Zone VI Golf tourney shifted

International golf bodies—Royal and Ancient (R & A) and the Zone VI—have accepted Golf Union of Malawi’s (GUoM) request to shift the Zone VI tournament by a week following the death of former president Bingu wa Mutharika.

GUoM president James Chimwaza on Thursday said the regional tournament will now be played from April 24-27.

Initially, the tournament was supposed to run from April 16-19, but Sports Council asked the Golf Union of Malawi (GUoM) to consider shifting the regional golf tournament by a week as it was slated to be staged during the mourning period.

“After consultations with the two bodies and the participating teams, it was decided that we shift the dates to immediately after the burial that will take place on April 23,” Chimwaza said.

However, the GUoM president said delaying the tournament further than the new dates would have cost the nation an opportunity to host the event.

“The good thing is that all the stakeholders were very understanding and they sent their condolences,” he said.

However, national coach Chris Kachiguma said he was yet to get communication from GUoM on the new dates.

“Of course, we broke camp following the demise of the former president and we are planning to regroup next week.

“That means we will also break on the day of the burial, but we are yet to get communication from the authorities,” Kachiguma said.