•Trailblazing Wafula became the first Kenyan golfer to make the LET cut during last year’s MKLO and will be looking to replicate her performance.
•Wafula, who is the star of the Rose Naliaka production line, goes into the four-day event with much-needed local knowledge at Vipingo, where she has been practicing for the event.
Image: HANDOUT
Kenya’s celebrated lady amateur Naomi Wafula will lead the star-studded Team Kenya to the Ladies European Tour (LET) Magical Kenya Ladies Open slated for the Vipingo Ridge PGA Baobab course on February 8.
Wafula, a Vipingo Ridge’s PGA Academy top student, is among the five Kenyans invited to the prestigious LET season-opener which has since established itself as one of the most popular rounds of the series.
Trailblazing Wafula became the first Kenyan golfer to make the LET cut during last year’s MKLO and will be looking to replicate her performance.
Wafula, who is the star of the Rose Naliaka production line, goes into the four-day event with much-needed local knowledge at Vipingo, where she has been practicing for the event.
Wafula played the prestigious Amundi German Masters in Berlin at the invitation of the LET.
Despite being a professional tour, amateur Wafula was put forward by promoters of the Magical Kenya Ladies Open U.COM Event and took her place among the player field of 126.
When asked about her Germany tour experience, Wafula told the LET media team: “I had a fun week. I got to learn and experience a lot and played with amazing players who told me the secret is practice and more practice. I was pleased with my scores even though I didn’t cut because they showed how much my game has improved since training with the PGA Academy.”
Wafula went on: “I am so grateful to Vipingo Ridge, U.COM, and everyone who has supported me on this journey. I have come from a humble background, cooking and selling chips in my village, and now I am traveling the world with golf. I hope my story will inspire others and we will see more Kenyans join professional tours in time.”
The Team
The Kenyan team for this year’s event is more or less the same as last year’s outfit. Amateur Chanelle Wangari of VetLab Golf and Mercy Nyanchama, who is unattached are also in the mix.
Vipingo Ridge amateur Jacqueline Walter is also back after her debut in last year’s edition of the MKLO. Kellie Wahito Gachaga, a Muthaiga-based amateur, is also part of the team after landing an invite.
Gichaga competed in four events for the Trojans in the US in the 2021/22 season, posting a season-scoring average of 77.33.
Before her Little Rock golfing experience, Gichaga attended Aga Khan Academy. She claimed the Mombasa Cup Championship as well as the 2018 Kenya Junior Stroke-play Championship.
MKLO director, Dirk Glittenberg, said Kenya is very special to the LET schedule, adding: “To be able to secure the official kick-off season event in the country is once again a fantastic opportunity.”
Among the notable participants, who have already signed up for the tournament, are German Alexandra Försterling who won the 2023 Swiss Ladies Open and Mallorca Ladies Open.
Others are —German Masters’ champion Kristýna Napoleaová from the Czech Republic, Alice Hewson (England), third-place finisher April Angurasaranee (Thailand), and last year’s hole-in-one sensation, Swedish Lisa Pettersson.
Entries for the tournament opened on January 1 with a field of 108 players expected to compete over four days for a share of the €300,000 prize money.