Malawi blows chance in Tri-nation Golf tourney
Malawi national junior golf team gave away a three-point lead on the final day of the Tri-Nations Junior Golf Tournament and a chance of winning their maiden title and, resultantly, Zambia took the crown.
After two days of sparring on the Lilongwe Golf Club’s thickly green course, the hosts had a strong 20.5 points while Zimbabwe had 17.5 points and Zambia was trailing on third with 16 points.
On Saturday, Zambia raked in 10 points to amass 26 while Malawi could only add 4.5 points to accumulate25 points and defending champions Zimbabwe finished bottom with 20.5 points, according to Golf Union of Malawi.
Malawi’s team comprised Whiteman Brown, Christopher Mzokomera, Ekari Mvula, Kelvin Mpanje, Aadil Parker and Rashid Salimu.
In ladies category, Malawi, making its debut appearance at the competition, finished bottom with 4.5 points while Zambia, with 11 points were crowned champions and Zimbabwe came second with five points.
The hosts consisted Zita Rodrick, Jenipher Chitsanzo, Ganizani Lusho Tembo and Doreen Lazaro.
Malawi team manager Dingaan Chirwa said he was impressed with the performance of his teams despite failing to win the titles.
“To finish second ahead of Zimbabwe, which is ranked second in Africa, is a great achievement. On ladies, the team was only assembled 12 months ago because we have never had a junior side. I also feel that they performed beyond our expectations,” he said.
Zambia team leader Cosmus Mufaya also showered praise on the Malawi team for its performance.
“They put up an extraordinary performance. I didn’t expect this from them honestly. We used to call them whipping boys because they were not competitive. But they are now a real tough side,” he said.
On their victory he said: “It was down to concentration from both of our teams. We are excited to win in this competition which we value.”n
