The 2022 Uganda Golf Club Ladies Open flagged off today in power with a sixty million ug shillings boost in sponsorship from the National Medical Stores.
Scheduled to drive from today -17th August- to Saturday 20th at the 72 par in Kitante, the contest will bring on course over 230 golfers from Entebbe golf club, Lira, Mbarara, Fort Portal, Mbale Jinja, and Kabale among other clubs in the country.
The tournament will mainly aim at promoting a healthy lifestyle for women in sports according to the lady captain of UGC, Grace Kabonero.
“The tournament means alot to women in sports as we have been encouraging coperates to come in as well. We have so many ladies in the offices and they sit for quite a long time. Some of them develop clots, some who are pregnant sit for long and in the end develop complications so we encourage ladies to come out and have an exercise, walk around and change environment from the office.” Grace told Afrosports.
She also likened walking on the course to swimming where one exercises the whole body so the ladies would enjoy themselves on the course and in one way, forget about their stresses at home and office.
Numerous prizes are set to be won in the different categories including the silver category which is the major competition involving players whose handicap index ranges from 0 to 11.9 and will be played for three days. Four net winners will be awarded in this category.
Players with indexes ranging from 12.0 to 24.8 will feature in the bronze category for two days and those whose indexes range from 25.0 to 36 will play in the one-day subsidiary women’s category.
Three groups will be available for the men as well in their handicap but will be played only in one day with three winners and three prizes at the end.
Also to feature in the tournament will be the seniors, both men and women then the juniors in boys and girls.
This year Flavia Namukalu and Irene Nakalembe who recently turned pro will compete in the professionals category which will have upto 48 pros vying for 10 million ugx.
The main event sponsors National Medical Stores will provide kits for the players on game day in addition to the Sixty million ugx bounty.
According to the NMS Principal Public Relations Officer Sheilla Nduhukire, many people in the cooperate world are stuck in a vicious cycle of work-traffic-home so this will be a getaway for them and also will bring about healthy lives through exercising.
Other sponsors are Tusker Malt, NCBA Bank, Case Hospital and Uganda Airlines who offered two return tickets to Kenya for the tournament winner and runner up.
